Category 2 Centres

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-15/39.COM/6,
2. Recalling decisions 36 COM 6, 36 COM 9B, 37 COM 5E, 37 COM 6 and 38 COM 6 adopted at its 36th (Saint-Petersburg, 2012), 37th (Phnom Penh, 2013) and 38th (Doha, 2014) sessions respectively,
3. Commends the progress made in the implementation of the World Heritage Capacity-Building Strategy (WHCBS), its accompanying World Heritage Capacity-Building Programme, and the capacity-building activities carried out in 2014 and in the beginning of 2015;
4. Notes with appreciation the continued support of the Government of Switzerland in the implementation of the World Heritage Capacity-Building Programme;
5. Acknowledges the acute need, however, for significant additional contributions and support in order for the programme to be able to reach its goal, and calls upon other States Parties and organizations to provide additional funding and support for the implementation of the World Heritage Capacity-Building Programme and associated activities at the international and regional levels;
6. Takes note of the development of the regional capacity-building strategies and initiatives as a follow up to the second cycle of the Periodic Reporting exercise in all regions, and calls upon States Parties and all concerned partners and stakeholders to follow-up on the implementation of the strategies developed for each region;
7. Encourages the ongoing efforts by the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies to establish a biennial recognition of best practices, notably through identifying extrabudgetary financial support towards the implementation of this activity;
8. Welcomes the progress made by all category 2 centres related to World Heritage in implementing their activities and calls on interested stakeholders to support the activities of these centres;
9. Requests the World Heritage Centre and ICCROM to submit a progress report on the implementation of the World Heritage Capacity-Building Strategy and the activities of the category 2 centres related to World Heritage for examination by the Committee at its 40th session in 2016.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined document WHC-15/39.COM/10B,
2. Recalling Decision 38 COM 10B.4 adopted at the 38th session (Doha, 2014);
3. Takes note of the progress accomplished in the follow-up activities of the second cycle of the Periodic Reporting for Latin America and the Caribbean and encourages the States Parties of the region to continue their efforts in the implementation of its recommendations;
4. Notes with appreciation the elaboration of the two sub-regional Action Plans for the Caribbean and for South America;
5. Further notes with appreciation the support of the Government of Peru for the organization of the sub-regional meeting for the elaboration of the World Heritage Action Plan for South America (Cuzco, 5 to 7 May 2015);
6. Encourages Central American States Parties to work in close coordination with the World Heritage Centre to organize a meeting for the establishment of a sub-regional Action Plan with the participation of all stakeholders;
7. Encourages Mexico and Brazil to continue their efforts in view to consolidate the establishment of the UNESCO category 2 centres for World Heritage in Zacatecas (Mexico) and in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil);
8. Reminds States Parties which have not already done so to submit their Retrospective Statements of Outstanding Universal Value by 1 February 2016 at the latest, as well as clarifications of boundaries by 1 December 2015 at the latest;
9. Takes note that, in conformity with Decision 38 COM 10B.4, the World Heritage Centre will provide a report on the progress made in the implementation of the regional and sub-regional Action Plans at its 40th session in 2016.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-14/38.COM/5E,
2. Recalling Decisions 32 COM 10, 32 COM 10A, 34 COM 5F.1, 36 COM 5D and 36 COM 5E, adopted at its 32nd (Quebec City, 2008), 34th (Brasilia, 2010) and 36th (Saint Petersburg, 2012) sessions respectively,
3. Welcomes the progress report on the implementation of the World Heritage Thematic Programmes and Initiative and thanks all States Parties, donors and other organizations for having contributed to achieving their objectives;
4. Acknowledges the results attained by the Forest Programme and expresses its regrets that no extrabudgetary funding could be secured and asks the World Heritage Centre to explore alternative options before phasing out the Programme;
5. Notes the importance of the World Heritage Cities Programme and underlines the relevance of the Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape to provide a comprehensive and thorough framework for cities’ urban planning, conservation and sustainable development;
6. Takes note that the follow-up of the HEADS Programme will be ensured in the framework of extra-budgetary projects, through extra-budgetary funding secured by the UNESCO Mexico Office from the Carlos Slim Foundation, and in coordination with the Category 2 Centre on Rock Art (Spain) and requests that the outcomes of the projects be reported to the World Heritage Committee;
7. Also takes note of the results achieved by the Earthen Architecture Programme and the lack of extra-budgetary resources; further takes note that the programme will be pursued, provided that extra-budgetary funding can be secured, with the assistance of Advisory Bodies and external partners, and encourages stakeholders to ensure the follow-up of the Programme and continue supporting research and other activities in order to assist States Parties in identifying and protecting relevant sites;
8. Notes the results achieved in the implementation of the Astronomy and World Heritage Initiative as well as the lack of extra-budgetary funding; also notes that the World Heritage Centre will continue basic coordination with its strategic partners, communicate the results achieved by the Advisory Bodies and other partners, and will provide advice to States Parties as requested; and also encourages stakeholders to ensure the follow-up of the Initiative and continue supporting research and other activities to assist States Parties in identifying and protecting relevant sites;
9. Welcomes the progress made in the implementation of the World Heritage Sustainable Tourism Programme and in securing the extrabudgetary funding and encourages the States Parties to participate in the Programme with national activities;
10. Acknowledges the results of the World Heritage Programme for Small Island Developing States (SIDS), which has been beneficial to all regions and continues to achieve its key objectives;
11. Also requests the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies, with the support of interested States Parties, to continue efforts to implement the activities foreseen under the remaining Thematic Programmes in 2014-2015;
12. Further encourages States Parties, international organizations and donors to contribute to the Thematic Programmes and Initiatives and further requests the World Heritage Centre to submit an updated result-based report on Thematic Programmes and Initiatives for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 40th session in 2016.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-14/38.COM/6,
2. Recalling Decisions 36 COM 6, 36 COM 9B, 37 COM 5E and 37 COM 6, adopted at its 36th (Saint Petersburg, 2012) and 37th (Phnom Penh, 2013) sessions respectively,
3. Commends the progress made in the implementation of the World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy (WHCBS), its accompanying World Heritage Capacity Building Programme, and the capacity building activities carried out in 2013 and 2014;
4. Notes with appreciation the continued support of the Government of Switzerland in the implementation of the World Heritage Capacity Building Programme;
5. Acknowledges the acute need, however, for additional significant contributions in order to reach a critical mass of support for the programme to be able to reach its goal, and calls upon other States Parties and organizations to provide additional funding and other support for the implementation of the World Heritage Capacity Building Programme and associated activities at the international and regional levels;
6. Takes note of the development of the regional capacity building strategies and initiatives as a follow up to Periodic Reporting exercise in all regions, and notably of the conclusion of the Regional Capacity Building Strategy and Associated Programmes for Asia and the Pacific, led by the World Heritage Institute for Training and Research in Asia and the Pacific (WHITR-AP), and also calls upon States Parties and all concerned partners and stakeholders of the region to follow-up the implementation of the strategy;
7. Encourages the ongoing efforts by the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies to establish a biennial recognition of best practice, notably through identifying extrabudgetary financial support towards the implementation of this activity;
8. Welcomes the progress made by all category 2 centres related to World Heritage in implementing their activities as well as the outcomes of their fourth coordination meeting (Shanghai, 23-26 May 2014), generously hosted by WHITR-AP;
9. Further welcomes the establishment of the Centre for World Natural Heritage Management and Training for the Asia and Pacific Region in Dehradun (India) as a category 2 centre under the auspices of UNESCO;
10. Also takes note of the new integrated comprehensive strategy for category 2 centres, adopted by the General Conference of UNESCO, at its 37th session (Paris, 2013);
11. Also encourages the ongoing efforts to develop a UNITWIN network of UNESCO Chairs active in the field of heritage conservation which would help streamlining their contribution to the objectives of the World Heritage Convention and strengthen their synergies with existing category 2 centres, the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies;
12. Requests the World Heritage Centre and ICCROM to submit a progress report on the implementation of the World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy and the activities of the category 2 centres related to World Heritage for examination by the Committee at its 39th session in 2015.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-14/38.COM/7,
2. Recalling Decisions 35 COM 12B, 35 COM 12E and 37 COM 7C adopted at its 35th (UNESCO, 2011) and 37th (Phnom Penh, 2013) sessions respectively,

