We are pleased to award the Conserving Sudanese cultural heritage project £817,221
This two-year project aims to conserve and digitise a range of written and photographic material held in archives in Sudan.
Heritage in Sudanese archives
There is a wealth of archival material in Sudanese cultural institutions including maps, photographs, manuscripts, newspapers, political papers and records.
Sudan also has a rich intangible cultural heritage with 19 major ethnic groups and over 100 languages and dialects. Of particular value is the material relating to disappearing customs.
Decades of conflict in the region has resulted in a failing economy and Sudanese archives are now under threat due to under investment and poor protection measures. Much of the cultural heritage and practices recorded in archives are disappearing as traditional life is eroded by population movement.
Digitising and conserving Sudanese heritage
In this project, a register of cultural institutions and artefacts will be compiled, and a priority schedule for conservation and digitisation will be drawn up. A professional cataloguing and digitisation service will be set up in Khartoum, with roving facilities available for other regions. This service will continue once the project ends, being offered at an affordable cost to institutions within Sudan.
A large volume of at-risk content will be captured, including 100,000 maps, fragile photographs (in excess of 10 million) and AV materials documenting disappearing cultures and customs. Staff and volunteers in local cultural institutions will also be provided training with the view to building digitisation and conservation capacity in Sudan in the future.