Focusing on the rich cultural heritage of the Ghazni region, UNESCO organized a one week capacity building workshop for museum professionals in August 2010. It is to be crowned by an exhibition about Ghazni at the National Museum of Afghanistan, later this month.

1. PROGRAMME
“(RE)OPENING A MUSEUM:
SOME DOs AND DON’Ts”
WORKSHOP
5-10 August 2010
Kabul, Afghanistan

2. DESCRIPTION OF THE WORKSHOP, ITS MAIL GOAL
Museums are strong players in promoting a town, a province, or even a macro-region or a
country. While local marketing can not and should not rely only on local cultural heritage
and on its institutions, local museums can definitely strengthen an effective strategy.
Opening a new museum, however – or reopening an existing one after a longer period of
time – presents its own challenges. There definitely are some things one should do – and
others one should avoid – in order to improve quality. Quality surely has many varying
components, but this doesn't make excellence an abstract term: it can be measured,
improved, and fostered by best practices, communication and documentation.
Next to risk analysis (for collections, for the site that hosts them, for the people involved
as actors in management and promotion, as visitors, or as other stakeholders), next to
preventive conservation issues, we should also focus on the questions: what, who, where,
when, why... and how.
Going through these questions will lead us to better understanding the role of planning
our actions, and of interaction and participation. In opening a new museum, or organizing
to let people visit a new site, these issues will be of strategic relevance, and contribute in
letting us successfully reach our intended goals.
.

3. THURSDAY, 5 AUGUST
09:30-09:40 Registration of the participants at the National Museum of Afghanistan
Session I Opening Ceremony
Welcome speeches by:
Mr. Brendan Cassar, UNESCO office in Kabul
09:40-10:00
Dr. Omara Khan Massudi, General Director, National Museums of Afghanistan
Dr. Alessandro Califano, Senior Curator, CRDAV
Session II Introduction
10:00-10:15 Introduction of the participants
Introduction to objectives of the training: description of issues at stake (who,
10:15-10:45
what, where, when, why… and how!)
10:45-11:00 Coffee break
A provocative question: "Why do we open a museum?" – brain storming and
11:00-12:00
discussion
FRIDAY, 6 AUGUST
Excursion Babur’s Garden
09:30-11:30 Visit to Babur’s Garden, its museum and its exhibition hall
SATURDAY, 7 AUGUST
Session III The National Museum of Afghanistan – An Overview
"What is new? What has changed? What are the tomorrow’s plans?” – a guided
09:30-12:00
tour of the museum’s departments and exhibition rooms
12:00-13:00 Lunch
Session IV Risk Assessment
13:00-13:30 “Environment and equipment” – a risk assessment tool (handout)
“What and where?” – a risk assessment discussion (Echoes from the excursion
13:30-15:00
& the NMA guided tour)

4. SUNDAY, 8 AUGUST
Session V Risk Assessment – A Case Study
“What and where?” – a risk assessment discussion (The Ghazni Context: maps
09:30-11:00
and sites)
11:00-12:00 “When?” Specific issues concerning the Ghazni Museum – facts and discussion
12:00-13:00 Lunch
Session VII People and Story-telling
13:00-14:30 The Fifth Question: “Who?” – public, stakeholders, actors
14:30-15:00 “Who”, an answer to the question: “Why?” – different publics, different stories
MONDAY, 9 AUGUST
Session VIII How-to
09:30-10:30 Documentation – an artefact’s life-cycle
10:30-12:00 “To touch or not to touch?” – physical interaction with artefacts
12:00-13:00 Lunch
Session IX How-to (continued)
13:00-14:30 Artefacts’s materials and connected risks
14:30-15:00 Questions and discussion
TUESDAY, 10 AUGUST
Session X “Wrapping it up”
09:30-11:00 “5W + H” : Lessons learned
Session XI Closing Ceremony
11:00-12:00 Closing ceremony, with UNESCO’s and other official representatives