Rock-Hewn Churches, Lalibela

• Absence of a Management Plan for the property (issue resolved)
• Lack of clearly defined boundaries for the property and the buffer zone
• Impact of the four temporary shelters constructed in 2008
• Insufficient urban and architectural regulations
• Urban development and encroachment around the property
• Impact of rainwater and humidity
• Impact of earthquakes
• Geological and architectural characteristics of the property
• Demolition of most of the traditional “tukul” dwellings

Total amount provided to the property: USD 800,000 for the “Conservation Action Plan for Lalibela” -Phase 1 and Phase 2 (Norwegian Funds-in-Trust); USD 59,032 Heritage Emergency Fund;.

On 13 January 2023, the State Party submitted a state of conservation report, available at https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/18/documents. In May 2022, a report on the situation of the site was provided following UNESCO’s technical mission to assess the property following an armed conflict in 2021, that resulted in a disturbance in the management of the property. Despite the national crisis that impacted cultural administration, the state of conservation and mission reports present progress on several preservation issues addressed by the Committee at its previous sessions, as follows:

• National Government Decree No. 344/2015 (August 2015) is provided, which defines the churches with their surroundings as a reserved area, and indicates the boundaries of the property and the buffer zone with GPS coordinates and a detailed topographic map;
• Brief information about the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) and Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) is presented;
• An outline is provided of the Sustainable Lalibela Project as an example of a people-centred approach to the conservation of the property;
• An outline is provided of an Ethiopian cultural heritage digital resource centre as part of the overall Ethiopian-French Lalibela programme;
• Preparatory training activities have been organized to activate the local advisory body envisaged in the above-mentioned parliamentary decree, involving students from the Lalibela Institute of Heritage Management in Lalibela, with the aim of revising the property's management plan;
• A classification of the most typical types of damage occurring at the property is presented, as well as a brief summary of the stages of conservation activities at Lalibela in the 20th and 21st centuries;
• The consequences of both the COVID-19 pandemic and conflicts on the site and its communities;
• The recommendations and conclusions of the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) of the Lalibela Restoration and Enhancement project;
• Analysis and Recommendations of the Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA).

In addition, following the State Party’s report on the general diagnosis of the conservation work previously carried out on the churches, assessing the durability and suitability of the various measures, the ESIA and HIA provide critical analysis of the previous work. The ESIA and HIA bring additional information to better assess the State Party’s view that the elimination of the main environmental impacts (e.g., rain and sunlight) on the structures is an effective measure to preserve the churches in the long term. They assist in deciding whether the installation of protective canopies over all the churches proposed to ensure the permanence of the conservation measures is the best option. They provide more information on challenges and opportunities for both the canopy options and traditional practices. Also, how the new shelters must mitigate the negative aspects of the existing canopies as identified by the religious authorities and visitors alike.

Based on detailed 3D documentation of all churches, courtyards and nearby voids, general considerations and design options for permanent roofing of all churches across the property are discussed. A preliminary conceptual design is proposed for the three main architectural groups, illustrated with digital architectural models, consisting of a large wave-shaped canopy structure covering the churches and their courtyards. The irregular heights and depths of the roof shape are to be constructed with local labour and without machining, using lightweight, nationally available bamboo elements with concrete foundations anchored to the ground.

The state of conservation report indicates that the State Party has initiated a number of preparatory measures to improve the management system for the property at the national and local levels. It is noted that the boundaries of the property have been clarified at the national level, but the State Party has still not submitted a formal request for Minor Boundary Modification that includes a vision statement on the urban growth and development of the city of Lalibela and how the World Heritage property is related to it, as requested by the World Heritage Committee in its last decision. It is also noted that the condition of the shelters was verified by independent certified experts, as requested by the World Heritage Committee in its previous decision, in which it confirmed the integrity of the existing shelters. Although the visual inspection and on-site instrumentation are considered satisfactory, a formal computational analysis has confirmed that the new formal standards are not met under extreme wind conditions, as noted in previous studies by national experts. A maintenance strategy for the existing shelters is required to keep their functionality until their subsequent dismantling at a later stage. There is a need to continue the systematic collection of environmental data and its effects on churches and shelters over time to provide a basis for determining critical variables affecting the site.

Regarding the shelters erected over the rock-hewn churches to protect them from adverse weathering, the Advisory Bodies expressed their reservations about extensive roofing of the property as a proposed solution to the preservation problems of the excavated church structures, in their February, June and July 2021 technical reviews. They pointed out that the physical fabric of the churches varies throughout the property, and that there is insufficient data to predict the impacts and potential new threats from permanent sheltering, particularly with respect to changes in the microclimate inside the churches and shrinkage of materials due to desiccation, but also with respect to conservation and maintenance measures that must accompany any long-term strategy for the property. The final reports of the ESIA and HIA conducted on the conceptual stage of the proposed canopy solution submitted by the State Party have pointed out the same gaps.

