CULTURE & IDENTITY
Association de Sauvegarde de la Medina de Tunis
Civic association to promote old city urban renewal -medina- and redefine its role into the Tunis agglomeration. The A.S.M. aim is not only to preserve the specificity and unity of the historic city but also to ensure its integration into the rest of the city, in order to avoid its marginalization.
Tags: Urban Regeneration, City Branding, Cultural Heritage, Housing
Challenges addressed
- The medina as a cultural asset and to vitalize it.
- Cultural heritage and Tunisian identity and cultural identity.
Main objectives
- Renovating the medina in order to stop the progressive decay of residential areas in the Medina.
- The measures do not only involve buildings but also social and public life in the city.
- Restoration of degraded areas.
- Social housing rehabilitation.
- Renewal of buildings of historic and architectural interest.
- Expertise and advice on housing, advisor to the municipality for building permits, technical assistance to other Associations Safeguarding Tunisian medinas as well as publications.
Facts
Project type Culture and identity
Promoter Tunis municipality
Inhabitants of Tunis 640.000
Start date 1967
Inhabitants of the Medina Around 100.000
Website http://www.asmtunis.com/
Project description
The main challenges faced by Tunis Medina required a big involvement and joint action of the different public administrations as well as the Tunisian civil society and above all the Medina inhabitants. In this frame was created the ASM.
The Association was created and funded by the municipality and its aim was to give a major role to the active members of the city and set up a technical consultancy department very committed to the task of preserve the Medina and integrate its future into the life of the modern city of Tunis. Among the challenges to face can be found the need to restore the historical heritage, the renewal of some parts of the Medina. These actions needed public and private investments.
The dwellings in the area needed major reparations and there was a strong commitment to preserve the cultural and historical patterns that shape the personality of the Medina. The strategy adopted was an attempt to meet the requirements of the city’s developing reality and find a solution to its rebirth by carrying out conservation action, conversion and renovation solutions for the threatened buildings. The association tasks include the advice and transmission of the expertise to other Tunisian cities. The main thread was to preserve the identity of the Medina and keep it away from becoming a touristic landscape. Life, culture and social cohesion were the main values to promote.
Impact and results
- 1967: creation of the Association de Sauvegarde de la Médina.
- Renewal and Preservation Projects
Hafsia project
Oukalas project
Dar Lasram project
- International cooperation
- Public-private partnerships
- Historical and social approach
- Model for other Medinas in the Maghreb and beyond.
Reference images & videos
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