Lithuanian municipalities allocated nearly €28 million to cultural heritage in 2024—one of the highest funding levels recorded over the entire monitoring period. The long-term monitoring carried out by the National Commission for Cultural Heritage of the Republic of Lithuania reveals a growing financial and institutional engagement of municipalities, while also highlighting systemic gaps—from funding that does not match actual needs to insufficiently developed incentive schemes for heritage property owners.
“The contribution of municipalities to the protection of cultural heritage is steadily increasing; however, the scale of funding still does not correspond to the real needs of heritage management. Long-term analysis shows that currently only about 20–30% of the actual heritage management needs are being funded. Cultural heritage often requires long-term investment, therefore it is essential to strengthen both state and municipal financial instruments and to develop incentives for the owners of cultural heritage properties,” says the Chair of the Heritage Commission, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vaidutė Ščiglienė.
Heritage Commission is an expert and advisor to the Parliament of the Republic of Lithuania, President of the Republic of Lithuania and to Government of the Republic of Lithuania regarding the national policy of cultural heritage protection, its implementation, evaluation and improvement.