Press Information Bureau

 

46^th Session of World Heritage Committee

Global Collaboration in Heritage Conservation

(Ministry of Culture)

July 12, 2024

The 46th session of the World Heritage Committee will take place in New Delhi, India. The event brings together delegates from across the globe to discuss and collaborate on preserving our shared cultural, natural and mixed heritage. The meeting is a significant step towards fostering global cooperation and protecting our World Heritage properties.

The World Heritage Committee

The World Heritage Committee meets once a year and consists of representatives from 21 of the States Parties to the Convention elected by their General Assembly. At its first session, the Committee adopted its Rules of Procedure of the World Heritage Committee. Current members of the World Heritage Committee as on elections in the 24th General Assembly of UNESCO (November 2023), are as follows:.

The essential functions of the Committee are:

• To identify, based on nominations submitted by States Parties, cultural and natural properties of Outstanding Universal Value which are to be protected under the Convention, and to inscribe those properties on the World Heritage List
• To monitor the state of conservation of properties inscribed on the World Heritage List, in liaison with States Parties; decide which properties included in the World Heritage List are to be inscribed on or removed from the List of World Heritage in Danger; decide whether a property may be deleted from the World Heritage List
• To examine requests for International Assistance financed by the World Heritage Fund

 

Bureau of the World Heritage Committee

The Bureau consists of seven States Parties elected annually by the Committee: a Chairperson, five Vice-Chairpersons, and a Rapporteur. The Bureau of the Committee coordinates the work of the Committee and fixes the dates, hours and order of business of meetings. The election of the new Bureau will take place at the end of the next session of the World Heritage Committee.

World Heritage Convention

The Committee is responsible for the implementation of the World Heritage Convention, which defines the use of the World Heritage Fund and allocates financial assistance upon requests from States Parties. It has the final say on whether a property is inscribed on the World Heritage List. It examines reports on the state of conservation of inscribed properties and asks States Parties to take action when properties are not being properly managed. It also decides on the inscription or deletion of properties on the List of World Heritage in Danger.

By signing the Convention, each country pledges to conserve not only the World Heritage sites situated on its territory but also to protect its national heritage. The States Parties are encouraged to integrate the protection of the cultural and natural heritage into regional planning programmes, set up staff and services at their sites, undertake scientific and technical conservation research and adopt measures which give this heritage a function in the day-to-day life of the community.

The Convention, further, stipulates the obligation of States Parties to report regularly to the World Heritage Committee on the state of conservation of their World Heritage properties. These reports are crucial to the work of the Committee as they enable it to assess the conditions of the sites, decide on specific programme needs and resolve recurrent problems. It also encourages States Parties to strengthen the appreciation of the public for World Heritage properties and to enhance their protection through educational and information programmes.

History

The idea of creating an international movement for protecting heritage emerged after World War I. The 1972 Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage developed from the merging of two separate movements: the first focusing on the preservation of cultural sites, and the other dealing with the conservation of nature.

TIMELINE

 

Since 1977, the World Heritage Committee has diligently convened annual ordinary sessions to address critical issues pertaining to the conservation and management of globally significant cultural and natural sites. These sessions serve as pivotal gatherings where representatives from member states deliberate on reports, assess the state of conservation of listed properties, and make decisions crucial to safeguarding our shared heritage. In addition to these regular meetings, the Committee has also convened 19 extraordinary sessions since 1981. Together, these sessions underscore the Committee's unwavering commitment to preserving the world's most treasured landmarks for future generations.

46^th session of World Heritage Committee

The 46^th  session of the World Heritage Committee, set to convene in New Delhi in 2024, marks a pivotal moment in global heritage conservation efforts. The Ministry of Culture (MoC), Government of India and its attached office, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) are the nodal agencies to host the session this year.

The session has a comprehensive agenda addressing various critical issues. Reports from the previous session and the World Heritage Centre will be reviewed. The committee will discuss the state of conservation of World Heritage properties, focusing on those inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger. There will be a significant emphasis on capacity-building activities and the progress of World Heritage-related Category 2 centres. The nomination process for new World Heritage sites will be examined, including updates to the World Heritage List. The session will also cover the implementation of the Third Cycle of Periodic Reporting and the review of international assistance. Financial matters, such as the presentation of the final accounts and budget execution reports, will be addressed. The agenda includes the election of the chairperson and other officials for the next session, and concluding with the adoption of decisions. The table of the Session can be viewed here.

This session underscores the ongoing commitment to safeguarding the irreplaceable treasures for future generations. By fostering global collaboration and adherence to the principles of the World Heritage Convention, the Committee continues to play a pivotal role in ensuring that our world's most significant sites endure and thrive in the face of contemporary challenges.

 

References

• https://whc.unesco.org/en/committee/#:~:text=The%20World%20Heritage%20Committee%20meets,of%20the%20World%20Heritage%20Committee.
• https://whc.unesco.org/en/committee/#:~:text=The%20World%20Heritage%20Committee%20meets,of%20the%20World%20Heritage%20Committee.
• https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/46th-session-world-heritage-committee
• https://whc.unesco.org/en/committee/#:~:text=The%20World%20Heritage%20Committee%20meets,of%20the%20World%20Heritage%20Committee.
• https://whc.unesco.org/archive/2024/whc24-46com-3B-en.pdf
• https://whc.unesco.org/en/basictexts/
• https://whc.unesco.org/archive/2024/whc24-46com-inf1-en.pdf
• https://whc.unesco.org/archive/2024/whc24-46com-3A-en.pdf
• https://whc.unesco.org/en/convention/

46th Session of World Heritage Committee

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Santosh Kumar/Sarla Meena/Ritu Kataria/Apoorva Mahiwal

(Backgrounder ID: 151928) 0