Hifadhi Zanzibar welcomes Dutch Minister of Trade and Development Liliane Ploumen

Hifadhi team member Hassan Ali Juma and Director of the Department of Urban and Rural Planning Muhammad Juma are accompanying Dutch Minister of Trade and Development Liliane Ploumen in Stone Town (photo Daniel Hayduk)

Heritage constitutes an important source of identity and cohesion for communities. Well maintained heritage offers a physical testimony of its past, but it also serves as a precious resource for social and economic development. This is what the founders – representatives of a couple of large companies - of Stadsherstel Amsterdam NV had in mind, when establishing the Limited Liability Company in 1956. Stadsherstel had an important role in maintaining the historic character of Amsterdam over the years. This example will now be followed by Hifadhi Zanzibar (Preserve Zanzibar), a Limited Liability Company that will soon be established to acquire, restore, rent out and maintain historically valuable buildings in Stone Town and other urban areas in Zanzibar. The shareholders, a majority being