https://en.sputniknews.africa/20260818/cultural-banks-can-africa-turn-heritage-into-living-resource-1088424860.html
Cultural Banks: Can Africa Turn Heritage Into Living Resource?
Cultural Banks: Can Africa Turn Heritage Into Living Resource?
Sputnik Africa
Africa is rethinking how it preserves and uses its cultural heritage, moving beyond the idea of heritage as something that belongs only in museums. New... 18.08.2026, Sputnik Africa
2026-08-18T15:20+0200
2026-08-18T15:20+0200
2026-08-18T15:20+0200
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kenya
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Cultural Banks: Can Africa Turn Heritage Into Living Resource?
Sputnik Africa
Africa is rethinking how it preserves and uses its cultural heritage, moving beyond the idea of heritage as something that belongs only in museums. New approaches are seeking to reconnect cultural treasures with the communities that created them while turning heritage into a source of identity, innovation, and sustainable development.
The cultural bank model, pioneered in Mali, is one such approach. It seeks to keep heritage connected to communities while allowing cultural resources to contribute to their social and economic well-being, offering a model that could complement traditional museums.Global South Pole spoke with Professor George Abungu, an archaeologist and former Director-General of the National Museums of Kenya, to discuss how cultural banks could reshape heritage preservation and the relationship between museums and the communities whose heritage they hold.Abungu said the cultural-bank model is important precisely because it challenges the traditional separation between heritage and the communities that created it. Rather than keeping cultural materials confined within museums, he argued that heritage should remain accessible to communities and contribute to their social and economic development. In this sense, he said museums can learn from cultural banks by making their collections more useful and relevant to the people they serve.The Kenyan archeologist added that the cultural-bank approach should also shape restitution, ensuring communities have a meaningful role in managing returned heritage. He said young Africans could combine heritage with technology and innovation, while urging African institutions to develop the model regionally and through the African Union, potentially turning a community-based idea into an African innovation with global relevance.To listen to the whole discussion, tune in to the Global South Pole podcast, brought to you by Sputnik Africa.In addition to the website, you can also catch our episodes on Telegram.► You can also listen to our podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Deezer, Castbox, Pocket Casts, Afripods, Podcast Addict, Overcast, and Mave Stream.► Check out all the episodes of Global South Pole
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mali, kenya, african union (au), africa, podcasts, museums, culture, colonialism, british colonialism, art, traditional values, traditions, history, heritage, аудио
mali, kenya, african union (au), africa, podcasts, museums, culture, colonialism, british colonialism, art, traditional values, traditions, history, heritage, аудио
Cultural Banks: Can Africa Turn Heritage Into Living Resource?
Aliyu Bello
Correspondent, Podcast Host
Africa is rethinking how it preserves and uses its cultural heritage, moving beyond the idea of heritage as something that belongs only in museums. New approaches are seeking to reconnect cultural treasures with the communities that created them while turning heritage into a source of identity, innovation, and sustainable development.
The cultural bank model, pioneered in Mali, is one such approach. It seeks to keep heritage connected to communities while allowing cultural resources to contribute to their social and economic well-being, offering a model that could complement traditional museums.
Global South Pole spoke with Professor George Abungu, an archaeologist and former Director-General of the National Museums of Kenya, to discuss how cultural banks could reshape heritage preservation and the relationship between museums and the communities whose heritage they hold.
Abungu said the cultural-bank model is important precisely because it challenges the traditional separation between heritage and the communities that created it. Rather than keeping cultural materials confined within museums, he argued that heritage should remain accessible to communities and contribute to their social and economic development. In this sense, he said museums can learn from cultural banks by making their collections more useful and relevant to the people they serve.
"We need to start using that material, learning from Mali and the way it has been used in West Africa, and making this material viable as a means of sustainable economic empowerment for communities. It’s very critical. Otherwise, museums become irrelevant," Abungu explained.
The Kenyan archeologist added that the cultural-bank approach should also shape restitution, ensuring communities have a meaningful role in managing returned heritage. He said young Africans could combine heritage with technology and innovation, while urging African institutions to develop the model regionally and through the African Union, potentially turning a community-based idea into an African innovation with global relevance.
To listen to the whole discussion, tune in to the
Global South Pole podcast, brought to you by
Sputnik Africa.In addition to the website, you can also catch our episodes on
Telegram.► Check out all the episodes of Global South Pole 