On 31 January 2023, the State Party submitted reports including the results of detailed investigations carried out under the French-Ethiopian bilateral programme in support of Lalibela together with (ESIA) and (HIA). The reports show data and assess conservation efforts since the early 20th century for both sheltered and unsheltered churches. They contrast the results of preservation efforts under sheltered conditions allegedly to require less frequent preservation cycles with the results of preservation efforts that require regular maintenance and seasonal repair under unsheltered conditions. The State Party draws the conclusion that the most adapted viable solution is to protect all churches, but in a way that mitigates the negative impacts of current shelters as perceived by the local community and visitors. As such, a new approach to protection is proposed in which all churches and adjacent courtyards would be covered with large canopies so that the rock-hewn churches would not be exposed to the weather. The canopies would be made of a mesh of nationally available bamboo with a coloured textile on top that would harmonize with the stone colour of the churches. While these considerations are yet on a conceptual level, an open architectural competition relating to the construction of a protection and safeguarding canopy for the property is proposed to reach to a technical mature proposal. Since vernacular bamboo architecture is known in Ethiopia, it is assumed that such a structure would allow local community participation in construction and maintenance and thus the preferred solution proposed by the State Party.

The ESIA and the analysis of the HIA identify the risks associated with the proposed megastructure canopy solution as very high. The canopy supports would require non-reversible interventions to anchor the foundations deep in the ground around the churches to support the long spans of the roof structures. Given the limited life cycle of the material a program of replacement of the bamboo elements in-situ would be required after a few decades. The reports summarize that more data and information are needed, including evaluation of alternatives, considering the complexity of management and solutions adapted to the geological situation of the individual churches, before decisions can be made about long-term coverage of the churches.

The current report provided by the State Party is a step toward the direction indicated by the Committee to establish a sound scientific basis upon which a far-reaching decision of total coverage of the entire property might be assessed.

As pointed out by the ESIA and HIA reports, the Advisory Bodies still consider that not enough data has yet been collected to define a state of environmental equilibrium for each of the eleven churches, adapted to their specific conditions, nor to set out precisely what impact shelters might have, in both positive and negative terms. The difficulty is that achieving such convincing data sets would take considerable time. The Advisory Bodies thus maintain their reservations towards extensive permanent sheltering as a viable approach to long-term preservation at the current time. Nevertheless, the Advisory Bodies recognize that the current shelters no longer meet formal safety requirements.

In these circumstances, and acknowledging the many uncertainties that exist, as well as the added complexities of climate change and societal transformations in the coming decades, the Advisory Bodies consider that new shelter options should be considered but as a temporary solution based on pilot tests as proposed by the ESIA and HIA and initially outside the perimeter of the churches. The experiences gained on the performance and acceptability of different technical solutions must be reconsidered and reassessed on the basis of ongoing monitoring and maintenance works as well as feedback from local communities. Further geotechnical, hydrological and other studies recommended by the Scientific Committee should also be considered.

Furthermore, the Advisory Bodies consider that shelters should be introduced on a partnership basis with the aim of involving local communities in dedicated monitoring, maintenance and conservation of the churches as part of regular management practices at the property. To achieve this, the Advisory Bodies reiterate their earlier recommendation to first improve the overall management system of the property, with conservation and maintenance being an integral part of a people-centred approach to preservation implemented by the local community of clergy and laity. This will require a monitoring system that provides a comprehensive understanding of the impact of the proposed canopies on the microclimate of the churches. Details on the dismantling of existing canopies and installation of new ones should be provided.

The proposed innovative and sustainable approach to the design of new shelters using tied bamboo as a structure is welcomed in principle. Further research on the feasibility of the use of bamboo as a structural engineering element of such a scale is needed to determine the critical factors that will allow this concept to become a reality. The current information does not yet suffice to provide the basis for a technical review through the Advisory Bodies at this stage, as pointed out in ESIA and HIA as well but the considerable progress made under difficult conditions is welcomed.

Following the end of the armed conflict, UNESCO conducted an information mission to Lalibela in January 2022, to meet local communities and management authorities. In addition, UNESCO dispatched an assessment mission from 23 to 28 May 2022 to assess the state of conservation of the property and to formulate urgent actions in collaboration with local actors and communities. The mission highlighted the importance of supporting local communities to maintain their cultural traditions, religious and customary practices, which are essential for the OUV of the site, as a living heritage. In addition, the mission stressed the need for improved infrastructures, notably in terms of electricity and water supply. The growing urban pressure and the degradation of the landscape are of increased concern. This mission will be followed by capacity-building activities to safeguard and promote the site.