This article was originally published by This Week in Palestine and is republished with permission.

The Ramallah Centennial Project celebrates 100 years since the establishment of the Ramallah municipality.

The birth of the municipality of Ramallah, which is now celebrating its centennial anniversary, was in the year 1908. The centennial celebration will not only be limited to the municipality but will extend to include the whole of the city, whose age is much greater.

The municipal council recognised that its centennial could be an opportunity to highlight the city of Ramallah as a distinct Palestinian city - politically, economically, and culturally - and to invite tourism and investors. Work on the Municipality of Ramallah Centennial Project began with efforts to put the city on the world map.

To achieve the goal of transforming Ramallah into a model city in the region, and a city of international calibre, it was imperative that Ramallah experience a comprehensive renaissance. This renaissance intersects with the overall development plan of the Palestinian National Authority and serves to revive a city that has been deteriorating due to the effects of more than forty years of occupation.

To achieve the dream, the municipality created a vision that addresses several tracks and covers all aspects of life. Each track includes ambitious projects and programmes that aim to transform Ramallah into a world-class city with distinction. This effort is closely linked to the municipality's three-year strategic plan (2008-2010).

With a comprehensive overview of the various tracks of the plan and its projects and programmes, one can easily realise the extent of the municipal council's ambition and the great challenges it faces in order to enable Ramallah to reach the desired goal. The project plan is designed to be implemented over three years, during which time it seeks to achieve the main objectives of the Municipality of Ramallah Centennial Project: development of infrastructure and the environment, protection of cultural heritage, promotion of culture and science, strengthening of pluralism and community participation, comprehensive institutional development of the municipality of Ramallah, and the promotion of tourism and investment.

The 2008 Central Celebrations of the Ramallah Municipality's Centennial: Wain a Ramallah ("Let's Go to Ramallah")

Ramallah Municipality has accumulated extensive experience during the one hundred years since its founding. And given its privileged place - politically, economically, and culturally - the municipality finds itself today qualified to offer a developmental, modern model for weaving together a new and integrated relationship with the broadest segments of society. This vision is an essential part of its project to develop its role and build a healthy and much deeper and transparent relationship with its community.

The Ramallah Municipality's centennial anniversary has served as a starting point towards realising that vision through two linked tracks, the first of which is the municipality's strategic plan for the next three years (2008-2010) mentioned above. The second track is the plan's objective of including and engaging the broadest segments of the city's community in this vision through a series of activities that are characterised by popular involvement. The location of these activities will be the plazas of the city itself. The activities will be based on a balanced and direct partnership that enjoys continuity and the ability to confront the reality of the Israeli occupation.

An example of these activities is the 2008 Central Celebrations, Wain a Ramallah, which will be held by the municipality between 1 and 31 July. The celebrations can be divided into three main themes: cultural and arts activities, the Ramallah Shopping Festival, and the launching of a series of projects that are related to the Centennial Project.

The preparation for these activities has required the opening of a broad dialogue with civil society organisations, authorities, individuals, and specialised committees that are supporting the project. It has also required studying the existing and potential capabilities and the effects that result from the policies of the Israeli occupation. In addition, it has required studying the negative role of these policies in hindering the development process. The result was the formulation of a realistic and ambitious programme.

Activities Programme

The focus on popular cultural and arts activities proceeds from the Ramallah Municipality's confidence that the cultural field acts as meeting point with the general city community. The 2008 Central Celebrations programme, therefore, has acquired its cultural and arts characteristics based on a broad partnership with the city's public institutions through transforming the spaces and plazas of the city into celebration areas that enhance the public's relationship with its own city. The programme represents various artistic trends and styles that meet the varying community needs. The Wain a Ramallah activities will debut with a special evening that includes the renowned Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish accompanied by the Le Trio Jubran music band.

Through these important activities, Ramallah will welcome participation from other Palestinian cities, particularly Jerusalem - the eternal capital of our state - and the Gaza Strip, as well as visitors from the 1948 Palestine territories. Some activities include The Road to Jerusalem, From the Galilee of Palestine to Ramallah, "Gaza on My Mind" Evening, and The Dabke Festival, with the participation of a number of groups from various Palestinian cities and villages.

As mentioned earlier, city spaces and plazas will be turned into performance sites. The places that will be used include: the Old City, the Ottoman Court building, the Municipality Plaza, Harajeh Plaza, Downtown Ramallah parking lot, Tireh Plaza, Qaddoura Camp, Manarah Square, Saa'a Square, Irsal Street, Ain Minjed Plaza, Tokyo Street, Al-Khuzama Restaurant, Odeh Hotel, Al-Sonobar Pool and Restaurant, Al-Hamra Palace (Irsal Street), Quakers Hall, Grand Park Hotel Street, Shakara Neighbourhood, Family Garden, Gudeireh Plaza, Civic (Ahliya) College (Latin Church), schoolyards, cafés, and the Ramallah Cultural Palace.

Ramallah Shopping Festival

The goals of the celebrations include holding a shopping festival in order to support national policy and industries, as well as a revival of internal tourism that aims to draw attention to the city throughout the period of the activities. Currently, agreements with private tourism companies are in progress in order to motivate Palestinians from the Green Line areas (1948 Palestine territories) to visit Ramallah during the Festival.

The participation of the private sector in the Central Celebrations through supporting the various activities and through the Shopping Festival is considered an exceptional opportunity for integrating this sector into the development process at the level of the local government institutions in Palestine in general, and in the Ramallah Municipality in particular.

Launching of Development Projects under the Umbrella of the Centennial Project

As previously mentioned, the Ramallah Municipality centennial anniversary has acted as a starting point towards implementing a medium-range development plan that stretches over three years. The opportunity of the Central Celebrations will be used to announce and launch a series of projects related to the Ramallah Municipality Centennial Project. Some of these projects include: the Naming and Numbering Project, the Town Theatre Rehabilitation Project, the Restaurants Area Rehabilitation Project, the President Yasser Arafat Square Project, the Science Museum Project, the Rashid Al-Haddadeen Square Project, the City Centre Rehabilitation Project, the George Habash Square Project, and the Azeez Shahin Square Project.