Sukur Cultural Landscape

• Damage to the Hidi Palace, the Palace Square, the Black Smith Homestead, paved walkways and ritual structures by insurgents
• Civil unrest
• Illegal activities

Total amount granted: USD 22,296 in 2016 through the Hungary Funds-in-Trust for rehabilitation and conservation activities

On 28 November 2022, the State Party submitted a state of conservation report, which is available at https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/938/documents/. Progress in a number of conservation issues addressed by the Committee at its previous sessions is presented, as follows:

• Security has returned to the property. Continued security operations of the State Party’s security forces are undertaken in collaboration with local communities;
• Inhabitants from the surrounding plains who fled to the mountain during the 2014 incursion have started returning to their homes, reducing the demographic pressure on the property;
• The National Commission for Museum and Monuments (NCMM) and the Nigerian National Commission for UNESCO have carried out various programmes to sensitize the community, especially the youth, on the conservation and protection of cultural heritage. They have undertaken projects to strengthen cultural practices and assisted in reviving the National Yawal Festival;
• The Conservation Management Plan has been updated for the years 2021-2026. It includes a disaster risk preparedness plan and outlines strategies for conservation work in collaboration with the community and stakeholders;
• The NCMM, supported through the UNESCO Hungarian Funds-Trust, has facilitated community efforts for restoration activities at the Hidi’s Palace and beyond, the rehabilitation of the Primary Health Care Centre and the creation of water provision. The resumption of traditional agricultural activities and practices has led to the rebuilding of agricultural terraces;
• The restoration work at the palace was undertaken using traditional materials. However, pressure on environmental resources, in part due to irregular rain resulting from climate change, exacerbates the challenges in procuring traditional building materials, especially thatch. The use of corrugated metal sheets in parts of the community has emerged and the NCMM is engaged with the Hidi-in Council on this matter;
• The NCMM, in collaboration with ICOMOS Nigeria, organized a series of online weekly discussions on assessing the climate vulnerability of the Sukur Cultural Landscape. A subsequent workshop of stakeholders and local community members concluded that climate stresses affect the culture and livelihoods of those living within Sukur. A meteorological station has been installed in the property for accurate record keeping on the climate;
• The State Party, in collaboration with the State Party of Cameroon, submitted a proposal to extend the property to include the Diy-Gid-Biy Cultural Landscape of Mandara Mountains as a serial transboundary World Heritage property;
• The State Party reiterated its invitation for a joint World Heritage Centre/ICOMOS Reactive Monitoring mission to the property.

The State Party report provides an overview of its active engagement in addressing the challenges which arose from the security situation of 2014. It is important that the reported security at the property remains. The updating of the Conservation Management Plan for the property and reports that it includes a disaster risk management plan is commendable. As a considerable amount of further conservation work remains to be undertaken on the property, the submission of a Management Plan, which includes a disaster risk management plan and outlines a conservation plan for the property, would be welcomed for review by the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies.

The State Party has also continued to implement conservation measures including programmes aimed at the continuation of traditional practices and intangible heritage. Reports of youth engagement are likewise welcome and should be further encouraged.

The proactive way the State Party is addressing the impacts of climate change on the property with the community and national stakeholders, especially the assessment of the climate vulnerability released in collaboration with ICOMOS Nigeria, is exemplary. However, the lack of traditional building materials due to drought, amongst other reasons, is worrying. From its report, the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies conclude that the State Party is proactively engaging with this challenge, and it is hoped that the discussions with the Hidi-in Council could lead to a policy for the use, or non-use, of contemporary materials in this cultural landscape. The World Heritage Centre and Advisory Bodies caution that a departure from traditional building techniques and forms in favour of construction methods utilizing contemporary materials and forms may lead to an erosion of the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of this property.

In response to this, the State Party should be strongly encouraged and supported to develop a comprehensive and inclusive strategy on how to manage this challenge and how to balance the requirements of heritage preservation with the needs for sustainable development. Such a strategy should be developed with the largest possible implication of the local communities and in collaboration with the Hidi-in Council in order to define the contribution that traditional construction techniques make to the OUV of this property, to stimulate the availability of traditional materials for maintenance and construction, to develop norms and guidelines that favour adequate monitoring of existing constructions and orient new ones within the property, and to enhance awareness raising. Moreover, this strategy should address the opportunities for the development and promotion of employment, in particular for young people, related to traditional construction techniques.

The work done in collaboration with the State Party of Cameroon on developing a proposal for extension of the property to include the Diy-Gid-Biy Cultural Landscape of Mandara Mountains is noted.