Cultural Affairs and Sport

1. What lead to the establishment of a cultural route on the south and west coast of the province?

 

In 2015 the Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport nominated the “The Emergence of Modern Humans: The Pleistocene Occupation Sites of South Africa” to the Tentative List of World Heritage Sites. This is a serial nomination of the following sites: Diepkloof Rock Shelter, Pinnacle Point Site Complex, Blombos Cave, Sibudu Caves, Boarder Caves and Klasies River Caves. Three of these sites, namely, Diepkloof Rock Shelter, Pinnacle Point Site Complex and Blombos Cave, are located in the Western Cape Province. The other three sites are located in the provinces of the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal respectively.

 

In March 2017 the Western Cape Cabinet approved in-principle the development of the Archaeological and Palaeontological Heritage Tourism Route. The Route is anchored on these sites that are part of the World Heritage nomination. The Department is spearheading the project in collaboration with Wesgro, the Department of Economic Development and Tourism and local spheres of government.

It is envisaged that the route will enhance the value of world heritage sites and will contribute to economic growth and job creation.

2. How did the establishment of the Cradle of Human Culture Route influence the establishment of this cultural route?

The route is packaged as a tourism product and branded as the “Cradle of Human Culture.” The Cradle of Human Culture was expected to be a celebration of all culture in the Western Cape and the main marketing point for it was to be able to attract tourists from the Cradle of Humankind to the Western Cape and vice versa.

After several meetings between Wesgro and the Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport, it was agreed that the Cradle of Human Culture would be the initial brand for the archaeological and palaeontological heritage tourism route, and eventually for the World Heritage Site. Other experiences and tourism products will be added to the route in addition to the archaeological and palaeontological sites.

3. what progress has been made with the development of this cultural route

The route will be launched on 11 April 2019 during the World Travel Market Africa show to be held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre. The initial phase of the route will include thirteen sites: five on the West Coast, seven on the southern Cape Coast (including Cango Caves) and one in Cape Town.

4. which role players have been involved in the process

The project is a collaboration between the Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport, Wesgro and the Department of Economic Development and Tourism.

A provincial steering committee was established for the Route in June 2017 to ensure that a broader perspective of other spheres of government and stakeholders are considered during the planning and implementation of the Route.

The steering committee includes relevant local and district municipalities; Department of Transport and Public Works; Department of Local Government; landowners and scientists of the sites included in the Route; CapeNature; the South African Heritage Resources Agency and the Centre of Palaeoscience at the Nelson Mandela University.

5. what is the time frame for the completion of this cultural route

The initial phase of the Cradle of Human Culture will be launched in April 2019. Additional sites will be added to the route as and when they become available. The second phase of the project will focus on preparing additional sites for tourists, and monitoring and evaluating the current experiences provided to tourists to be able to adapt the route to the tourists’ requirements.

In addition, DCAS is also assessing the possibility of developing interpretation centres along the route which will present the individual and collective story of the three World Heritage Sites.

Overall, DCAS expects this route to grow organically with the contribution of communities, landowners and local government. At all stages, the route will require some management from the Department.

6. how will this cultural route

1. 1. acknowledge the history and lifestyle of indigenous people

The origin point of the route is the development of modern human behaviour between 160 000-100 000 years ago, when anatomically modern humans (Homo sapiens) started developing traits of modern human behaviour.

The history and lifestyle of indigenous people is directly acknowledged in some of the more recent sites, such as Eland’s Bay Cave, Truitijeskraal, Stadsaal and Bomplaas. Most of these sites have interpretative panels acknowledging the history of the site and explaining its origin and the origin of the people who used the site.

Furthermore, one of the goals of the route is to have tours on site where local guides can explain the narrative related to each site and their relationship with indigenous people.

1. 2. promote nature conservation and

All archaeological sites, and more predominantly the three sites on the UNESCO tentative list, have testimony in their records of a very close relationship and interaction between humans and the surrounding environment. Most of human survival through the several glacial periods originated in the human ability to adapt to the surrounding environment and live within it.

As a consequence, this concept of indelible connection between humans and the surrounding environment (nature) is one of the main discussion themes in the Route.  The Cradle of Human Culture will also educate the visitors on how the archaeological record shows how fundamental the relationship between humans and the surrounding environment is and how it has shaped who we are today.

In addition, some of the sites included in theRoute are located within nature reserves, which already alert the visitors of the importance of nature conservation.

1. 3. promote tourism?

Wesgro has developed a marketing strategy for the Cradle of Human Culture which will be implemented soon after the launch. A logo, website and brochures are currently being developed and will be ready for the launch. 

A press release, issued at the end of February 2019, has already attracted interest from several media outlets. Additional press releases are planned for the financial year 2019/2020. The Cradle of Human Culture will also be advertised by Wesgro at a Tourism Road Show in China.

Additionally, two feasibility studies are currently being conducted for the West Coast and the Southern Cape. These studies are assessing the feasibility of the whole Route and will suggest the most suitable way to set up Interpretation Centres for Blombos Cave, Pinnae Point Site Complex and Diepkloof Rock Shelter, which are as sustainable as possible.