World Heritage	7 EXT.COM	

Distribution limited	
WHC-04/7 EXT.COM/13
Paris, 21 October 2004
Original : English/French	

UNITED NATIONS EDUCATIONAL, SCIENTIFIC AND CULTURAL
ORGANIZATION

CONVENTION CONCERNING THE PROTECTION OF THE WORLD
CULTURAL AND NATURAL HERITAGE

WORLD HERITAGE COMMITTEE

Seventh Extraordinary Session

Paris, UNESCO Headquarters, Room II
6 – 11 December 2004

Item 13 of the Provisional Agenda: Publication plans (including budgeted proposals) for a compilation of World Heritage Basic Texts, Guidance documents for the protection of World Heritage properties that would supplement the Operational Guidelines and a Handbook on the World Heritage Convention

SUMMARY

Decisions 6 EXT.COM 5.2 and 6 EXT.COM 5.3 requested the World Heritage Centre to submit publication plans (including budgeted proposals) for a compilation of World Heritage Basic Texts, guidance documents for the protection of World Heritage properties that would supplement the Operational Guidelines, and a Handbook on the World Heritage Convention. This document presents a preliminary proposal for implementing these decisions.

Draft decision: 7 EXT.COM 13, see point VI

This document was prepared for the 28th session of the World Heritage Committee (as document WHC-04/28 COM/21), but was not presented, due to time constraints. It is presented herewith with an updated information (changes are highlighted).

I.	Background

1.	Decisions 6 EXT.COM 5.2 and 6 EXT.COM 5.3 requested the World Heritage Centre to submit publication plans (including budgeted proposals) for a compilation of World Heritage Basic Texts, guidance documents for the protection of World Heritage properties that would supplement the Operational Guidelines, and a Handbook on the World Heritage Convention. These decisions derived from an initial proposal by the World Heritage Centre, in 1996, for the preparation of a “Manual on the implementation of the World Heritage Convention” and a subsequent proposal, in March 2002, by the Delegation of Belgium, for the development of the “Basic Texts of the World Heritage Convention”.   This document presents the World Heritage Centre’s preliminary proposal for implementing these decisions. 

2.	By decision 6 EXT.COM 5.2 the World Heritage Centre was requested to prepare an outline and publication plan (including budget) for a compilation of World Heritage Basic Texts in English and French (to include the World Heritage Convention, the Budapest Declaration, the Operational Guidelines, the Rules of Procedure of the World Heritage Committee, the Rules of Procedure of the General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention and the Financial Regulations of the World Heritage Fund) for presentation to the 28th session of the World Heritage Committee in 2004. The Centre was also requested to work in collaboration with the Advisory Bodies to present to the 28th session of the World Heritage Committee in 2004 a budgeted proposal for the preparation of guidance documents for the protection of World Heritage properties that would supplement the Operational Guidelines. These could include detailed guidance on the nomination and management of certain types of World Heritage properties, case studies of best practices, or guidance on other particular related issues.
 
3.	By decision 6 EXT.COM 5.3 the World Heritage Centre was invited to develop, in consultation with interested States Parties and the Advisory Bodies, a publication plan (including budget) for a Handbook on the World Heritage Convention in English and French for presentation to the 28th session of the World Heritage Committee in 2004, taking as a model the Handbook on the Convention of Biological Diversity.

II.	A model handbook

4. 	The World Heritage Centre has examined the information provided in the Handbook on the Convention of Biological Diversity comparing it with the proposed contents of the World Heritage Basic Texts. The Handbook on the Convention of Biological Diversity consists of a set of basic texts concerning that convention, such as the text of the treaty itself, its acts, protocols and declarations, rules of procedure and financial rules, a ratification status, as well as the decisions from all the meetings of the Conference of Parties to that convention. The 2nd edition of this Handbook (2003) is updated to include the outcome of the sixth meeting of the Conference of Parties (2002), and contains 922 pages.  The table of contents of the Handbook is reproduced in Annex 1. 

