Today, it was announced that the UK government would sign up to the 1954 Hague Convention on protecting the world's ancient cultural sites.
Ciarán Devane, Chief Executive of the British Council, said:
'Some of the most important cultural sites in the world are at significant risk of degradation and destruction by extremist elements, and Britain is uniquely placed to prevent them from being lost forever.
This fund will ensure that the British Council can extend the conservation work we already do with partners, such as the Bardo Museum, across the region to help preserve these priceless assets, so they can be explored by future generations, as well as provide a vital source of prosperity.'
For more information, contact Alex Bratt on +44 (0)207 389 4872 or alex.bratt@britishcouncil.org.
The British Council is the UK’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. We create international opportunities for the people of the UK and other countries and build trust between them worldwide.
We work in more than 100 countries and our 8,000 staff – including 2,000 teachers – work with thousands of professionals and policy makers and millions of young people every year by teaching English, sharing the arts and delivering education and society programmes.
We are a UK charity governed by Royal Charter. A core publicly-funded grant provides 20 per cent of our turnover which last year was £864 million. The rest of our revenues are earned from services which customers around the world pay for, such as English classes and taking UK examinations, and also through education and development contracts and from partnerships with public and private organisations. All our work is in pursuit of our charitable purpose and supports prosperity and security for the UK and globally.