The Lesotho Highlands Development Authority has appointed PSG Heritage Solutions to develop and implement a comprehensive cultural heritage plan that will protect and manage Lesotho’s rich cultural heritage during the construction and operation of Phase II of the Lesotho Highlands water project.
Valued at M27-million, the project will span five years and is aimed at protecting burial sites; Stone Age occupation sites, mainly in rock shelters; settlements dating back to the Iron Age, some of which are still inhabited; and rock art.
The project is also aimed at preserving the nation’s oral history and raising national cultural heritage awareness.
The plan will be developed in line with the country’s heritage legislation and the conventions of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, the International Centre for the Study and Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property and the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage to which Lesotho is a signatory.
The scope of services includes reviewing and updating the inventory of cultural heritage resources in the area to be inundated by the Polihali reservoir; implementing mitigation measures through mapping, recording and excavation; and recording and describing intangible cultural heritage including living history and archival research.