The workshop provides a good basis to advance our shared goal of promoting peace and social cohesion in Yemen through support for youth livelihoods and sustainable cultural programming.
Yemen is home to a rich and diverse cultural heritage with many landmarks of cultural and historical importance. In addition to the human suffering inflicted on populations by the on-going conflict, the country’s cultural heritage has become at high risk, as many sites and monuments have been either damaged or destroyed. Pavement and road infrastructures suffered significantly from the conflict, threatening the foundations of the historical buildings and hindering the overall safeguarding of the Old City. It is in this context that UNESCO and the European Union have embarked on a project, which aims at creating job opportunities for young Yemenis in urban areas and empower them to become actors of the preservation and restoration of their unique heritage.
heritage buildings in the Historic City of Sana'a were assessed
Cash for Work is not only about providing food and supplies. It allows communities to buy what they really need.
Building synergies with the regional project Protecting Cultural Heritage and Diversity in Complex Emergencies for Stability and Peace, funded through the EU Instrument contributing to Stability and Peace, UNESCO, in partnership with the Yemeni Social Fund for Development (SFD), undertook a comprehensive damage assessment survey of four historic sites: Sana’a, Shibam, Zabid and Aden. The General Organization for the Preservation of Historic Cities in Yemen (GOPHCY) and the General Organization of Antiques and Museums (GOAM) supported the survey. Using an innovative approach combining rapid-assessment tools and digital applications with satellite visualizations techniques, this survey lays a solid foundation for future rehabilitation plans and provide first-hand information to determine priority intervention sites through cash-for-work schemes in the target cities.
