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RIWAQ: Centre for Architectural Conservation

RIWAQ (1991) is a Ramallah based non profit organization whose main aim is the protection and development of architectural heritage in Palestine .

Riwaq's activities include the National Registry of Historic Building; an inventory of fifty one thousand buildings, the implementation of some fifty conservation projects in major towns and villages, a number of Protection Plans for Historic Centers, the publication of ten books on cultural heritage, and a beautiful Photo Archive

 

 

Realizing the difficulties and challenges facing cultural heritage protection, the Community Out-Reach Unit (together with the Friends of Riwaq) works closely and intensely with the public and the private sectors of the society.

Riwaq's main partners include: cultural heritage agencies, relevant PNA Ministries specifically Municipalities and local village councils, as well as cultural institutions.

Unless historic centers, archaeological and natural sites are seen as a main source for economic development (Job Creation, tourism development, and housing), cultural heritage will unfortunately remain to be conceived as a liability rather than an asset worth investing in.

Finally, the allocation of substantial government funds, as well as ratification of the new law for the protection of cultural heritage remain to be the two crucial factors in the protection of cultural heritage.

Message from Riwaq 2006

On its 15 th Anniversary, Riwaq Centre for Architectural Conservation is delighted to present, to all cultural heritage lovers, Riwaq's Agenda 2006. This agenda, with its new format will hopefully become an annual tradition.

This new format is meant to be yet another source of information about Riwaq's activities as well as the general state of cultural heritage and conservation in Palestine .

The word Palestine can't but evoke a sense of history, a love for archeological sites and an enjoyment of a beautiful landscape dotted with small stone villages well integrated with the surroundings. The historic centers of Jerusalem , Nablus , Hebron and Bethlehem and Beit Jala are part and partial of these romantic images.

However the reality on the ground is rather painful and far from being romantic; the daily scene is more like thefts of archaeological sites, disappearance of beautiful terraced landscape, and the bulldozing of, not only single historic buildings, but the eradication of whole village centers such Dura in the Hebron area, and Kufur Ni'meh in the Ramallah area. The haphazard and terribly constructed concrete houses monstrously surrounding the few historic buildings left in the heart of these villages.

That is not to mention the damages caused by Israel 's Apartheid Wall, and the settlers by- pass roads. A visit to rural areas and the villages of today's Palestine can only bring tears and pain.

This calls for a serious thought and an emergency plan for the protection of relatively well intact historic fabrics, if not in all, at least in fifty or sixty villages. This means a priority must be put in place to how to concentrate all efforts in these places.

 

In addition to them being important witness to the history of the place, historic centers are important component of the people's identity. Being an important source of job creation, these environmentally friendly historic centers must be looked at as a main source of economic and social development rather than dump areas. In most countries historic centers constitute main attraction for local and international tourism and hence the idea of agro-tourism developed in the last ten years in most European countries. In addition to the development of tourism, the fifty thousand buildings of historic buildings in major towns and villages could play a major role in solving the housing problem.

The need for an Emergency Plan for the protection of cultural heritage means that cultural heritage and conservation should be a major component of the PNA National Agenda: substantial funds are allocated, appropriate legal frame works are in place and real commitment towards investing in human resources.

RIWAQ team:

  • Dr. Suad Amiry Director
  • Dr. Nazmi Al Ju'beh Director
  • Architect Khaldun Bshara Conservation Unit
  • Architect Farhat Yousef Planning Unit
  • Architect Iyad Issa Planning Unit
  • Archaeologist Baha' Jubeh National Register Unit
  • Architect Mouhannad Hadid Community Out-Reach Unit
  • Maher Hamayel Community Out-Reach Unit
  • Fadia Saleh Management Unit
  • Architect Shuruq Jaber Planning Unit
  • Architect Ruba Salim Conservation Unit
  • Architect Dima Abu Saud Conservation Unit
  • Architect Khalil Rabah Artist- Art Director
  • Harbi Daraghmeh Finance
  • Mohammad Subhi Assistant

    RIWAQ's main funders:

    Sida, the Swedish Agency for International Development Cooperation, Ford Foundation.

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