Issues emerging from the 2014 state of conservation reports

3. Noting with regret that issues related to Management Plan / System remain a serious cause for concern, requests all States Parties to ensure that all World Heritage properties are managed in such a manner that their Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) is not put at risk and, whenever necessary, develop/update and fully implement Management Plans or Systems;
4. Taking note of the benefits to States Parties of systematically utilizing Heritage and Environmental Impact Assessments in the review of development projects, recommends that States Parties use these tools in assessing projects before they reach a point where the World Heritage reactive monitoring process comes into play;
5. Also noting that tourism development in and around World Heritage properties is a key issue for their management, strongly encourages States Parties to ensure sustainable planning and management of tourism at World Heritage properties and to contribute to the implementation of the World Heritage Centre’s World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism Programme;
6. Reiterating its utmost concern about the continued impacts on World Heritage properties due to the rising pressure from poaching, particularly of elephant, rhinoceros, and valuable timber species, linked to a growing illicit trade, and the increasing involvement of organized crime in this lucrative business, reiterates its request to the World Heritage Centre and IUCN to strengthen their cooperation with the Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) to assist States Parties to implement the measures taken by the 16th Conference of the Parties of the CITES, and urges States Parties to ensure strong international collaboration and coordination to control the illicit trade in flora and fauna and their products;
7. Takes note with concern of the continuing threat posed to World Heritage properties by disasters and conflicts, of the widespread lack of adequate preparedness, and of the need to integrate a concern for heritage within international policies and programmes for disaster risk reduction, and calls on States Parties to ensure that their delegations to the 3rd World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (WCDRR), due to take place in March 2015 in Sendai (Japan), are sensitized to this question and promote heritage as an essential consideration in disaster risk reduction;
8. Also requests that States Parties with an interest in the promotion of capacity building on the issues of management, impact assessments, disaster risk management, sustainable tourism management, and poaching and wildlife crimes to liaise with the Advisory Bodies, World Heritage Centre, and UNESCO Category 2 Centres, and support regional or international courses, workshops, and other capacity building activities to improve the capacity of States Parties and site managers to develop and implement these important planning instruments;

Updates on previously reported issues

9. Welcomes the commitment made by TOTAL in June 2013 not to explore or exploit oil or gas inside sites inscribed on the World Heritage List as well as the new policy on World Heritage Sites adopted by the investment bank HSBC not to knowingly provide financial services to support projects which threaten the special characteristics of World Heritage properties and, also taking note of the discussions held between the World Heritage Centre, IUCN and International Petroleum Industry Environmental Conservation Association (IPIECA), calls on other companies in extractive industries and investment banks to follow these examples to further extend the “No go” commitment;
10. Also welcomes the progress in the dialogue between the World Heritage Centre, the Advisory Bodies and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and encourages the development of a mechanism that would allow to identify potential impacts of future Olympic Games on World Heritage properties early on in the process of attributing the Games in order to ensure that these impacts can be avoided or adequately mitigated by the organizing country;

Strategic issues related to the state of conservation of World Heritage properties

11. Also recalling that States Parties concerned shall submit by 1 February to the Committee through the Secretariat, their reports on the state of conservation of specific properties (Paragraph 169 of the Operational Guidelines ),
12. Acknowledging that the established minimum two-year cycle for the examination of state of conservation reports for individual properties (except for cases of utmost urgency and for properties inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger), associated to a postponed deadline for the submission of the States Parties’ reports would provide an opportunity for improved dialogue between the States Parties, the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies, decides that States Parties concerned shall submit their state of conservation reports to the World Heritage Centre by 1 December of the year preceding the examination of the property by the World Heritage Committee, with immediate effect, except for properties inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger and for cases of utmost urgency, and further requests the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies to draft a proposal in view of including this new statutory deadline in the Operational Guidelines , for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 39th session, in 2015;
13. Reminds States Parties of the importance of submitting their state of conservation reports to the World Heritage Centre in one of the working languages of the World Heritage Convention, English or French;
14. Notes with appreciation the high number of States Parties which have authorized the public upload of their state of conservation reports, facilitating their consultation by all stakeholders of the Convention and contributing to an improved transparency of the reactive monitoring process, and reiterates its encouragement to all States Parties to continue do so in the future.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-14/38.COM/7A,
2. Recalling Decision 37 COM 7A.28, adopted at its 37th session (Phnom Penh, 2013),
3. Acknowledges with great concern, the extreme conditions that have prevailed in Zabid over the past three years and the way this has hindered external donors from fulfilling their pledges, and notes the major impact that this had had on the availability of resources and on progress with regeneration and conservation projects;
4. Also notes with concern the lack of support for conservation initiatives from some inhabitants of Zabid;
5. Nonetheless welcomes the positive progress that has been possible and in particular the adoption of a new law in August 2013 on the protection of historic sites, monuments, cities and their urban and cultural heritage and further notes the submission of an International Assistance Request to develop local awareness-raising activities for the conservation of the property;
6. Also welcomes the continuing support of the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) and the proposed collaboration of the World Heritage Category 2 centre (ARC-WH) in Bahrain and calls on the wider international community to offer what support it can to allow progress in halting deterioration and violations to be sustained and over time to allow sustainable development to be achieved;
7. Requests the State Party to submit revised information on the definition of the boundaries at the time of inscription, and to finalise the delineation of the buffer zone and submit a minor boundary modification proposal by 1 February 2015 for review by the World Heritage Committee at its 39th session in 2015,
8. Also requests the State Party to pursue all necessary efforts to raise the awareness of local communities on the values of the property and the importance of their engagement in its preservation;
9. Further requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2015, an updated report on the state of conservation of the property and the implementation of the above, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 39th session in 2015;
10. Decides to retain the Historic Town of Zabid (Yemen) on the List of World Heritage in Danger.

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The World Heritage Committee,
1. Having examined Documents WHC-14/38.COM/8B.Add and WHC-14/38.COM/INF.8B2.Add,
2. Inscribes the Great Himalayan National Park Conservation Area, India, on the World Heritage List on the basis of criterion (x);
3. Adopts the following Statement of Outstanding Universal Value:

Brief synthesis
The Great Himalayan National Park Conservation Area is located in the western part of the Himalayan Mountains in the northern Indian State of Himachal Pradesh. The 90,540 ha property includes the upper mountain glacial and snow melt water source origins of the westerly flowing Jiwa Nal, Sainj and Tirthan Rivers and the north-westerly flowing Parvati River which are all headwater tributaries to the River Beas and subsequently, the Indus River. The property includes an elevational range from high alpine peaks of over 6,000m a.s.l to riverine forest at altitudes below 2,000m a.s.l. The Great Himalayan National Park Conservation Area encompasses the catchments of water supplies which are vital to millions of downstream users.

The property lies within the ecologically distinct Western Himalayas at the junction between two of the world’s major biogeographic realms, the Palearctic and Indomalayan Realms. Displaying biotic elements from both these realms, the Great Himalayan National Park Conservation Area protects the monsoon affected forests and alpine meadows of the Himalayan front ranges which sustain a unique biota comprised of many distinct altitude-sensitive ecosystems. The property is home to many plants and animals endemic to the region. The Great Himalayan National Park Conservation Area displays distinct broadleaf and conifer forest types forming mosaics of habitat across steep valley side landscapes. It is a compact, natural and biodiverse protected area system that includes 25 forest types and an associated rich assemblage of fauna species.

The Great Himalayan National Park Conservation Area is at the core of a larger area of surrounding protected areas which form an island of undisturbed environments in the greater Western Himalayan landscape. The diversity of species present is rich; however it is the abundance and health of individual species’ populations supported by healthy ecosystem processes where the Great Himalayan National Park Conservation Area demonstrates its outstanding significance for biodiversity conservation.

Criterion (x): The Great Himalayan National Park Conservation Area is located within the globally significant “Western Himalayan Temperate Forests” ecoregion. The property also protects part of Conservation International’s Himalaya “biodiversity hot spot” and is part of the BirdLife International’s Western Himalaya Endemic Bird Area. The Great Himalayan National Park Conservation Area is home to 805 vascular plant species, 192 species of lichen, 12 species of liverworts and 25 species of mosses. Some 58% of its angiosperms are endemic to the Western Himalayas. The property also protects some 31 species of mammals, 209 birds, 9 amphibians, 12 reptiles and 125 insects. The Great Himalayan National Park Conservation Area provides habitat for 4 globally threatened mammals, 3 globally threatened birds and a large number of medicinal plants. The protection of lower altitude valleys provides for more complete protection and management of important habitats and endangered species such as the Western Tragopan and the Musk Deer.

Integrity
The property is of a sufficient size to ensure the natural functioning of ecological processes. Its rugged topography and inaccessibility together with its location within a much larger ecological complex of protected areas ensures its integrity. The altitudinal range within the property together with its diversity of habitat types provide a buffer to climate change impacts and the needs of altitude sensitive plants and animals to find refuge from climate variability.

