Cultural heritage projects in the Vjosa Valley

2023-04-23 19:12:00, Aktualitet CNA

The European Union is supporting the restoration of cultural heritage monuments in the Vjosa Valley, declared a National Park. One of the monuments that has just been restored is the Benca Aqueduct built in the nineteenth century. Heritage specialists say that funding is necessary as the number of monuments is large and the condition of many of them is at risk.

A few years ago, environmental activists protested in the Benca Valley in Tepelena for the construction of a hydropower plant, which would harm the natural values ??and cultural heritage of the area.

Thanks to the efforts, the construction activity was blocked and now in the newly declared National Park the attention is returning to the cultural heritage and tourism.

The European Union has recently supported the restoration of the Benca Aqueduct, a work of the nineteenth century, which served to bring water to the fortress of Tepelena.

This is one of the most important monuments for Tepelena, says Aleksandër Toti, coordinator of this project in the Municipality of Tepelena.

Ali Pashë's aqueduct, located in the village of Bênçë in Tepelena, is one of the cultural monuments of the First Category and one of the most important in the Municipality of Tepelena and the most visited in recent years. This year, an intervention was carried out in this monument thanks to the support of a project financed by the European Union, which is a cross-border project and is the first implemented in the municipality of Tepelna. This project consists not only in the intervention in this monument but also in the preservation of cultural values ??and their revival.

Mr. Toti further says that the investment has affected the construction of infrastructure in the protection zone to make the monument accessible up close, the restoration of the monument and a tourist map for four routes in this area.

The tourist itineraries include the Bênca waterworks monument, the Peshtura waterfall, as well as the paths of the Rrëza area and the Lekli area. We will continue with some other publications that will give life to tourism and will be very important for those who practice tourism activities and services but also for visitors. Tourists will find it much easier with these publications as they are digital platforms that can be accessed very easily through the Internet.

While the restoration architect Reshat Gega says that the valley is quite rich with monuments that need intervention to be saved and protected in the first place and to become visitable by local and foreign tourists.

" The valley is extremely rich in human life and consequently also in cultural heritage. Starting from the beginning to the end of the Valley, we find some ancient centers and some towns, we find urban centers of the ancient period and suburban ones, ie smaller ones, we have an extraordinary wealth of cultural monuments that combine quite well with natural resources.

Mr. Gega appreciates the investments, but on the other hand he says that they should be accompanied by the professional quality of the restorations in order not to lose cultural heritage values.

"The investment boom, whether in Gjirokastër, in Tepelena or beyond, has been large from a quantitative point of view and commendable of course. But often these situations turn into a "double-edged sword" because the great haste to realize such large, important investments, not accompanied by the quality and professional capacities of the appropriate level, bring damage and instead of "putting the eyebrows bring out the eyes".

The Vjosa Valley was declared a National Park a while ago and the new status is seen to curb the construction of hydroelectric dams that were foreseen and help tourism.

The areas are extremely affected by poverty levels and are increasingly being abandoned by the residents./VOA