Component Three
The third component of the Initiative involves raising and deploying funding resources and expertise for the repair and protection of archaeological and architectural sites in Iraq. This includes supporting conservation and restoration projects aided through a program of grants to projects identified by the SBAH.

Work in progress

The GCI and WMF are also preparing to assist the SBAH in developing nomination files for inscribing sites on the World Heritage List, and to provide expertise in the development of management plans for sites, especially as they relate to the UNESCO requirement to establish such plans in advance of World Heritage nomination.

Support Provided

To date, two grants have been awarded by the initiative for site protection. One has been given to the Massachusetts College of Art for the reinstallation of protective roofing over the Palace of Sennacherib in the archaeological site at Nineveh, which was looted during the 2003 war. The second grant went to the American Association for Research in Baghdad for the protection of archaeological sites in central Iraq, which suffered looting in the aftermath of the recent war.

Last updated: December 2006