Heritage is for us all, and it connects humanity in space, time and place. However, with colonial occupation, alongside imposed epistemic dominance and centralised systems of heritage governance in Africa, it continues to push communities away from managing their heritage. ALSO READ: Rwandans’ awareness of cultural heritage stands at 76% – survey Colonial orientation presents significant obstacles to the effective preservation and management of heritage resources and sidelines the voices and perspectives of those directly connected to it, creating a disconnect between national policies and local realities. The gap not only hampers the effectiveness of cultural heritage conservation efforts but also fosters feelings of marginalisation and suffocation among local communities. ALSO READ: Rwanda’s ‘Intore’ dance recognized as UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage The colonial administration enforced Eurocentric frameworks that prioritised material values over community values and neglected the integration of indigenous local knowledge. Western methods focused on material preservation, in contrast to African approaches that centred on living practices, spiritual continuity, and community responsibility. ALSO READ: Inside Rwanda’s 20 newly classified cultural heritage sites Now, in Rwanda, the post-genocide recovery focuses on preserving and promoting cultural heritage to foster healing, national unity, and reconciliation through homegrown solutions. Despite advancements in safeguarding heritage, such as the establishment of Rwanda Cultural Heritage Academy (RCHA) and the implementation of the 2016 heritage law, heritage governance remains centralised, with limited involvement from source communities. ALSO READ: Google, Rwanda launch platform to promote culture, art Still, the practical application of these legal frameworks and policies has frequently been questioned, especially regarding the engagement of source communities in planning and decision-making. There is a pressing need to address the flaws of relying on centralised templates in heritage governance frameworks by exploring their move towards decentralisation. Nevertheless, RCHA continue to play a central role in enforcing the national cultural heritage policy and heritage law. Inviting local populations into decision-making about their heritage allows heritage managers to draw on local knowledge to enhance conservation efforts. Altogether, these interlinked challenges from Rwanda and other African countries necessitate urgent, coordinated, and context-sensitive interventions to safeguard heritage while enabling adaptation to the new realities of modern development and environmental change. This ultimately calls for a transition to more structurally inclusive, people-centred approaches in cultural heritage governance that prioritise community engagement over mere participation, manipulation and tokenism. A shift from seeing heritage as a material or immaterial product of expertise to a lived, social and co-created cultural process that positions communities not as passive beneficiaries of expert decisions, but as active agents whose values, knowledge, and lived experiences are central to cultural heritage conservation. “Nothing about us without us; we cannot own what we do not understand, and we do not want to see results, we want to be part of the results,” – voices of communities in Nyanza District, 2020 Engaging communities in heritage governance represents a move from state-centric authority to collaborative participation, emphasising knowledge co-creation and shared agency. It highlights the importance of methodologies like participatory action research and ethnographic engagement, which promote resident involvement in heritage matters. This engagement is crucial for addressing heritage decolonisation in Africa, empowering local communities to reclaim their cultural heritage. It fosters ownership, accountability, and improved decision-making, ensuring governance frameworks align with community values and needs. Prioritising community voice in heritage matters ultimately leads to more sustainable and culturally sensitive governance practices. There is a need to, in a transformative way, activate, engage, empower and mentor. For it is impossible to mentor a community that is not empowered or empower a community that is not engaged, and engage a community that is not active. To become a reality, we entirely need a working formula that justifies a paradigmatic framework for community-centred heritage engagement and epistemic justice in heritage practice in Africa. The writer is a heritage professional with a background in philosophy and history.
