What is Traditionalism

Cultural heritage preservation is a sine qua non for the effective technological, scientific, and economic development of nations across the world. This follows the theory stating that culture is life and that there is a cultural factor in technological development. In view of this truism, most African states and social institutions have these last years embarked on multifaceted tactics aimed at heritage conservation in their respective national territories. These preservation efforts have yielded only patchy fruits as they are confronted to the forces of modernism and globalization. Thus, modernism and globalization have continued to represent big threats to heritage preservation in many African countries. This chapter illustrates this thesis through a comparative study of cultural heritage management in Cameroon and Nigeria. The chapter begins by examining the extent to which heritage preservation is feasible in an era governed by modernism and globalization before exploring similarities and differences in the ways modernism and globalization affect heritage preservation in Nigeria and Cameroon.