Heritage experts from different Arab countries are working to set up a regional association to promote conservation and to establish regulatory bodies for conservators and other specialists.
In this regard, participants of a three-day workshop titled "ATHARnet: Education and Practice", which ended yesterday, said the creation of a regional association has become necessary to help address professional requirements and take into consideration the practical and educational needs for conservation of the heritage of Arab countries.
Such an association will also aim to improve dialogue between heritage education and the conservation practice, they said.
The proposed association should be supported by a network of existing heritage conservation and management programmes at various universities in the region, they said.
Held under the patronage of His Highness Dr Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, and hosted by the Sharjah Museums Department (SMD), the third Athar workshop was organised with the aim of bridging gaps between conservation theories and practice in the Arab World, developing a clear definition of the topic and recognising the need for training in conservation.
The workshop included presentations, discussions, brainstorming sessions and group exercises.
Participants from 13 Arab countries, including Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, Yemen and the UAE attended, in addition to representatives from international and regional organisations such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, Aleccso, the Association of Arab Universities, and the European Confederation of Conservator-Restorers' Organisations.
The workshop was organised by the International Centre for the Study of Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property as part of the framework of its Athar Programme in partnership with the Government of Sharjah, the Ruler's Office, Sharjah Department of Information and Culture, American University of Sharjah, the University of Sharjah, and Sharjah Museums Department.
Participants called for Sharjah to survey the nature and scope of training existing programmes.