International Conference on Safeguarding of Oasis System in the Maghreb
Transport & Urban Development
7-9 May 2025, Tunis, Tunisia. As part of the project for the safeguarding of oasis systems in the Maghreb, the UNESCO Regional Office based in Rabat, in collaboration with the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) Secretariat, the Arab Regional Centre for World Heritage (ARC-WH), ALECSO and other partners, is organizing the “International Conference on Safeguarding of Oasis System in the Maghreb”, in Tunis from 7 to 9 May 2025.
The conference will present a new approach to the preservation of oasis systems and to compare it with existing knowledge on the subject, not only in the Maghreb or Arab countries but also at a global level. It will also serve as a forum for discussing the relevance of UNESCO’s proposed new approach. In addition, it will include the publication of a book that will revisit the themes proposed by UNESCO, highlight the main lessons learnt from the conference, and outline a roadmap to ensure follow-up over the next ten years.
The conference, which builds on the cooperation between the UfM Secretariat and the UNESCO Regional Office for the Maghreb, and benefits from the financial support of the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA), will bring together 200 participants, including representatives from the five Maghreb countries, international experts from various regions of the world, representatives from UNESCO and its partners, and participants from the Tozeur Governorate (local officials, civil society representatives, etc.).
Background
With a view to promote knowledge sharing for sustainable construction and urban heritage, the UfM Secretariat alongside UNESCO and UN-Habitat and Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) organised the three-day Regional Conference “Challenges and Opportunities for Housing Rehabilitation in Historic Settlements of the Arab Region” (Marrakech, Morocco, 13-15 December 2023). The conference recognised the role of historic Arab Cites and Ksours in urban development and economic and social revitalization, as well as the importance of safeguarding urban heritage through effective and innovative housing solutions. It took stock of the status of housing in historic settlements in the MENA Region, through case studies from different countries, and defined the needed solutions and then proposed operational pilot projects to test these solutions.
The programme on “Urban Heritage and Traditional Building Skills in the Southern Mediterranean Region”, launched by the UfM and the UNESCO Office for Maghreb countries, with the financial support of GIZ in July 2023, served to identify and promote good practices in raising awareness, preserving and promoting urban heritage, vernacular architecture and traditional construction techniques, as part of an approach aimed at strengthening the resilience of local heritage. It aimed to strengthen the cultural embeddedness of traditional solutions and their capacity to adapt to the climate, promote a sustainable local economy and create qualified jobs linked to traditional materials and techniques. Representatives of the national governments, as well as experts from national and international organizations, participating in the programme, explored innovative solutions that take advantage of traditional construction and protect urban heritage.
Following the inaugural meeting held in Barcelona, Spain, on 6 July 2023, a series of workshops were organized in 2023 and 2024 in each of the participating countries. The first of these workshops took place in Tunis, Tunisia on 5-7 December 2023, the second workshop took place in Ouarzazate, Morocco on 28-29 February & 1 March 2024, the third workshop took place in Timimoun and Adrar, Algeria on 16-18 April 2024, and the fourth workshop took place in Nouakchott, Mauritania, on 9-10 May 2024.
The Final Meeting of the programme on “Urban Heritage and Traditional Building Skills in the Southern Mediterranean Region”, organized in collaboration with the UNESCO Maghreb Office, with the financial support of AECID in Córdoba, Spain on 5-6 June 2024, built on the results of each of the national workshops held in Algeria, Morocco, Mauritania and Tunisia in 2023-24. The meeting also addressed how to implement official and certified training programs in traditional building techniques, and served to jointly design concrete regional actions to be implemented during the second semester of 2024 and 2025. In addition, the meeting touched upon the role of oasis in triggering development in the inner parts of North African countries and the cultural, as well as the route of Salt caravans in North Africa to be promoted as a touristic destination. To conclude, possible follow-up activities were discussed, including the potential enlargement of the program to Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, and Palestine.