A 26,560 ha buffer zone known as an Ecozone is defined along the south-western side of the property. This buffer zone coincides with the areas of greatest human pressure and is managed in sympathy with the core values of the Great Himalayan National Park Conservation Area. The property is further buffered by high mountain systems to the north-west which include several national parks and wildlife sanctuaries. These areas also offer scope to progressively increase the size of the World Heritage property.

Human settlement related threats pose the greatest concern and include agriculture, localised poaching, traditional grazing, human-wildlife conflicts and hydropower development. Tourism impact is minimal and trekking routes are closely regulated.

Protection and management requirements
The property is subject to sound legal protection, however, this needs to be strengthened to ensure consistent high level protection across all areas. Tirthan and Sainj Wildlife Sanctuaries are designated in recognition of their ecological and zoological significance and are subject to wildlife management objectives, and a higher level of strict protection is provided to Great Himalayan National Park which is a national park. National parks under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 provide for strict protection without human disturbance.

The property’s boundaries are considered appropriate and an effective management regime is in place including an overall management plan and adequate resourcing. The property has a buffer zone along its south-western side which corresponds to the 26,560 ha Ecozone, the area of greatest human population pressure. Continued attention is required to manage sensitive community development issues in this buffer zone and in some parts of the property itself.

The sensitive resolution of access and use rights by communities is needed to bolster protection as is fostering alternative livelihoods which are sympathetic to the conservation of the area. Local communities are engaged in management decisions; however more work is needed to fully empower communities and continue to build a strong sense of support and stewardship for the Great Himalayan National Park Conservation Area.

Included within the property is the Sainj Wildlife Sanctuary with 120 inhabitants and the Tirthan Wildlife Sanctuary, which is uninhabited but currently subject to traditional grazing. The inclusion of these two Wildlife Sanctuaries supports the integrity of the nomination; however, it opens up concerns regarding the impacts of grazing and human settlements. Both these aspects are being actively managed, a process that will need to be maintained. The extent and impacts of high pasture grazing in the Tirthan area of the property needs to be assessed and grazing phased out as soon as practicable. Other impacts arising from small human settlements within the Sainj area of the property also need to be addressed as soon as practicable.

4. Requests the State Party to:

5. Commends the State Party and the range of stakeholders in the nominated property for their efficient and effective action to address concerns related to the property’s integrity, protection and management, as previously raised by the World Heritage Committee;
6. Recommends the States Parties to consider undertaking a regional comparative study with the possible support of the IUCN, other partners such as the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) and the newly established UNESCO Category 2 Centre on World Natural Heritage Management and Training for Asia-Pacific Region in India to assess the scope of ecosystems within the Himalayas and adjacent mountain regions with a view to identifying potential World Heritage candidate areas and boundary configurations in this region, including potential serial nominations / extensions;
7. Requests the State Party of India to submit to the World Heritage Centre by 1 December 2015, a report, including a 1-page executive summary, on the state of conservation of the property, including confirmation of progress on the above-mentioned requests, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 40th session in 2016.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-14/38.COM/10B,
2. Recalling decisions 36 COM 10A and 37 COM 10 C.1, adopted at its 36th session (Saint Petersburg, 2012) and 37th session (Phnom Penh, 2013) respectively,
3. Welcomes the progress made in the follow-up of the second cycle of Periodic Reporting in the Asia and the Pacific region;
4. Notes with appreciation the contribution of the Government of Australia to the organization of a sub-regional workshop in the Pacific for the follow-up of the second cycle of Periodic Reporting;
5. Also notes with appreciation the contribution of the World Heritage Institute of Training and Research for the Asia and the Pacific Region (WHITR-AP), a category 2 centre under the auspices of UNESCO, to the implementation of integrated capacity building activities for the follow-up to the second cycle of Periodic Reporting; and the International Centre on Space Technologies for Natural and Cultural Heritage (HIST, China) for its initiative in promoting regional cooperation on World Heritage in Asia and the Pacific;
6. Encourages the Centre for World Natural Heritage Management and Training for Asia and the Pacific Region, established as part of the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) as a category 2 centre under the auspices of UNESCO, to support capacity building and training activities for natural World Heritage in the region;
7. Calls upon Asia-Pacific States Parties to actively implement the Regional Action Plans and also encourages them to intensify their contributions to the implementation of follow-up activities while working closely with the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies;
8. Reminds States Parties which have not already done so to submit their Retrospective Statements of Outstanding Universal Value by 1 February 2015 at the latest, as well as clarifications of boundaries by 1 December 2014 at the latest;
9. Requests the World Heritage Centre to present a progress report on the implementation of the Action Plans for Asia and the Pacific region at its 39th session in 2015.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined document WHC-14/38.COM/10B,
2. Recalling Decision 37COM 10A adopted at the 37th session (Phnom Penh, 2013),
3. Congratulates the States Parties of Latin America and the Caribbean region for their efforts to continue follow-up actions to the exercise of the second cycle of the Periodic Reporting exercise for Latin America and the Caribbean, and adopts the 2014-2024 regional Action Plan;
4. Notes with appreciation the support of the Government of Brazil and the National Institute for Historic and Artistic Heritage (IPHAN) in organizing the regional meeting “Towards defining an Action Plan for World Heritage in Latin America and the Caribbean”, in close cooperation with the World Heritage Centre, UNESCO Office in Brasilia, the Advisory Bodies and the category 2 centres of the Region;
5. EncouragesStates Parties and all other World Heritage partners and stakeholders in Latin America and the Caribbean to cooperate actively to ensure the implementation of the Action Plan,  which reflects regional priorities to include, but not limited to, education and public awareness, disaster risk management, integrated heritage management, and sustainable tourism in World Heritage properties;
6. Calls upon the States Parties from the Region to support the implementation of the 2014-2024 Action Plan and also encourages them to provide technical and financial resources at national level for its implementation;
7. Further encourages States Parties to continue working, in close cooperation with the World Heritage Centre, Advisory Bodies and the Region’s category 2 centres, to develop sub-regional action plans, based on the Action Plan and taking into consideration and building upon the achievements of the previous plan with a focus on the specific needs of each sub-region;
8. Acknowledges the progress made by the States Parties of Mexico and Brazil in effectively establishing the UNESCO category 2 centre for the World Heritage in Zacatecas, Mexico, as well as the UNESCO Lucio Costa category 2 centre of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and strongly encourages them to continue their efforts in cooperation with the World Heritage Centre, States Parties and Advisory Bodies to initiate a capacity-building programme for the management and conservation of World Heritage in the region;
9. Also calls upon States Parties from other regions to support the efforts of the Latin American and the Caribbean Region in implementing the Action Plan, in the spirit of the international cooperation promoted by the World Heritage Convention;
10. Reminds States Parties which have not already done so to submit their Retrospective Statements of Outstanding Universal Value by 1 February 2015 at the latest, as well as clarifications of boundaries by 1 December 2014 at the latest;
11. Requests the World Heritage Centre to provide information on the progress made in the implementation of the regional Action Plan and sub-regional action plans at its 40th session in 2016.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-13/37.COM/6,

2. Recalling Decisions 35 COM 9B, 36 COM 6 and 36 COM 9B , adopted at its 35th (UNESCO, 2011) and 36th (Saint Petersburg, 2012) sessions respectively,

3. Welcomes the progress made on the implementation of the World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy (WHCBS) and the capacity building activities carried out in 2012 and 2013;

4. Thanks the Government of Switzerland for its continued support for the implementation of the World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy;

5. Calls on all States Parties and other organzations with an interest in capacity building to provide funding and other support for the implementation of the World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy and its associated programmes at the international and regional levels;

6. Acknowledges the very important role that category 2 centres and the capacity-building centres related to World Heritage are playing in the implementation of the WHCBS, and their potential to further contribute to capacity-building in general;

7. Welcomes the progress made by all category 2 centres related to World Heritage in implementing their activities as well as the outcomes of their third coordination meeting (Oslo, 5-8 March 2013), notably the decision by all of them to review, with the support of UNESCO, their strategies and plans by applying the results-based management (RBM) approach so as to ensure that their activities are tied to the overall objectives of UNESCO and the priorities established by the Committee;

8. Further welcomes the proposed strengthening of synergies and cooperation at the regional level between UNESCO category 2 centres and UNESCO Chairs, IUCN regional networks and ICOMOS National Committees, and at the thematic level with ICCROM, ICOMOS International Scientific Committees and the UNESCO UNITWIN Networks;

9. Thanks the Nordic World Heritage Foundation (Oslo, Norway) for having hosted the third annual coordination meeting of category 2 centres related to World Heritage, with financial support from the Norwegian Ministry of Environment;

10. Requests the World Heritage Centre and ICCROM to submit a progress report on the implementation of the World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy and the activities of the UNESCO category 2 centres related to World Heritage for examination by the Committee at its 38th session in 2014. 