5. 	The conclusion drawn from the comparison is that a compilation of World Heritage Basic Texts would be similar to the Handbook on the Convention of Biological Diversity, and that the production of two publications, as requested by 6 EXT.COM 5.2 and 6 EXT.COM 5.3, would lead to a significant overlap. Furthermore, the revised Operational Guidelines and its annexes will contain information on many elements which were components of the  proposal for the “Basic Texts of the World Heritage Convention” submitted in March 2002 by the Delegation of Belgium.

6.	 In view of the need a) to make the best use of resources, b) avoid duplication and c) the pending approval of the Operational Guidelines, the World Heritage Centre proposes a pragmatic and phased approach. The Centre thus proposes to merge the two proposals and produce a compilation of World Heritage Basic Texts as set out in paragraph 2 of decision 6 EXT.COM 5.2, which would also include the following elements:

a) an introduction by the Chairperson of the World Heritage Committee whose term of office would coincide with this edition; 

b) a mission statement; and 

c) a chapter on how to the use the publication. 

	For the sake of practicality, it is suggested that the title of this publication be The World Heritage Convention Handbook. Assuming that the Operational Guidelines are approved before the 29th session of the Committee, and provided that funds are approved at the same session, the Handbook could be published in 2006.

III.	Outline of The World Heritage Convention Handbook

7. 	A preliminary outline for The World Heritage Convention Handbook which would include the basic texts of the World Heritage Convention is specified as follows: 
Table of contents
1. Introduction by Chairperson of the World Heritage Committee
2. Mission Statement
3. How to use this Handbook
4. World Heritage Convention
5. Budapest Declaration
6. Operational Guidelines and their annexes
7. Rules of Procedure of the World Heritage Committee
8. Rules of Procedure of the General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention 
9. Financial Regulations of the World Heritage Fund
10. List of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention

IV.	Preliminary budget 
8. 	The elements for an estimated preliminary budget for a 200-page publication in two colours are as follows:
a) Preparation, structuring and proofreading of the texts
	US$ 5,000

b) Translation and copyediting
	US$ 700

c) Layout (including graphics but no photographs)
	US$  15,000

d) Paper and printing (1000 copies in English and 1000 in French) 
US$  26,000

e) Diffusion / mailing
	US$  3,000	
	 
                  	Total: US$  49,700

V.	Production of guidance documents

9. 	As concerns the Decision 6 EXT.COM 5.2.3 to prepare guidance documents for the protection of World Heritage properties that would supplement the Operational Guidelines and include detailed guidance on the nomination and management of certain types of World Heritage properties, case studies of best practices, and other guidance, the World Heritage Centre would like to recall the existence, since November 2002, of a World Heritage Papers Series on various subjects related to the World Heritage Convention and the preservation of World Heritage sites. The Series targets mainly World Heritage experts, national and local authorities and site managers, and provides not only information and guidance on World Heritage issues, but includes also reports from seminars, workshops and meetings, as well as manuals aimed at facilitating the implementation of the World Heritage Convention. Most of the publications within the World Heritage Papers Series are produced in co-operation with the Advisory Bodies. 

10.	The World Heritage Papers Series is produced almost entirely with extrabudgetary funding and uses only minimal seed money from the World Heritage Fund (US$ 3000 a year). Eleven publications in the Series are available to date from the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, and several are in preparation. A full list of the publications that have appeared in the World Heritage Paper series is reproduced in Figure 2.

11. 	A specific publication dealing with "Principles for the protection and conservation of properties inscribed on the World Heritage List and interventions situated within their buffer zone" (according to a proposal submitted by Ms C. Cameron, Chairperson of the 5th extraordinary session of the Committee held in November 2001, WHC-01/CONF.209.2) can be developed together with the Advisory Bodies and prepared as part of this series.

VI.	Draft decision

Draft Decision 7 EXT.COM 13
The World Heritage Committee,
1.	Recalling its decisions 6 EXT.COM 5.2 and 6 EXT.COM 5.3,
2.	Noting the recommendation of the World Heritage Centre to merge the proposal to publish a compilation of World Heritage Basic Texts and a Handbook on the World Heritage Convention into one publication to be entitled The World Heritage Convention Handbook,
3.	Requests the World Heritage Centre to present a detailed budget for The World Heritage Convention Handbook for adoption by the World Heritage Committee at its 29th session in 2005;
4.	Further requests the World Heritage Centre to work with the Advisory Bodies to develop, as part of the World Heritage Papers Series, a publication on "Principles for the protection and conservation of properties inscribed on the World Heritage List and interventions situated within their buffer zone" and  to seek extrabudgetary funding for the production of this publication.

