Stone Town of Zanzibar

a) Development pressures;

b) Environmental pressures in relation with the Malindi port project;

c) Natural disasters and lack of risk-preparedness;

d) Visitors/ tourist pressures;

e) Lack of resources;

f) Lack of legal framework;

Total amount provided to the property: USD 24,000 for the inventory of the public spaces in Zanzibar (Netherlands Funds-in-Trust).

The State Party submitted a state of conservation report on 1 February 2012 that responds to the request made by the World Heritage Committee at its 35th session (UNESCO, 2011).

a) Management system

The report notes the challenges faced to secure the resources for the operation of the Stone Town Conservation and Development Authority (STCDA) and for the implementation of the Heritage Management Plan. However, with the new Act No. 4/2010, additional funding can be obtained from other sources to increase possibilities of implementing the Management Plan. Capacity building has also been partially addressed by training staff and hiring professional staff. Awareness building activities among different stakeholders have been carried out in relation to the conservation and development at the property.

b) State of conservation of the property

The State Party reports that a comprehensive condition assessment was undertaken; 18 buildings were found to be in poor condition while 108 are deteriorated. Based on results obtained, proposals have been developed to address conditions and raise funds for emergency cases. The assessment or proposal for intervention was not submitted nor was the expected timeframe for when emergency projects are expected to be implemented. Open spaces were also assessed, and a proposal was made to address the problems faced. This was also not submitted. As for street vendors, the State Party indicates that actions will be taken to enforce rules and regulations for the removal of street vendors. As for the use of inappropriate building materials, which poses a threat to the attributes of the property, a programme has been developed to enforce regulations for the use of traditional materials.

As for new construction, monitoring has been carried out to enforce sanctions on illegal or unauthorised construction. With the new Urban Development Control Authority, the situation of issuing permits is expected to improve permit mechanisms and enhance capabilities to better exercise control at the property and at the buffer zone. In regard to the tourism plan, the report notes previous planning efforts made that were not implemented. No further information is provided on how these prior initiatives will be updated to develop, adopt and implement a tourism policy for the property as requested by the World Heritage Committee.

c) Mambo Msiige building

Heritage Impact and Environmental Impact assessments were carried out by independent consultants to assess the potential impact of the proposed project. The Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) was submitted to the State Party at the end of January 2012. The State Party indicates that the results of the HIA will be provided to the World Heritage Centre before any design work starts. Meanwhile, it is reported that no development work is being undertaken on site.

d) Other interventions at the property

The reorganisation of the North part of the Port pertains to the rehabilitation of the old Clove Oil distillery within the Zanzibar Port by Blue Horizon Investments. STCDA has requested that the proposal be revised to reduce the height of cello tanks, also an Environmental and Social Impact assessment is being carried out. As for the Sea Wall project, under preparation since early 2008, it is noted that the Aga Khan Trust for Culture has withdrawn its funding but drawings are still being prepared. As for the House of Wonders project, implemented under the Marine and Coastal Environmental Management Project (MACEMP) funded by the World Bank, STCDA has stopped interventions at the House of Wonders because of the poor quality of the works and because of the inappropriateness of the materials. Pending submission of new material samples, permits will be issued. As for the Tip Tippu House, a proposal is to be developed for the renovation. No timeframe for implementation for these projects has been provided. 

The World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies note the information provided by the State Party regarding efforts made to improve the management of the property. They wish, however, to highlight the persistent conservation issues of the property, since, although some work has been undertaken on condition assessments, no overall priority measures for interventions have been developed, nor has an effective monitoring system for illegal and new construction been established as requested by the Committee at its 34th session. They therefore recommend that the Committee expresses its concern. They also wish to highlight that no tourism plan has been developed as further requested by the Committee at its 34th session.

With regards to development proposals, they note that planned projects relating to the reorganization of the northern part of the port, the Seafront project part II interventions in the House of Wonders and at the Tippu Tip House, are currently not progressing. For the Mambo Msiige project, the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies, in the absence of details of the HIA, have not been able to assess whether the proposed plans for the hotel might impact on the Outstanding Universal Value of the property.