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The World Heritage Committee,

1.  Having examined Document WHC-13/37.COM/9,

2.  Recalling Decision 34 COM 13.III adopted at its 34th session (Brasilia, 2010), Decision 35 COM 12C adopted at its 35th session (UNESCO, 2011) and Decision 36 COM 12C adopted at its 36th session (Saint Petersburg, 2012),

3.  Requests the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies to take into account the rich debate held at its 37th session, in particular  on capacity-building, methodology and processes for Tentative Lists and upstream nomination projects, in order to enhance dialogue and communication among all relevant parties including the World Heritage Centre, UNESCO field offices, IUCN regional offices, ICOMOS national committees, international scientific committees and ICCROM capacity-building programmes, as well as UNESCO Category 2 Centres related to world heritage and universities;

4.  Suggests to the States Parties to take into account the assessments of impact on natural and cultural heritage;

5.  Welcomes all the actions undertaken to improve the processes and practices prior to consideration by the World Heritage Committee of a nomination (the ‘upstream processes’) and commends the States Parties, the Advisory Bodies and the World Heritage Centre for the pilot projects in which progress was made;

6.  Also commends the State Party of Namibia for having successfully achieved the pilot project concerning the Namib Sand Sea;

7.  Urges the States Parties concerned that have not yet done so, to fully collaborate providing technical and financial support to implement the required actions to make progress with the pilot projects and encourages them to seek assistance from the World Heritage Centre to identify opportunities to secure resources to progress the project, if necessary;

8.  Calls upon the international community to provide technical and financial support to assist the States Parties concerned in the implementation of their pilot projects which were not able to identify adequate resources;

9.  Also requests the Advisory Bodies and the World Heritage Centre to report on the progress in implementing the pilot projects for consideration by the World Heritage Committee at its 38th session in 2014.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1.  Having examined document WHC-13/37.COM/10A,

2.  Recalling Decisions 32 COM 11D, 34 COM 10B.2, 35 COM 10B and 36 COM 10C adopted respectively at its 32nd (Quebec City, 2008), 34th (Brasilia, 2010), 35th (UNESCO, 2011) and 36th (Saint Petersburg, 2012) sessions,

3.  Expresses its sincere appreciation to the States Parties from Latin America and the Caribbean for their efforts in preparing and submitting their Periodic Reports and thanks especially all focal points and site managers for their effective participation and commitment;

4.  Notes with satisfaction that all the 32 States Parties from Latin America and the Caribbean have participated actively in the Periodic Reporting exercise and 29 Section I questionnaires and 122 Section II questionnaires were successfully submitted;

5.  Reiterates its satisfaction that at the moment of the launching of the second cycle, 116 draft retrospective Statements of Outstanding Universal Value were submitted and welcomes the final submission of 66 Statements for adoption by the World Heritage Committee at its 37th session;

6.  Thanks the authorities of Argentina, Barbados, Brazil, Chile, Dominican Republic and Mexico for their support in successfully organizing regional and sub-regional meetings, in collaboration with the World Heritage Centre and UNESCO field offices;

7.  Takes note of the successful use of the special electronic platform as an indispensable tool in providing the comprehensive documentation, gathered in the World Heritage Centre database for future monitoring and follow-up of the Action Plan and acknowledges the importance of this tool in developing the thematic working groups and their related programmes;

8.  Welcomes with satisfaction the synthesis report and endorses the proposal to develop the Action Plan to be submitted to the World Heritage Committee at its 38th session for evaluation;

9.  Requests the World Heritage Centre to develop the above-mentioned Action Plan, in collaboration with the States Parties of the region, the Advisory Bodies, the focal points, site managers and the World Heritage related-Category 2 Centres in the region and other partners;

10.  Also takes note of the significant progress made concerning the Retrospective Inventory for the region, both in terms of clarification of boundaries and minor boundary modifications and also requests the States Parties to continue participating actively in this regard, especially when clarifications or modifications of boundaries have been requested by the World Heritage Committee in relation to the evaluation of the state of conservation of the respective properties;

11.  Also thanks the Government of Spain for financing the translation of the Report containing the results of the Second Cycle of the Periodic Reporting into Spanish, further requests the World Heritage Centre to widely disseminate the Report among all stakeholders in the region, encourages the publication of the report in the World Heritage Papers series and calls on the international community to support the request;

12.  Decides that the significant modifications to boundaries and changes to criteria (re-nominations) requested by States Parties as a follow-up to the Second Cycle of the Periodic Reporting Exercise will not fall within the limit of two nominations per State Party per year imposed by Paragraph 61 of the Operational Guidelines , while they will still fall within the overall limit of forty-five complete nominations per year. This decision shall apply for the 1 February 2014 and 1 February 2015 deadlines for the Latin America and the Caribbean Region, after which time the normal limit established in Paragraph 61 will be resumed;

13.  Encourages the States Parties and all other World Heritage partners and stakeholders, including the UNESCO Category 2 Centres in the Region, to actively cooperate and to take the necessary actions to follow-up, in a concerted and concrete manner, towards the development of the Action Plan;

14.  Also encourages UNESCO Category 2 Centre for World Heritage of Zacatecas (Mexico) and the UNESCO Category 2 Centre Lucio Costa of Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) for heritage management, when appropriate, to coordinate their activities and the development of learning tools in Portuguese and Spanish to implement the capacity-building strategy and associated programmes, also welcomes the establishment of an observatory for heritage management foreseen in Brazil, and calls for a close cooperation with the Caribbean Capacity building Programme (CCBP);

15.  Recognizes the valuable role played by local communities, including indigenous peoples, in the management of cultural and natural heritage properties and further encourages programmes at Latin America and the Caribbean World Heritage properties to also focus on the active involvement and participation of the local communities in their implementation and derivation of direct benefits;

16.  Also calls on the States Parties to cooperate with technical and financial resources at the national level to implement the Action Plan, and on the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies to provide support for its implementation.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1.  Having examined Document WHC-13/37.COM/10C,

2.  Recalling Decision 36 COM 10A , adopted at its 36th session (Saint Petersburg, 2012),

3.  Welcomes the progress made in the follow-up of the second cycle of Periodic Reporting in Asia and the Pacific;

4.  Thanks the Government of Indonesia for its contribution to the organization of a sub-regional workshop for the follow-up of the second cycle of Periodic Reporting;

5.  Also thanks the World Heritage Institute of Training and Research for the Asia and the Pacific Region (WHITRAP), the UNESCO Category 2 Centre for its contribution to the implementation of integrated capacity-building activities for the follow-up to the second cycle of Periodic Reporting;

6.  Calls upon States Parties to actively implement the regional Action Plans and encourages them to intensify their contributions to the implementation of follow-up activities while working closely with the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies;

7.  Requests the World Heritage Centre to present a progress report at its 38th session in 2014.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1.  Having examined Document WHC-13/37.COM/10C,

2.  Recalling Decision 36 COM 10A, adopted at its 36th session (Saint Petersburg, 2012),

3.  Welcomes the progress made in the follow-up of the second cycle of Periodic Reporting in the Africa Region;

4.  Thanks the Government of South Africa and the UNESCO Category 2 Centre, the African World Heritage Fund (AWHF) for financing and organizing the 40 ^th anniversary conference on World Heritage and Sustainable Development; and for contributing to the implementation of integrated capacity-building activities for the follow-up to the second cycle of Periodic Reporting;

5.  Also thanks the Governments of Norway, Flanders (Belgium), Spain and UNDP for their financial contribution to workshops carried-out in the framework of the implementation of the 2012-2017 Action Plan for Africa and its Regional Capacity Building Programme;

6.  Further thanks the Government of Switzerland for generously supporting the publication of the first publication on World Heritage sites in Africa: “African World Heritage: A Remarkable Diversity”;

7.  Calls upon States Parties to financially and technically support the implementation of the Regional Action Plan (2012-2017) through follow-up activities with the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies;

8.  Reiterates its request to State Parties to submit their national plans and budgets, which should be drawn up in accordance with the Management and Conservation Plans of the properties, in order to protect their Outstanding Universal Value;

9.  Further reminds States Parties which have not already done so to submit their Retrospective Statements of Outstanding Universal Value by 1 February 2014 at the latest, as well as clarifications on boundaries by 1 December 2013 at the latest;

