Lamu residents set to showcase historical sites at global fete

The global community marks the World Monuments Watch Day, this week.

In the ancient port town of Lamu, the events will start on the International Day for Monuments and Sites, April 18 and last through April 20.

Lamu’s surviving historic architecture fuses African, Arabic, Indian and Persian styles, reflecting the town’s past role as an important trading centre.

An expected increase in tourism puts the historic structures of the old town at risk from uncontrolled development, a threat that led to the inclusion of the town on the 2014 World Monuments Watch.

“We are fortunate in Lamu to have the highest concentration of heritage sites and monuments, and being renowned as a Unesco world heritage.

We therefore have many reasons to celebrate and the county government prides itself in commemorating this weekend,” Lamu county executive for Trade, Tourism and Culture Samia Omar said.

Ms Omar said it will be a weekend of cultural and educational activities to promote community awareness and outreach as well as tourism.

The events will include a lecture, film screening and community treasure hunt.

The closing ceremony will also witness the launch of Lamu Dhow before it embarks on its journey to the US to represent the community’s cultural heritage at the Smithsonian Festival 2014.

The biennial World Monuments Watch was launched in 1966 with support from founding sponsor American Express to call attention to cultural heritage threatened by forces of nature and the impact of social, political and economic change.

For many historic sites, inclusion in the watch provides an opportunity to raise awareness, foster local participation in preservation, leverage resources for conservation, advance innovation and collaboration, and demonstrate effective solutions.

Since its inception, the Watch has provided support for more than 600 sites.

The events are co-sponsored by the World Monuments Fund and local partners.