USAID officials visit Syriac Heritage Museum in Iraq to monitor progress of cultural heritage preservation project

ANKAWA, IRAQ — Bernard Youssef, the Director of the Syriac Heritage Museum in Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), recently welcomed Jessica Pomerantis, an official of monitoring and evaluation affairs at the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in Iraq and her accompanying delegation. During the visit, they were given an overview of the museum’s history, establishment, and departments and were briefed on the progress of USAID’s work within the museum.

The focus of discussion was the “Preserving Cultural Heritage of Minorities in Iraq” project, a joint initiative by USAID and the Coalition of Archaeologists and the latest work carried out by USAID employees in this regard. The delegation was taken on a tour of the museum’s various departments and inspected its exhibition hall, which showcased the traditional folk costumes of the Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian people.

The Director General of Syriac Culture and Arts, Kaldo Ramzy Oganna, provided the delegation with a detailed explanation of the historical mural that was completed in August 2022, with the support of USAID’s efforts and initiative.

At the conclusion of the visit, Bernard Youssef expressed his gratitude to USAID for its continued assistance in the development of the Syriac Museum in Ankawa.