EDITORIAL: Africa must safeguard its cultural future

African heritage is more than monuments or ancient landscapes; it is the living memory of a continent that has shaped the world, yet is often neglected or distorted in its own story. It’s a giant step that there were conversations about cultural heritage in Windhoek this week. Whatever the outcome, the central question is who defines heritage – and who protects it?



For decades, value has been assigned by external voices, while the communities that carry these traditions have stood at the margins of decision-making. Proper conservation begins with recognising African people as the primary custodians of their own history.



Protection cannot rely solely on government decrees or Unesco listings, vital as they may be.



It must draw from elders who hold oral histories, artisans who sustain centuries-old craftsmanship, and young people who reinterpret traditions without severing their roots.



African heritage anchors identity, affirms dignity and guards against cultural amnesia. In a modernising and globalised world, safeguarding it is not nostalgia but self-definition. The conversations in Windhoek this week remind us that Africa’s heritage must be conserved, reserved and protected as a living foundation for the continent’s future.