Vaalgras heritage celebrations highlight tourism potential

This year’s ǁKharas Regional Heritage Week celebrations in Vaalgras, themed “Preserving Heritage for the Future Generation: From Heritage Resource to Sustainable Tourism Product”, offer an important opportunity for residents of the region to explore the role of heritage in sustainable development.

ǁKharas governor Dawid Gertze, in a speech delivered on his behalf by his personal assistant, Adnaan Boois, at the official opening on 14 September, said the region should view its heritage not as a burden from the past but as a resource for the future.

“Let Vaalgras and the ǁKharas Region demonstrate that heritage is not a burden from the past, but a resource for the future. Let us transform our heritage from a forgotten inheritance into a living classroom, a source of pride, a foundation for community resilience and a catalyst for sustainable socio-economic development,” the governor said.

Gertze said this year’s theme encourages people to view heritage not merely as something inherited from the past, but as a living foundation on which the future could be built, and that the selection of Witbooi’s Einde National Heritage Site as a flagship site for the ǁKharas Regional Heritage Week celebrations was significant.

“It offers us an opportunity to strengthen awareness, encourage community participation in heritage safeguarding and explore how such a site can contribute to sustainable heritage tourism,” he said.

According to Gertze, hosting the event in Vaalgras was a reminder that rural communities were not on the margins of history.

“They are custodians of some of the most important chapters of our collective story. The knowledge held by our elders, the traditions preserved by our communities and the sites that carry historical meaning are national treasures,” he said.

Gertze cautioned against reducing heritage to a commodity stripped of its meaning, saying tourism development should be shaped together with communities rather than imposed on them.

“The stones, landscapes, stories and traditions that attract visitors must remain connected to the people and communities who have preserved them,” he said.

“Let us ensure that tourism does not merely bring visitors to our region but also brings knowledge, investment, dignity and opportunity to our people.”

Gertze emphasised that sustainable use of heritage resources required sites to be protected, respected and accurately interpreted while ensuring that present communities benefited without compromising the rights and opportunities of future generations.

He said heritage tourism could create employment, stimulate local enterprises and support cultural practitioners and small and medium-sized businesses if properly planned and community-centred.

“When visitors come to experience our heritage, the economic benefits should not pass over our communities like a cloud that brings no rain. They should take root locally through employment, enterprise development, skills transfer and investment in community infrastructure,” Gertze said.

He also warned that poorly managed tourism and neglect could threaten the authenticity of heritage sites.

“A tradition that is not passed on may disappear, and a community that is excluded from the management of its own heritage may lose both ownership and benefit,” he said.

Gertze identified neglect, uncontrolled visitation, vandalism, commercial exploitation and the misrepresentation of cultural practices as some of the threats that must be addressed.

He called for a heritage development model based on community participation, intergenerational learning, responsible tourism, accurate historical interpretation, environmental protection and shared economic benefits.

Gertze said young people should be placed at the centre of efforts to preserve and promote heritage.

“They must not only be visitors to heritage sites; they must become researchers, storytellers, guides, artists, entrepreneurs, archivists, conservationists and custodians of culture,” he said.

“If we fail to teach our children the meaning of our heritage, others may tell our story for us and may tell it incorrectly.”

The governor further said schools also had an important role to play and that heritage education should extend beyond occasional celebrations.

“Learners should be encouraged to document oral histories, engage with traditional leaders and elders, visit heritage sites and understand the relationship between culture, history, identity and development,” Gertze said.

He called for stronger partnerships between government, communities, the private sector, educational institutions and civil society to turn heritage resources into sustainable opportunities.

“All stakeholders, including the Regional Council, traditional authorities, local communities, schools, government institutions, cultural practitioners, the tourism sector, civil society and the private sector, must work together to protect and promote our heritage,” he said.