10.  Encourages States Parties to intensify their contributions to the AWHF while working closely with the Fund to improve the implementation of the World Heritage Convention in the Africa region;

11.  Requests the World Heritage Centre, in collaboration with the Advisory Bodies, and with the support of States Parties to continue its efforts to coordinate and implement the Regional Capacity Building Programme as per the Action Plan 2012-2017;

12.  Also requests the State Parties in consultation with the World Heritage Centre and Advisory Bodies, to pay special attention to the management of properties inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger due to armed conflict;

13.  Further requests the World Heritage Centre to present a progress report on the implementation of the Action Plan for the Africa region at its 38th session in 2014.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined document WHC-12/36.COM/5D,

2. Recalling Decisions 32 COM 10, 32 COM 10A and 34 COM 5F.1 adopted at its 32nd (Quebec City, 2008) and 34th (Brasilia, 2010) sessions respectively,

3. Welcomes the progress report made on the implementation of the World Heritage Thematic Programmes;

4. Requests the World Heritage Centre, in collaboration with the Advisory Bodies, and with the support of interested States Parties to continue its efforts to implement the activities foreseen under each of these programmes in 2012-2013;

5. Expresses its appreciation to the Government of Spain for its financial commitment and support given by other States Parties to the programme Human Evolution: Adaptations, Dispersals and Social Developments (HEADS) and encourages the development of the category 2 Centre for Rock Art in Spain to enhance fruitful international cooperation in rock art research, conservation and management;

6. Further requests States Parties, site managers and research institutions in the Africa Region to strengthen collaboration in support of human evolution-related research, conservation and awareness-raising activities and in pursuance to the activities which have taken place in the framework of HEADS in the Region;

7. Also welcomes financial and technical support provided by States Parties and the International Astronomical Union for Thematic Initiative “AstronomyandWorld Heritage”, since 2003 and also encourages cooperation between the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, specialized agencies and relevant interdisciplinary scientific initiatives towards the elaboration of a Global Thematic Study on Heritage of Science and Technology, including studies and research on technological heritage connected with space exploration;

8. Further encourages States Parties, international organizations and other donors to contribute to the thematic programmes and initiative and also requests an updated report on Thematic Programmes to the World Heritage Committee at its 38th session in 2014.

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1.   Having examined document WHC-12/36.COM/6,

2.   Recalling Decisions 34 COM 9C and 35 COM 6 adopted at its 34th session (Brasilia, 2010) and 35th session (Paris, 2011) respectively,

3.   Welcomes the establishment of two new category 2 centres related to World Heritage in Spain and Italy, as well as the progress made by all category 2 centres towards the establishment of their system of governance and the implementation of their activities;

4.   Thanks the International Research Centre on the Economics of Culture and World Heritage Studies (Turin, Italy) for having hosted the second annual coordination meeting of category 2 centres related to World Heritage;

5.   Requests all category 2 centres related to World Heritage to ensure that their strategies, programmes and activities are directly contributing to the goals and objectives of the World Heritage Strategy for Capacity-Building and in general to actions agreed in the framework of World Heritage statutory processes at global and regional levels, notably those resulting from decisions by the World Heritage Committee, by the General Assembly of States Parties and from the outcomes of periodic reporting exercises;

6.   Further requests the World Heritage Centre to submit a progress report on the activities of the category 2 centres related to World Heritage for examination by the Committee at its 37th session in 2013.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1.   Having examined Document WHC-12/36.COM/9B;

2.   Recalling Decisions 34 COM 9C and 35 COM 9B adopted at its 34th (Brasilia, 2010) and 35th (UNESCO, 2011) sessions respectively;

3.   Takes note of the progress made on the implementation of the World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy (WHCBS) by a variety of capacity building stakeholders;

4.   Thanks the State Party of Switzerland for its continued support to the on-going IUCN-ICCROM World Heritage Capacity Building Initiative;

5.   Welcomes the proposed new international capacity building programme;

6.   Requests the Advisory Bodies, the World Heritage Centre, and the UNESCO Category 2 Centres and relevant UNESCO Chairs to assist States Parties in the development of regional capacity building programmes which are based on the outcomes of the Periodic Reporting exercises and the WHCBS;

7.   Requests the World Heritage Centre, in coordination with the Advisory Bodies and Category 2 centres, to continue providing an inventory of heritage training centres in all regions with a view to sharing experience and expertise;

8.   Encourages States Parties and the international community to support both the international capacity building programme and the regional capacity building programmes as they are developed and put into implementation;

9.   Also requests ICCROM, in consultation with IUCN, ICOMOS and the World Heritage Centre, to report on the progress made in the implementation of the World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy (WHCBS) for examination by the Committee at its 37th session in 2013. 

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The World Heritage Committee,

1.   Having examined document WHC-12/36COM/10A;

2.   Recalling Decisions 34 COM 10C and 35 COM 10C.1 adopted respectively at its 34th session (Brasilia, 2010) and 35th session (UNESCO, 2011);

3.   Expresses its sincere appreciation to the States Parties from Asia and the Pacific for their efforts in preparing and submitting their Periodic Reports and thanks especially all focal points and site managers for their effective participation and commitment;

4.   Notes with satisfaction that all the 41 States Parties of Asia and the Pacific fully participated in the Periodic Reporting exercise and all 41 questionnaires of the Section I and all 198 questionnaires of the Section II were successfully submitted;

5.   Also notes with satisfaction that all the 166 draft retrospective Statements of Outstanding Universal Value were submitted to the World Heritage Centre;

6.   Thanks the authorities of Australia, China, French Polynesia, India, Republic of Korea, and Samoa for their support in organizing regional and sub-regional meetings;

7.   Also notes the successful use of the electronic tool and the ensuing pertinent documentation gathered in the World Heritage Centre database for future monitoring and follow-up;

8.   Welcomes with satisfaction the synthesis report of Asia and the Pacific and endorses the regional Action Plan proposed by the focal points during the Suwon meeting for Asia, and the Pacific Action Plan adjusted by the focal points during the Apia meeting for the Pacific;

9.   Decides that significant modifications to boundaries and changes to criteria (renominations) requested by States Parties as a follow-up to the second cycle of the Periodic Reporting exercise will not fall within the limit of two nominations per State Party per year imposed by Paragraph 61 of the Operational Guidelines, while they will still fall within the overall limit of forty-five complete nominations per year. This decision shall apply for the 1 February 2013 and 1 February 2014 deadlines for Asia and the Pacific, after which time the normal limit established in Paragraph 61 will be resumed;

10.  Encourages the States Parties and all other World Heritage partners and stakeholders in Asia and the Pacific to actively cooperate and to take the necessary actions to follow-up in a concerted and concrete manner the implementation of the Action Plans;

11.   Also encourages the World Heritage Institute of Training and Research for the Asia and the Pacific Region (WHITRAP), the UNESCO Category 2 Centre, to take a lead in developing a regional capacity-building strategy and associated programmes;

12.  Further notes that the proposals contained in the Action Plans have considerable resource and workload implications for the States Parties, the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies and encourages States Parties to contribute to their implementation through extra-budgetary funding;

13.   Also welcomes the proposals made by the Governments of China, Indonesia, and the Islamic Republic of Iran to organize sub-regional workshops on several issues identified in the Action Plan and the proposals made by the Governments of Japan and the Republic of Korea to financially contribute to the implementation of Action Plans and the follow-up of Periodic Reporting;

14.   Also thanks the Government of Japan for financing the development of a publication of the outcome of Periodic Reporting of Asia and the Pacific, and requests the World Heritage Centre to widely disseminate the Periodic Report among all stakeholders in the region;

15.   Requests the States Parties to continue to work closely with the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies to further develop and implement both at national and sub-regional levels operational programmes based on the Regional Action Plans, and also requests the World Heritage Centre to present a progress report thereon at its 37th session in 2013.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1.   Having examined Document WHC-12/36.COM/10C,

2.   Recalling decisions 28 COM 16, 7 EXT.COM 5E, 29 COM 5, 30 COM 11E, 32 COM 11D, 34 COM 10B.2 and 35 COM 10B adopted at its 28th (Suzhou, 2004), 7th extraordinary (UNESCO, 2004),29th (Durban, 2005), 30th (Vilnius, 2006), 32nd (Quebec City, 2008), 34th (Brasilia, 2010) and 35th (UNESCO, 2011) sessions, respectively,

3.   Acknowledges the information provided on the progress made in the implementation of the second cycle of the Periodic Reporting exercise in the Latin America and the Caribbean Region (LAC) and commends the States Parties for their efforts to achieve objectives in accordance with the approved calendar;

