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UNESCO commits to completing rehabilitation works at Kasubi Tombs in 2022

Prof. Hubert Gijzen while having a guided tour of the royal tombs together with Mr. Al-Hajji Kaddu Kiberu, the Reconstruction Committee Chairperson, Honorable David Kyewalabye Male, Minister of Culture in the Buganda Kingdom, and Mr. Charles Draecabo, UNESCO Project Office National Coordinator in Kampala, Uganda © UNESCO

3 March 2022

Last update:20 April 2023

The Director of UNESCO Regional Office for Eastern Africa, Prof. Hubert Gijzen paid an official visit to The Tombs of Buganda Kings at Kasubi on 24 February 2022 in the context of a Japan-funded project that aims to provide technical and financial assistance for the reconstruction of Muzibu-Azaala-Mpanga, an architectural masterpiece of the Tombs of Buganda Kings at Kasubi, Uganda, a UNESCO World Heritage Property.

The Tombs of Buganda Kings at Kasubi constitute a site embracing almost 30 ha of hillside within Kampala district. Four royal tombs lie within the Muzibu-Azaala-Mpanga, the main building, which is circular and surmounted by a dome. It is a major example of an architectural achievement in organic materials, principally wood, thatch, reed, wattle, and daub.

Prof. Gijzen was given a guided tour of the site of the ongoing and completed repair works by: Ms. Rosie Agoi, the Secretary-General of Uganda National Commission for UNESCO; Mr. Charles Draecabo, the UNESCO Project Office National Coordinator in Kampala, Uganda and Ms. Rose Mwanja Nkaale, the Commissioner of Uganda Museum and Monuments among other key stakeholders from the cultural sector. Prof. Gijzen applauded the restoration works at the Kasubi Tombs, the royal burial ground of the Buganda kings. He assured the people of Uganda that the rehabilitation, restoration works, procurement and installation of comprehensive firefighting equipment would be completed this year.

Through the completion of this project, the removal of the site from the List of World Heritage in Danger will be the most significant sign of the project’s success and sustainability. This would be especially symbolic for the 50th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention in 2022.

Prof. Hubert Gijzen, Director and Representative, UNESCO Regional Office for Eastern Africa

As part of the project, an Introduction Guide to the Preservation of Traditional Thatching of the Buganda Community of Uganda was produced to document and showcase the unique intangible cultural heritage architectural practice known as the ‘ganda thatching technique’ carried out at this exceptional World Heritage property in Uganda.

Moreover, a Master Plan for the conservation and management of the site has been developed, and training for youth apprentices by elders from the Buganda community conducted to ensure that the traditional building techniques, as well as the intangible cultural practices and belief systems, are passed on to the younger generations. These activities provide opportunities to contribute to education and awareness-raising about the rich intangible cultural heritage and world heritage values of the Tombs of the Buganda Kings at Kasubi.

The tomb was built in 1882 and converted into the royal burial ground in 1884, with four royal tombs now lying within the Muzibu Azaala Mpanga. The main building, which is circular and surmounted by a dome is a major example of an architectural achievement in organic materials, principally wood, thatch, reed, wattle and daub. The site's main significance lies, however, in its intangible values of belief, spirituality, continuity and identity.

The intangible and tangible cultural heritage, identity and believes required utmost attention to values during the reconstruction process that make them evidently unique from any grass thatch house anywhere in the world. We have ensured maximum respect to those values by going as far as undoing and redoing some restoration process.

Honorable David Kyewalabye Male, Minister of Culture in the Buganda Kingdom

This Japanese Funds-in-Trust project was originally launched in March 2013 in order to offer Emergency Assistance to the State Party of Uganda and accompany them in rehabilitating and maintaining the Outstanding Universal Values of the property in view of its removal from the List of World Heritage in Danger, following a devastating fire in 2010 at the Muzibu-Azaala-Mpanga, which housed the four tombs of the Buganda Kings.