Luanda - The identification and preservation of outstanding cultural traits, as well as monuments and places with potential for elevation to the category of world heritage, by UNESCO, constitutes one of the priorities of the Angolan State.

In this context, the Vice-President, Esperança da Costa, was in the province of Namibe, on a three days working visit (from Feb 22nd to 24th), during which she directed the work of the 3rd session of the National Multisectoral Commission for Safeguarding of World Cultural Heritage.

Created under Presidential Order nº 25/18, of March 5, and updated by Presidential Order nº 93/23 of May 3, its competence is the promotion and implementation of conservation programs and the participatory management of cultural heritage.

Its emergence resulted from the need to adopt special measures to monitor the national cultural heritage.

As part of its dynamic work agenda, the highlight was the meeting of the National Multisectoral Commission for the Safeguarding of World Cultural Heritage, where the summary project of the Minutes/report of the 2nd Ordinary Session of the organization was analyzed and approved.

Those attending also appreciated the balance of the deliberations and recommendations from the previous session.

At this same event, the draft regulations of the Participatory Management Committee of the Historic Center of Mbanza-Kongo were assessed, a document that establishes rules for the organization and functioning of this specialized and permanent collegiate body.

The Committee is responsible for the management, preservation, protection and enhancement of that heritage.

Regarding the 3rd Ordinary Session, the Proposal for a Report on the Implementation of the Recommendations of the World Cultural Heritage Committee on Mbanza -Kongo was assessed.

In this sense, archaeological prospecting at the old Mbanza-Kongo Airport was recommended, which will depend on the completion of works on the new local airport.

The status of Namibe's cultural heritage was also presented, with emphasis on Caraculo and Tchitundu Hulu (Rock Arts Station), the São Fernando Fortress, the Bentiaba chain, Arte Mbali and the Impala and Alexandrense cinemas, as well as others which are of tourist interest.

The Commission also learned about issues linked to FESTIKONGO-report on the celebration of the 7th year of Mbanza-Kongo registration, and the new airport's level of execution of works, among other aspects.

During the meeting, the situation regarding the financial framework of the project for the recovery and conservation of historical and cultural places was also reviewed.

Also within the framework of the day, Esperança da Costa guided the meeting with members of the Namibi's provincial Govt, with the aim of analyzing matters related to the Councils and Commissions and their coordination, in order to find better ways to overcome constraints.

The Vice-President attended, in the same region, the launch of the Climate Action Suitcase and the Okulinonga project, as well as planting trees and visiting the Moçâmedes Maternal and Child Hospital and the University of Namibe.

As part of the visits, Esperança da Costa traveled to the municipality of Virei, which is approximately 137 kilometers east way of Moçâmedes, capital of the province, where the Tchitundu Hulu cave painting station is located, and which among other assets makes part of Angola's indicative list at UNESCO for its elevation to world heritage.

The Tchitundu Hulu rock painting station is a place of high historical-cultural and tourist value.

The rock figures of Tchitundo Hulu are difficult to describe fingerprints of the people who lived in these lands more than 4 thousand years ago, making it a valuable and inviting cultural treasure in the country.

In the municipality of Bibala, she visited the Caraculo Zootechnical Station, where there are more than 100 camels, a gift from the United Arab Emirates, with a view to promoting and boosting ecotourism.

Of the initial number of 101 camels, delivered in June 2024, 127 are currently at the site, a figure that may evolve in the near future, taking into account the fact that others are in a state of pregnancy.

In addition to promoting ecotourism, they will also produce milk and meat that can contribute to the population's diet.

It is also planned, in the near future, to expand this tourist product to the desert of the Iona National Park and Curoca.

The project arises within the public-private partnership, which also involves the authorities of the United Arab Emirates and the provincial government of Namíbe.

In the municipality of Moçâmedes, the Vice-President laid the first stone for the rehabilitation of the Cine Teatro, which will be transformed into a cultural center.

The infrastructure work is part of the Bay's requalification project and will be carried out by Genea Angola, over a period of eight (8) months. 

Considered an emblematic landmark of the city of Moçâmedes, the Cine Estúdio began to be built in 1974, but work was suspended in 1975.

At the São Fernando Fortress (current base of the Navy), the Vice-President was informed about that building, elevated to cultural heritage in 1992.

This trip also served as a way for the Vice-President to attend the launch of the Climate Action Suitcase project, an initiative of the Ministry of the Environment, which aims to provide primary school teachers with scientific knowledge about climate change.

The aim is to provide them with the skills to be able to carry out actions to raise awareness among students.

Likewise, she witnessed, at Virei, the presentation of the “Okulinonga” project, whose central value focuses on teaching and learning to contribute to the reduction of children outside the education system.

The agenda was also marked by the visit to the Moçâmedes Maternal and Child Hospital, where he witnessed the delivery of a vehicle and batches of medicines.

Speaking to the press, at the end of the 72-hour journey to Namibe, Esperanca da Costa reaffirmed the need for intervention in the Tchitundo-Hulu cave paintings, aiming at their conservation.

She also highlighted that these paintings are identified in the list as candidates for UNESCO's world cultural heritage and, certainly, that "there is a set of actions to be done soon, to make them suitable to the requirements".

Esperança Costa expressed satisfaction at being at Virei, an occasion that served not only to observe the "great potential", from an economic point of view, but above all because Tchitundo Hulu represents an open field for research.

She considers that "the presence of rock art is scientific evidence that there were other civilizations around two million years ago, BC".

Regarding the Okulinonga project, by the Govt of Namibe, Esperança da Costa referred to it as a good initiative, as well as the relevance of replicating it in the surrounding provinces.

According to the director, "Okulinonga is a program that aims to be an innovative and educational response for children who are linked to livestock transhumance, moving from one point to another.

On the other hand, she mentioned that the tree planting, carried out in the municipality of Virei, is a clear sign of the Executive's permanent concern with the issue of the drought that is ravaging that locality and other provinces of the country. MGM/FA/SC/CF/DOJ