4.   Commends the States Parties of the LAC Region for their active involvement and commitment to the Periodic Reporting exercise;

5.   Thanks the States Parties of Dominican Republic, Brazil and Mexico for their financial and in-kind contributions to the organization of sub-regional meetings;

6.   Welcomes the financial collaboration for the Periodic Reporting exercise provided by the Spanish Funds-in-Trust for World Heritage, Category 2 Centres, States Parties and Advisory Bodies, and encourages them to continue to provide assistance for the implementation of the process;

7.   Takes note of the progress made  by the Qhapaq Ñan project, coordinated by the World Heritage Centre, and for the fruitful cooperation between national institutions from the various States Parties to develop it further as a best practice for other transnational and serial nominations, as requested by Decision 31 COM.12B;

8.   Requests the States Parties of the Latin America and the Caribbean Region to complete and submit the Periodic Reporting questionnaires to the World Heritage Centre by 31 July 2012;

9.   Also requests the World Heritage Centre to submit a final report on the results of the Second Cycle of the Periodic Reporting exercise for Latin America and the Caribbean for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 37th session in 2013.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1.   Having examined Document WHC-12/36.COM/13,

2.   Recalling Decision 33 COM 7.1, adopted at its 33rd session (Seville, 2006),

3.   Taking note of the adoption of the Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape by the UNESCO General Conference at its 36th session in 2011,

4.   Acknowledging the need to mainstream the methodological approach related to the above-mentioned Recommendation in the Operational Guidelines,

5.   Invites the Director of the World Heritage Centre to convene an expert meeting, in consultation with the Advisory Bodies, to reflect upon and propose appropriate revisions of the Operational Guidelines, in that regard, including its Annex III, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 37th session in 2013;

6.   Taking into account the inscription of the propertyRio de Janeiro: Carioca Landscapes between the Mountain and the Sea (Brazil) on the World Heritage List at the present session, welcomes the offer from the State Party of Brazil to host the aforementioned meeting in Rio de Janeiro, with the support of the UNESCO Category 2 Regional Heritage Management Training Centre “Lucio Costa”.

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The General Assembly,

1. Having examined Documents WHC-11/18.GA/10 and WHC-11/18.GA/INF.10,

2. Recalling Decision 35 COM 6 adopted by the World Heritage Committee at its 35th session (UNESCO, 2011),

3. Thanks the Government of Bahrain for having hosted the first meeting of World Heritage related category 2 centres and of relevant UNESCO Chairs and Higher Education and Research Institutions;

4. Takes note of the report on this meeting, as well as of the reports on the World Heritage related category 2 centres in Bahrain, Brazil, China, Mexico, Norway and South Africa;

5. Also takes note that an updated report of activities of the World Heritage related category 2 centres will be presented for examination at the 36th session of the World Heritage Committee in 2012.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-11/35.COM/6,

2. Recalling Decision 34 COM 9C adopted at its 34th session (Brasilia, 2010),

3. Thanks the Government of Bahrain for having hosted the first meeting of World Heritage related Category 2 centres and of relevant UNESCO Chairs and Higher Education and Research Institutions;

4. Takes note that the report on this meeting will be presented to the General Assembly of States Parties and the Committee;

5. Also takes note with satisfaction of the reports on the World Heritage related Category 2 centres in Bahrain, Brazil, China, Mexico, Norway and South Africa;

6. Recalls the key role that Category 2 centres can play in the implementation of the World Heritage strategy for capacity-building, in partnership with other existing training institutions, ICCROM and IUCN;

7. Encourages the consideration of proposals for the establishment of Category 2 research centres for World Heritage, particularly those that will promote a balanced World Heritage List in accordance with UNESCO's guidelines and criteria for Category 2 Institutes and centres;

8. Requests the World Heritage Centre to upload a consolidated web-page on the Category 2 centres' activities;

9. Further requests the World Heritage Centre to submit an updated report of activities of the World Heritage related Category 2 centres for examination at its 36th session in 2012.

10. Requests that the World Heritage Centre continues exploring funding possibilities in order to organize activities with the Category 2 centres;

11. Encourages the State Parties to the Convention to continue the funding support towards the sustainability of these Category 2 centres.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-11/35.COM/16,

2. Submits to the consideration of the General Assembly the following provisional Agenda for its 18th session as amended:

 

1. Opening of the session

1A. Opening of the General Assembly by the Director-General

1B. Election of the Chairperson, Vice-Chairpersons and Rapporteur of the General Assembly

2. Adoption of the Agenda of the 18th session of the General Assembly and Timetable for the elections to the World Heritage Committee

2A. Adoption of the Agenda of the 18th session of the General Assembly

2B. Adoption of the Timetable for the elections to the World Heritage Committee

3. Elections to the World Heritage Committee

4. Report of the rapporteur of the 17th session of the General Assembly of States Parties (UNESCO, 2009)

5. Report of the Chairperson of the World Heritage Committee on the activities of the World Heritage Committee

6. Examination of the statement of accounts of the World Heritage Fund, including the status of the States Parties' contributions

7. Determination of the amount of the contributions to the World Heritage Fund in accordance with the provisions of Article 16 of the World Heritage Convention

8. Global Strategy for a representative, balanced and credible World Heritage List: Evaluation of the Global Strategy and the PACT initiative

9. Audit Plan on the World Heritage Centre by the Internal Oversight Service (IOS)

10. Report on the activities of the World Heritage related category 2 centres

11. The Future of the World Heritage Convention, including: 40th Anniversary of the Convention

12. Closure of the session

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-11/35.COM/9B,
2. Welcomes the finalization of a new World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy and notes the participatory process used to develop this strategy;
3. Notes with appreciation the ongoing contribution of the State Party of Switzerland to the finalization of the World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy and to the implementation of the interim capacity building programme for World Heritage;
4. Adopts the World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy found in Document WHC-11/35.COM/9B;
5. Requests ICCROM, in collaboration with IUCN, ICOMOS, the World Heritage Centre, the UNESCO Chairs, and UNESCO category 2 centres related to World Heritage and other capacity building partners to begin the implementation of the strategy based on their specific areas of interest and resources;
6. Takes note of the need for a significant amount of additional funding in order to fully implement the World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy;
7. Encourages States Parties to support the new World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy and consider the allocation of additional financial resources to contribute to its implementation, taking into account the most important needs identified.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-11/35.COM/10B,

2. Recalling decisions 28 COM 16, 7 EXT.COM 5E, 29 COM 5, 30 COM 11E, 32 COM 11D and 34 COM 10B.2 adopted respectively at its 28th session (Suzhou, 2004), 7th extraordinary session (UNESCO, 2004), 29th session (Durban, 2005), 30th session (Vilnius 2006), 32nd session (Quebec City, 2008) and 34th session (Brasilia, 2010),

3. Takes note of the progress achieved in the follow-up to the first cycle of Periodic Reporting in the Latin America and Caribbean region, as well as the results of activities in preparation for the launching of its second cycle, and in particular of the sub-regional workshops organized in Zacatecas (Mexico), Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), and Bridgetown (Barbados);

4. Welcomes the financial collaboration for the Periodic Reporting exercise offered by the Spanish Funds-in-Trust for World Heritage, Category 2 centres and States Parties and encourages them to continue to provide assistance for the implementation of the process;

5. Commends the States Parties of the Region for their achievements in the submission of the draft retrospective Statements of Outstanding Universal Value before the official launching of the Periodic Reporting exercise as requested in Decision 31 COM 11D.1;

6. Decides to launch the second cycle of the Periodic Reporting in the Latin American and Caribbean region and requests the States Parties to actively participate in this process;

7. Welcomes the creation of the web platform for the follow-up and implementation of the Periodic Reporting exercise and encourages the World Heritage Centre, States Parties, Category 2 centres, Advisory Bodies and other concerned partners to explore all the opportunities that this tool can provide for communication and coordination;

8. Also requests States Parties of the Latin American and Caribbean region and the Advisory Bodies to complete the review process for the retrospective Statements of Outstanding Universal Value for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 36th session in 2012;

9. Notes with satisfaction the results already achieved and also requests the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies to continue providing assistance to the States Parties in the Latin American and Caribbean region in the framework of the second cycle of the Periodic Reporting;

10. Further requests the World Heritage Centre to keep it informed of progress achieved in the Periodic Reporting exercise at its 36th session in 2012.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-11/35.COM/12A,

