The impact of COVID-19 on cultural heritage sites: A comparison between Saudi Arabia and Egypt

Abstract

At the end of 2019, the world did not know that it was about to face an infectious disease that would cause great human losses and deterioration in national economies, resulting in a huge impact on societal well-being. World Heritage Sites face many challenges, such as the impacts of conflicts and development, but COVID-19 has had an even greater impact on such sites. This project aims to identify the positive and negative impacts of the coronavirus pandemic on cultural heritage sites. It further aims to examine the strategies used by heritage site managers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Arab Republic of Egypt to address COVID-19 impacts and the lessons they have learned during this crisis. The research relies primarily on an inductive approach based on compiling data, statistics and reports issued by official bodies such as the World Health Organization, UNESCO and the Saudi Arabian and Egyptian ministries of culture. The study also uses an analytical approach based on sending surveys to managers of cultural heritage sites in Saudi Arabia and Egypt to investigate the practical reality and compare this with the official data