Le Morne Cultural Landscape

Protection of a World Heritage Site is generally provided through a legislative framework at the national, regional and/or local levels. However, it has been found that development of an additional and specific legal instrument (PPG 2 –Le Morne Cultural Landscape) ensures closest protection and preservation of the World Heritage Site.

Accompanying tools (Critical Viewpoints Analysis, Cultural Landscape Mapping and Spatial Development Framework) facilitate the task of the institutions and authorities in their daily assessment and monitoring of the World Heritage Site and its Buffer Zone. However, the tools may vary from site to site, depending on their environment and requirements.

Monitoring is best ensured through joint continuous coordination, involving the organisation responsible for the management of the World Heritage Site together with all relevant institutions/authorities at the national, regional and local levels.

The staff of the organisation managing the World Heritage Property should be provided with appropriate training when they join the organisation. Thereafter, a training programme should be devised to match the needs of the staff individually and the organisation as an entity. This will allow the staff to be adequately equipped to perform and thus ensure the maintenance of the attributes of the World Heritage Property. The recruitment of staff from within the local community, even if they do not possess the full profile required for the job, may encourage and motivate the community to support and even actively engage in the management and protection of the World Heritage Site. This implies of course that the staff should be immediately provided with appropriate training to be able to perform effectively. Such strategy results in empowerment of the local community.

Awareness and sensitization campaigns targeting and involving the young generation specially ensure perpetuity of the World Heritage site.

All those practices mentioned could be useful to other sites as well through developing the same strategies and processes while at the same time adapting them to their actual environment. They could provide ways and means to manage effectively World Heritage Sites and to control and guide development on such sites. Adopting these strategies will result in increased partnership and involvement from stakeholders for the management and preservation of World Heritage Sites.