H.R.H. Princess Lalla Hasnaa presides in Paris the signing of a partnership between the Fondation for the preservation of cultural heritage of Rabat and UNESCO

Last updated Jan 24, 2023

Following their meeting at the 17th session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage, held in Rabat in November 2022, H.R.H and the Director-General of UNESCO signed this document.

This first partnership agreement, which was signed for a period of five years, will carry out activities with Moroccan and African youth while concentrating first on the World Heritage Youth Education Programme and UNESCO.

The Foundation has modified an educational kit created by UNESCO for young people to learn about and comprehend their city’s heritage for the first time ever in the history of the world.

In December 2022, this kit, titled “I discover my heritage,” was distributed to 4,700 students from 62 colleges of the Rabat-Salé-Kénitra Academy for the second time. These students approached with the help of their teachers and under the supervision of heritage experts, including archaeologists, architects, curators of sites, and inspectors of historical monuments, which are city landmarks listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

L'@UNESCO_fr et la Fondation pour la sauvegarde du patrimoine culturel de Rabat ont signé mardi un accord pour renforcer la protection du #patrimoinemondial au #Maroc et en #Afrique. Merci à la Princesse Lalla Hasnaa pour son engagement aux côtés de notre Organisation. 🇺🇳🇲🇦 pic.twitter.com/jdDa85amJV

— Audrey Azoulay (@AAzoulay) January 24, 2023

The general public will then be involved in initiatives to increase awareness and promote cultural heritage, such as the urban exhibition “Rabat, a World Heritage” that His Royal Highness officially opened on January 8 of this year to mark the city of Rabat’s addition to the UNESCO World Heritage List. Through informative plates and a collection of images of the eight parts of the property listed as a World Heritage Site as well as its buffer zone, this exhibition demonstrates the outstanding universal value of the city of Rabat.

Together with UNESCO, the Foundation is dedicated to making a difference on the African continent. The World Heritage Convention will be applied to protected sites in Africa and Morocco as part of this joint effort.

The partnership agreement also includes participation in various regional, national, and international events hosted by UNESCO, as well as capacity-building programs for heritage actors who manage and preserve it in Rabat, Morocco, and Africa.

In the presence of the Minister of National Education, Preschool, and Sports, Chakib Benmoussa, the President of the Moroccan National Commission for UNESCO, Mohammed Mehdi Bensaid, the Minister of Youth, Culture, and Communication, Nouzha Alaoui, the Secretary-General of the Foundation, and Samir Addahre, the Kingdom’s Permanent Ambassador-Delegate to UNESCO, H.R.H met with the Director-General of UNESCO on this occasion.

Along with them, Astrid Gillet, the head of the executive office of Ms. Stefania Giannini, the assistant director general for education, Edouard Matoko, the assistant director-general for priority Africa and external relations at UNESCO, Ernesto Ottone, the assistant director-general for culture, and Julien Pellaux, the director of partnerships, were present at the meeting.

The President of the General Conference, the President of the Executive Board, the Chairs of UNESCO’s electoral groups, and Assistant Directors-General were all present at the reception that the Director-General of the UN Organization hosted in Her Honor at UNESCO House.

H.R.H Princess Lalla Hasnaa was welcomed at UNESCO Headquarters by Director-General Audrey Azoulay, Assistant Director-General for Priority Africa and External Relations, Mr. Edouard Matoko, and the ambassadors of the Arab Group and the Africa Group before being especially welcomed by the Minister of National Education, Preschool, and Sports, President of the Moroccan National Commission for UNESCO, Chakib Benmoussa, the Minister of National Education, and the Minister of National Sports.