2. Recalling Decisions 32 COM 10 adopted at its 32nd session (Quebec City, 2008), 33 COM 14A.2 adopted at its 33rd session (Seville, 2009), 34COM 12 adopted at its 34th session (Brasilia, 2010) and Resolution 17 GA 9 adopted at the 17th General Assembly of States Parties (UNESCO, 2009),

3. Notes that the World Heritage Convention is fast approaching a number of important milestones, including its 40th anniversary in 2012, the potential inscription of the 1000th property to the World Heritage List, and near universal ratification and that it is therefore appropriate to reflect on the successes of the Convention and on how it can best evolve to meet emerging challenges;

4. Recognizes the ongoing open-ended and inclusive participation of States Parties, Advisory Bodies, various UNESCO related institutions, programmes and networks, and non-governmental organizations in promoting and implementing the World Heritage Convention, including in relation to the transparent process of reflection on the future directions of the Convention;

5. Also notes that documents relating to the process of reflection on the future of the World Heritage Convention continue to be available for States Parties and other interested organizations at https://whc.unesco.org/en/futureoftheconvention/;

6. Also recalling that a consultative body was established under Rule 20 of its Rules of Procedure, and welcomes the progress made on the reflection on the future of the Convention at the Committee's 35th session (UNESCO Headquarters, 2011);

7. Expresses its appreciation to States Parties, Advisory Bodies, UNESCO Category 2 Centres specializing in cultural and natural heritage, and non-governmental organizations for their written submissions on the overall framework and particular activities that could be contained within the Strategic Action Plan, as well as the Draft Vision;

8. Takes note of the positive progress made in developing the draft Strategic Action Plan and Vision to guide the implementation of the World Heritage Convention over the decade 2012-2022 and the need to continue to reflect on the draft Strategic Action Plan and Vision as well as the activities to be described within the Strategic Action Plan;

9. Requests the Chair of the Consultative Group and the World Heritage Centre to expeditiously streamline and further refine the draft Strategic Action Plan and Vision, taking into account the discussions at the 33rd, 34th and 35th sessions of the World Heritage Committee, written submissions received, as well as the discussions at the 17th General Assembly of States Parties;

10. Decides to transmit the streamlined and refined draft Strategic Action Plan and Vision to the 18th session of the General Assembly of States Parties for consideration;

11. Notes the independent evaluation of the Global Strategy and PACT initiative, and in particular its recommendations (Document WHC-11/35.COM/INF.9A) to be transmitted to the 18th session of the General Assembly of States Parties for careful examination and reflection and requests the World Heritage Centre to seek written comments from States Parties on this document expeditiously for distribution on the World Heritage Centre website at https://whc.unesco.org/en/futureoftheconvention/

12. Also notes the need to develop an Implementation Plan to operationalise the priorities detailed in the Draft Strategic Action Plan and Vision, as well as priorities for international assistance as outlined in paragraph 235 of the Operational Guidelines, and further requests the World Heritage Centre to work with the Advisory Bodies to develop a draft Implementation Plan, including potential sources of funding for actions included within it, for consideration by the 36th session of the World Heritage Committee (2012), drawing upon inter alia the external audits on the implementation of the Global Strategy from its inception in 1994 to 2011 and the Partnership for Conservation Initiative (PACT), other existing strategy documents (such as the World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy and the Disaster Risk Reduction Strategy), as well as the recommendations of the expert working group meetings held on:

• the global state of conservation challenges for World Heritage properties (Dakar, Senegal, 13-15 April 2011),
• decision-making procedures of the statutory organs of the World Heritage Convention (Manama, Bahrain, 15-17 December 2010),
• improvements to 'upstream processes' prior to consideration of nominations by the World Heritage Committee (Phuket, Thailand, 27-29 April 2010),
• the relationship between the World Heritage Convention, conservation and sustainable development (Paraty, Brazil, 29-31 March 2010);

13. Recommends the 18th session of the General Assembly takes note of documents WHC-11/35.COM/12A, WHC-11/35.COM/12B, WHC-11/35.COM/12C, WHC-11/35.COM/12D and WHC-11/35.COM/INF.7C, as part of a summary of the work undertaken in relation to the reflection on the future of the Convention.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-10/34.COM/6,

2. Recalling Decision 33 COM 6A adopted at its 33rd session (Seville, 2009),

3. Takes note of the progress report made in the implementation of the activities of the African World Heritage Fund;

4. Welcomes the decision of the 35th General Conference of UNESCO to establish the African World Heritage Fund as Category 2 Centre under the auspices of UNESCO;

5. Expresses its appreciation to partners at all levels for their financial support and assistance to the African World Heritage Fund during the years 2009 and 2010;

6. Encourages the African World Heritage Fund to develop a campaign strategy aiming at fundraising for activities and the Endowment Fund;

7. Also encourages the African World Heritage Fund and the World Heritage Centre to define a core of activities to be jointly implemented in Africa in the framework of the UNESCO - African World Heritage Fund agreement signed in January 2010;

8. Requests the World Heritage Centre to present a progress report on the African World Heritage Fund's activities for examination at its 35th session in 2011.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-10/34.COM/9C,

2. Notes the progress made on the revision of the Global Training Strategy;

3. Notes with appreciation the contribution of the State Party of Switzerland to the revision process leading towards a new World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy and to an interim capacity building programme for World Heritage;

4. Welcomes the further development of the existing World Heritage Category 2 Centres and encourages these centres to develop strategic plans in consultation with the World Heritage Centre and Advisory Bodies, and to coordinate their activities where relevant and also welcomes the offer of the Kingdom of Bahrain to host a meeting of the Category 2 Centres in December 2010.

5. Also notes the significant additional funding requirements necessary to achieve a complete and effective World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy;

6. Endorses the concept of the Revised Strategy moving from a more traditional focus on training to a wider approach on capacity building in keeping with the Strategic Directions of the World Heritage Committee (the "5C's");

7. Requests ICCROM, in collaboration with IUCN, ICOMOS, the World Heritage Centre, the UNESCO Chairs and Category 2 Centres related to World Heritage to finalize a new World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy as outlined in Document WHC-10/34.COM/9C, according to the timetable presented in the document, for discussion at its 35th session in 2011;

8. Further requests States Parties to prioritize the allocation of additional financial resources to support capacity building, taking into account the most important needs identified through the new World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-10/34.COM/10B,

2. Recalling Decisions 28 COM 16 adopted at its 28th session (Suzhou, 2004), 7 EXT.COM 5E adopted at its 7th extraordinary session (UNESCO, 2004), 29 COM 5 adopted at its 29th session (Durban, 2005) and 32 COM 11D adopted at its 32nd session (Quebec City, 2008),

3. Takes note of the information provided on the progress made in the implementation of the Decisions for the follow-up to the Periodic Reporting in Latin America and the Caribbean and the preparation for the second cycle of the Periodic Report exercise;

4. Acknowledges the financial and technical collaboration provided by the Spanish Funds-in-Trust (SFIT) for the follow-up of the Periodic Reporting exercise, and encourages the SFIT to continue its efforts towards the World Heritage conservation;

5. Welcomes the financial collaboration for the Periodic Reporting exercise, offered by UNESCO Field Offices and Category 2 Centres, and also encourages them to continue providing assistance for the implementation of the process;

6. Thanks the States Parties hosting the meetings for their commitment in the preservation of World Heritage and the implementation of the World Heritage Convention;

7. Calls upon the States Parties, the World Heritage Centre and all the other stakeholders involved in the protection and conservation of natural and cultural heritage of the region, to ensure the necessary financial and human resources to implement the Second Cycle of the Periodic Reporting exercise;

8. Requests the States Parties, to submit the required retrospective Statements of Outstanding Universal Value to the World Heritage Centre by 31 July 2010, in order to guarantee the appropriate implementation of the Second Cycle of the Periodic Reporting exercise as requested by Decision 31 COM 11D.1;

9. Also requests the States Parties, in coordination with the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies, to submit the Action Plan 2011 -2013 and to prepare a progress report on the implementation of the Second Cycle Latin America and the Caribbean Periodic Reporting for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 35th session in 2011.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Documents WHC-10/34.COM/12A, WHC-10/34.COM/12B and WHC-10/34.COM/14,

2. Recalling Decision 32 COM 10 adopted at its 32nd session (Quebec City, 2008), Decision 33 COM 14A.2 adopted at its 33rd session (Seville, 2009) and Resolution 17 GA 9 adopted at the 17th General Assembly of States Parties (UNESCO, 2009),

3. Notes that the World Heritage Convention is fast approaching a number of important milestones, including its 40th Anniversary in 2012, the potential inscription of the 1000th property to the World Heritage List, and near universal ratification and that it is therefore appropriate to reflect on the successes of the Convention and on how it can best evolve to meet emerging challenges;

