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​ The Sultanate of Oman, represented by the Ministry of Heritage and Tourism MHT, participate in the global celebrations on (Tuesday ,18^th April)  by the World Heritage Day, under the theme of  "HERITAGE CHANGES".

World Heritage Day, which is also known as The International Day for Monuments and Sites, falls on the 18th of April of each year, while the Sultanate's Ministry of Heritage and Tourism MHT pays great attention to protecting and preserving the Omani cultural heritage, world heritage sites, the underwater Submerged monuments, studies, surveys and research for archaeological excavations and the related scientific publications.

 Commenting on this occasion, His Excellency Eng. Ibrahim bin Said bin Khalaf Al Kharousi, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Heritage and Tourism for Heritage, stated: " This year's celebration comes under the theme of  (Heritage Changes), a global title proposed by the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), which defines an annual celebration theme for this occasion, while the theme of this year aims at highlighting the capability of the heritage in facing the effects of the climate change and shedding light on the efforts of the countries to restore the affected heritage monuments".

 His Excellency the undersecretary added: The attention of the Sultanate of Oman to the importance of the heritage, comes through a number of programs that include restoration and maintenance of heritage monuments, and annual coordination with prestigious universities and specialized centres to carry out archaeological surveys and excavations for archaeological missions results, while MHT also coordinates with the World Heritage Center to protect and sustain world heritage sites in the Sultanate. Oman.   

H.E. pointed out that, The Ministry of Heritage and Tourism has registered 3,423 heritage sites and restored a number of 310 sites across all governorates of the Sultanate of Oman in 2022. with the aim of protecting the sites against extinction and climatic influences, in order to remain a witness to the Omani civilization throughout the centuries, while a number of 5 Omani sites were listed in the World Heritage List, in addition to 7 sites in the preliminary list, which are the sites that the Sultanate of Oman completes the justifications for its inclusion on the World Heritage List.  

In regard to the archaeological missions, His Excellency the Undersecretary clarified that the 26 missions within the 2022/2023 season program revealed more about the nature of life in Oman more than 10,000 years ago, that through the discovered monuments and antiquities that explore the  Omani contribution to the human civilization since the dawn of history and what the historical eras included of the human settlement in many places in Oman and the ancient human interactions with the land in these places.

H.E. the undersecretary also clarified that MHT is working on issuing, translating and publishing various books, studies and peer-reviewed scientific research, in Arabic and English - periodically and annually to highlight many aspects of the  Omani cultural heritage.

In the context of preserving and documenting the underwater submerged cultural heritage, H.E. the undersecretary pointed out that, The Sultanate of Oman is among the leading countries in the region in implementing a scientific program for studying the underwater Submerged antiquities to take the initiative to work in the field of developing care for marine antiquities and managing and preserving the underwater submerged cultural heritage at the regional level.

 H.E. emphasized that , MHT has developed the program of the underwater submerged antiquities to a department concerned with  the same subjects , while it  works to give a professional character to the activities  carried out in the Sultanate of Oman and other countries in this field , in addition to improving scientific and specialized research and cooperating with a number of agencies to secure the preservation of underwater archaeological finds, through carrying out surveys, excavations, restoration, preservation activities  and documentation of submerged archaeological sites.

 He also pointed out that, within the framework of preserving the craft heritage, the Ministry of Heritage and Tourism exerts efforts to document the existing or near-extinction craft industries to preserve them, including a number of projects such as innovation in the Omani Sarooj, the study of innovation in the leather industry, and innovation in cotton industries in the Sultanate of Oman.

Base on the believing in the importance of maximizing the utilization of the architectural heritage and introducing it, he stressed that , work has been done to develop architectural heritage sites and historical monuments, supporting museums and private heritage houses, and establishing museum exhibition halls in castles and forts.

He clarified that a plan was adopted and implemented to address the damage caused by the climatic conditions in 2021, whereby intervention and rapid restoration operations were carried out, as the storms in the Governorate of Al -Batinah North  had affected a number of archaeological sites.such as Al Hilal Wall, Al Maghabshah Wall and Al Suwaiq Fort in the Wilayat of Al Suwaiq,

He added: The climatic conditions in 2007 (   Cyclone Gonu)  had affected the city of Qalhat, due to the flow of the valley, which, fortunately, had its impact at the bottom of the city.

He also clarified that, in addition to the climatic conditions, there are other climatic factors such as temperature and humidity that have a long-term impact on archaeological sites since the monuments are built with traditional materials and are restored with the same materials to preserve their archaeological character.

In addition to these efforts , there is a department at concerning risk management in cooperation with a number of authorities within the Sultanate of Oman, including the Civil Defense and Ambulance Authority, in addition to cooperation with the international community through UNESCO and the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS). 

It is worth noting that, The Ministry of Heritage and Tourism MHT has prepared a program to celebrate this occasion at the Bisya and Salut Visitor Centers in the Wilayat of Bahla with the participation of a number of schools from across the Governorate of Al Dakhiliya.

 The program includes various activities for male and female students, as well as visual presentations of research efforts, documentation, and definition of the historical dimension of the archaeological sites in Bisya and Salut.

The Ministry of Heritage and Tourism is also holding an exhibition to introduce methods of restoration and maintenance of artifacts in excavation sites, and the efforts of Omani photographers in the field of documenting historical sites and archaeological monuments, as well as presenting research projects implemented by a number of schools in the field of heritage.

 The celebration comes within the framework of the commitment of the Ministry of Heritage and Tourism and its keenness to participate in various global events and initiatives that highlight the rich cultural heritage of the Sultanate of Oman and to provide an opportunity to identify its ancient historical and human heritage and to rehabilitate historical sites through projects in participation of the local communities and the small and medium enterprises  in order  contribute to the growth of the local economy within the objectives of Oman vision 2040.

It is also worth noting that World Heritage Day is the day proposed by the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS).in 1982 and was later approved by the General Assembly of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1983.

The celebration of this day aims at enhancing awareness of the importance of the cultural heritage of humanity and to multiply the necessary efforts to protect and preserve heritage while highlighting the shared responsibility among the countries of the world to preserve human heritage.

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