Assessing the Sustainability of the National Strategy for the Protection and Valorization of Desert Architectural Heritage: A Case Study of the Conserved Sector of the M’Zab Valley Plain, Ghardaïa Province

Abstract

Urban heritage is a reflective mirror of the lives of our ancestors in the past, offering a window into their ideas, principles, and adaptive strategies in response to environmental and societal conditions at the time, regardless of how diverse these conditions may have been. Our country is rich in diverse urban heritage, reflecting the natural and cultural diversity it encompasses. Due to the vast expanse of the Algerian Sahara, desert urban heritage holds a significant position within the system of both national and global tangible cultural heritage. Algeria hosts five classified desert urban heritage sites out of a total of 17 sites that are either classified or in the process of classification, highlighting the importance of this rich cultural legacy.

     The M'Zab Valley, classified as a national heritage site since 1971, a World Heritage Site since 1982, and a preserved sector since 2005, is considered one of the most prominent living examples of desert urban heritage in Algeria. This is evidenced by the strategy that the state has actively pursued to protect and enhance it, which is a strategy with both national and international dimensions. However, the question arises: Has this strategy taken into account the requirements of sustainability in protecting and enhancing this urban heritage? And has it succeeded in ensuring the sustainability of the urban heritage of the M'Zab Valley?

    After analyzing and evaluating this strategy according to the sustainability criteria of urban heritage protection and enhancement strategies outlined in international charters and treaties, it becomes evident that, theoretically, it is a highly sustainable strategy. However, its practical implementation on the ground has been accompanied by numerous imbalances and violations, putting the sustainability of the urban heritage of the M'Zab Valley at risk.