4. Recognizes the ongoing open-ended and inclusive participation of States Parties, Advisory Bodies, UNESCO Category 2 Centres specializing in cultural and natural heritage and non-governmental organizations in promoting and implementing the World Heritage Convention, including in relation to the transparent process of reflection on the future directions of the Convention;

5. Also notes that documents relating to the process of reflection on the future of the World Heritage Convention continue to be available for States Parties and other interested organizations at https://whc.unesco.org/en/futureoftheconvention/ ;

6. Welcomes the progress made on the reflection on the Future of the Convention at the Committee's 34th session (Brasilia, 2010);

 

 I. Celebration of the 40th Anniversary

7. Takes note of the proposal to focus the celebration of the 40th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention in 2012 on the theme of Heritage and Development (WHC-10/34.COM/12B); requests the World Heritage Centre to send a circular letter by 1 September 2010 including a paper on the proposed theme and invites World Heritage Committee members, States Parties and Advisory Bodies to make written submissions to the World Heritage Centre regarding a theme for the Anniversary year celebrations outlined further in the above-mentioned paper by 1 November 2010;

8. Encourages States Parties to develop, support and carry out activities to promote the Anniversary, including at the site level and involving youth and also invites the World Heritage Centre to identify complementary extra-budgetary funding sources to help implement the programme of activities (WHC-10/34.COM/12B);

9. Also welcomes the willingness of the Government of Japan to host the final closing event of the Anniversary year on 16 November 2012 in Japan;

10. Further welcomes the initiative to recognize and promote best practices in the implementation of the World Heritage Convention and further invites the Director-General of UNESCO to carry out a feasibility study of possible measures to recognize best practices in the implementation of the World Heritage Convention and forward the results, if appropriate, for the consideration of the Executive Board at its session in April 2011 and thereafter the World Heritage Committee at its 35th session in 2011;

11. Also requests the World Heritage Centre to report, within the Report on the reflection on the Future of the Convention, on the progress made towards the organization of the 40th Anniversary celebrations at the 35th session of the World Heritage Committee in 2011;

12. Expresses its appreciation to the States Parties of Australia, Bahrain, Brazil, China, Israel, Japan, Switzerland, The Netherlands and Thailand for the financial and technical support to the various international expert meetings held in 2009 and 2010 which have contributed to the reflection on the future of the Convention.

 

II. Strategic Action Plan and Vision for the Convention

13. Recalling Decision 33 COM 14A.2 by which the Committee decided it would be useful to develop an overall strategic action plan to guide the implementation of the World Heritage Convention over the next decade and Resolution 17 GA 9 of the 17th General Assembly of the Convention which called for further work on the development of this plan based on the Strategic Objectives with prioritized actions and effective implementation;

14. Further notes in particular the positive progress made in developing an overall framework for a Strategic Action Plan to guide the implementation of the World Heritage Convention over the decade 2012-2022, the need to continue to reflect on the overall framework as well as the activities to be described within the Strategic Action Plan, and the profound issues that have been raised (Attachment A);

15. Notes furthermore that work on a draft Vision should continue, building upon the issues raised, the emerging overall framework for, and the particular activities that would be eventually contained within, the Strategic Action Plan;

16. Invites furthermore States Parties, Advisory Bodies, UNESCO Category 2 Centres specializing in cultural and natural heritage, and non-governmental organizations to make written submissions on the overall framework and particular activities that could be contained within the Strategic Action Plan, as well as the draft Vision (Attachment B), by 1 November 2010;

17. Also takes note of the UNESCO Category 2 Centres specializing in cultural and natural heritage, recognizing their relevance in promoting and implementing the World Heritage Convention; and encourages coordinated cooperation among the Centres, the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies;

18. Decides to further discuss the draft Strategic Action Plan, draft Vision and preparations for the 40th Anniversary in 2012 at the 35th session of the Committee in 2011 and also decides that a draft of the Strategic Action Plan and Vision should be elaborated at the 35th session of the Committee for transmission to the 18th session of General Assembly in 2011 for its consideration;

 

 III. Improvements to the processes and practices prior to consideration by the World Heritage Committee of a nomination (the 'upstream processes')

19. Welcomes furthermore the report of the expert meeting on "Upstream processes to nominations: creative approaches in the nomination process" (Phuket, Thailand, 27-29 April 2010) which identifies options to refine and augment the provision of support, advice and feedback to States Parties throughout the nomination process and encourages the World Heritage Centre to follow up on the approaches and recommendations of the Phuket expert meeting (Attachment C);

20. Further requests the World Heritage Centre, in cooperation with the Advisory Bodies and other relevant organizations, to invite one or two States Parties from each of the UNESCO regional groups to undertake, on an experimental basis, voluntary pilot projects related to identifying options and preparing dossiers for nomination with particular reference to Paragraphs 4, 5 and 6 of Attachment C; requests furthermore the World Heritage Centre to ensure that the pilot projects be representative of current challenges in the nomination process and to report on progress at the 36th session of the World Heritage Committee in 2012; requests moreover the World Heritage Centre and Advisory Bodies, as part of this process, to conduct a feasibility study for the consideration of the 35th session of the World Heritage Committee (taking into account cost, timeliness, practicability and net benefits to States Parties) of options to refine and augment the provision of support, advice and feedback to States Parties throughout and prior to the nomination process;

21. Requests moreover the World Heritage Centre to explore ways to strengthen the development of successful nominations and protection of properties through the allocation and monitoring of International Assistance under the World Heritage Fund, as well as to make available on its website best practices to assist the development of nominations;

22. Also encourages States Parties, on a voluntary basis and as appropriate, with the advice of Advisory Bodies, to explore effective and efficient utilization of their Tentative List.

 

 IV. Working methods of statutory organs of the Convention

23. Notes moreover the report provided by the participants of the consultation meeting (held Manama, 16-17 December 2009) on the scope and agenda of the expert meeting on the decision-making procedures of statutory organs of the World Heritage Convention and adopts the recommendations in Attachment D that define the scope, objectives, agenda and method of participant selection of the expert meeting on decision-making procedures in statutory organs of the World Heritage Convention;

24. Welcomes moreover the offer of Australia and Bahrain to host the expert meeting in Bahrain, 2-4 October 2010, on the decision-making procedures of the statutory organs of the World Heritage Convention to identify opportunities for increasing the efficiency and transparency of these procedures; takes note of Document WHC-10/34.COM/14 which presents the results of a feasibility study on the possibility of holding two annual sessions of the World Heritage Committee; requests in addition that the expert meeting study and prepare measures to optimize the work of the statutory organs of the World Heritage Convention; and also requests the expert meeting to provide proposals for consideration by the World Heritage Committee at its 35th session in 2011;

25. Finally requests the organizers of the expert meeting in Bahrain to also include the examination of the Rules of Procedure on the conduct of and participation in World Heritage Committee meetings, and in particular, on adoption of decisions particularly in respect of:

a) The application of the procedure for secret ballots during the course of the adoption of decisions,

b) An analysis of the frequency and context of the application of the secret ballot while in the course of the adoption of decisions,

c) Possible implications for the interpretation of Rules 25, 26, 40, 41 and 42 and their amendments,

d) The participation of persons qualified in the field of cultural and natural heritage (as set out in Rule 5.2) and the transmission of their qualification (as set out in Rule 5.3),

e) The application of Rule 45.

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The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-09/33.COM/6A,

2. Recalling Decision 32 COM 6A adopted at its 32nd session (Quebec City, 2008),

3. Takes note of the Progress Report on the implementation of the African World Heritage Fund;

4. Notes with appreciation the excellent work the Fund has done since its inception, including the support provided for nominations for inscription of African sites on the World Heritage List, capacity building and assistance in the development of management plans for World Heritage properties in Africa;

5. Expresses its appreciation to partners at all levels for their financial support and assistance to the African World Heritage Fund;

6. Calls upon the States Parties to the Convention, the African Union, the public and private institutions, the intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, to continue supporting and contributing to the African World Heritage Fund, including the consolidation of the Endowment Fund;

7. Also takes note of the request submitted by the Republic of South Africa to seek accreditation as a Category 2 Centre under the auspices of UNESCO for the Fund, as part of the global network supporting heritage management and conservation;

8. Encourages the Fund in cooperation with the World Heritage Centre to define a core of activities to be implemented in Africa in cooperation with the Advisory Bodies and prioritize activities according to their strategic and action plans;

9. Requests the World Heritage Centre to submit a progress report on the African World Heritage Fund's activities for examination at its 34th session in 2010.

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