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Sifelani Tsiko Senior Writer
Zimbabwe must take practical steps to safeguard its archaeological monuments which are threatened by accidental damage or structural deterioration due to neglect, a veteran archaeologist said.Midlands State University archaeologist, Dr Munyaradzi Manyanga, told The Herald recently during the just-ended Research and Intellectual Expo — Science, Engineering and Technology (RIE-SET) Week that the country needed to mobilise all stakeholders and development partners as well as customs and police to give cultural heritage protection a priority.

“We need to mobilise funding to restore, to research and conserve our archaeological monuments which are dotted around the country,” he said.

“A number of cultural heritage sights are in a bad state due to neglect and abandonment.  We have a duty as the current generation to pass these heritage sites to future generations. If we neglect these sites then we have reneged on our duty on inter-generational equity.”

Dr Manyanga said southern Zimbabwe had more than 60 archaeological sites while the central part had a cluster of 28 stonewalled sites requiring constant maintenance to reverse the effects of wind, rain, storm and the damage inflicted by colonising plants and animals.

Most of the sites suffer from neglect.

“Zimbabwe must develop a comprehensive set of programmes to protect our cultural heritage sights through a well-funded, co-ordinated response for recovery and rehabilitation,” he said.

“Neglect of the inheritance of the past robs future generations of a powerful legacy and undermines our efforts to protect our common heritage.”

Dr Manyanga said work on the restoration of the Naletale Monument, which was placed on the UNESCO World’s Monument Watch list in 2012 as a site in danger of deteriorating and losing its original integrity, was now more than 70 percent complete.

“At least 70 percent of the work has been done to restore the heritage sight,” he said.

“We are targeting to finish the work by end of September.”

Work to reverse the deterioration and collapse of the sight’s unique stone walls started in February this year with a team of 32 people drawn from MSU, the National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe, with the local community joining hands to restore the sights.

The US embassy supported the Naletale Monument restoration project with US$65 000.

Naletale had suffered many years of neglect resulting in the collapse of one of the most decorated and impressive stonewalled monuments in Africa.

Dr Manyanga said recent interventions were meant to give a new lease of life and to restore the integrity of the damaged monument that could give Zimbabwe a competitive advantage in heritage tourism.

Naletale features prominently in the traditions of the Rozvi at Danan’ombe between the 16th and 17th century and holds significant social, political, historic and scientific values.

Archaelogists say the site is a unique and priceless cultural asset which provides a basis for national identity, scientific and historical research, sustainable tourism, and other economic development opportunities for future generations.