Figure 1
Convention on Biological Diversity
Handbook
Index
Contents
Foreword from Hamdallah Zedan
How to use this handbook
Introduction: The operations of the Convention on Biological Diversity
Accronyms and abbreviations	

Section I	
Convention on Biological Diversity	

Section II	
Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety to the Convention on Biological Diversity	

Section II	
Rules of procedure for meetings of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity	

Section IV	
Modus operandi of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice	

Section V	
Financial rules for the administration of the Trust Fund for the Convention on Biological Diversity	

Section VI	
Guide to the Decisions of the Conference of the Parties
Articles of the Convention on Biological Diversity and Thematic work programmes	

Section VII	
Status of signature, ratification, accession, acceptance and approval
Convention on Biological Diversity and Cartagena Protocol 	

Section VIII	
Declarations	

Section IX	
Nairobi Final Act of the Conference for the Adoption of the Agreed Text of the Convention on Biological Diversity	

Section X	
Decisions of the Conference of the Parties:
(with relevant SBSTTA recommendations) 
	First meeting of the Conference of the Parties 
	Second meeting of the Conference of the Parties 
	Third meeting of the Conference of the Parties 
	Fourth meeting of the Conference of the Parties 
	First part of the first extraordinary meeting of the Conference of the Parties 
	Resumed session of the first extraordinary meeting of the Conference of the Parties 
	Fifth meeting of the Conference of the Parties 
	Sixth meeting of the Conference of the Parties 	

Section XI	
The Hague Ministerial Declaration of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity	

Index of key terms	

Figure 2
Published within the World Heritage Papers Series from November 2002 to September 2004
No.1: Managing Tourism at World Heritage Sites: A Practical Manual for World Heritage Site Managers. (in English). The implications of the tourism industry for site managers. It also considers the impacts and problems of tourism, and the benefits and challenges of public participation. It offers suggestions on strategies and solutions to tourism management problems.

No.2: Investing in World Heritage: Past Achievements, Future Ambitions. (in English). This guide to International Assistance provided by the World Heritage Fund contains a series of papers on such subjects as ‘the case for collective protection’ and ‘assistance in action.’ The publication considers ways of responding to various needs and outlines the trends that have been developing in international assistance.

No.3: Periodic Report Africa. (in English and French). This publication records the periodic reporting exercise on the World Heritage Convention carried out in the Africa region in 2001/2002. It looks at the implementation of the Convention both at the States Parties’ and at the site level.

No.4: Proceedings of the World Heritage Marine Biodiversity Workshop, Hanoi, Viet Nam, February 25–March 1, 2002. (in English). This collection of papers discusses the areas of concern by region and reports on regional recommendations. It cites the challenges identified by the workshop, and reports on its recommendations. It also lists threats and feasibility analyses for the highest priority sites in each region.

No.5: Identification and Documentation of Modern Heritage. (in English with two papers in French).This set of papers considers aspects of modern heritage thematically and by region. Topics include position papers presented for the October 2001 Expert Meeting on Modern Heritage which define visions and trends. A selected bibliography relating to modern heritage is also provided.

No.6: World Heritage Cultural Landscapes 1992-2002. (in English). This study presents a global review of cultural landscapes, and provides an analysis on their nature and distribution. Quantitative, geographical and strategic aspects are examined and possible future approaches are suggested. Twelve recommendations are made.

No.7: Cultural Landscapes: the Challenges of Conservation. (in English with conclusions and recommendations in French). This publication reflects the debates at the workshop held in Ferrara, Italy in November 2002 to mark the 30th anniversary of the World Heritage Convention. It also provides an overview of World Heritage cultural landscapes and gives information on the training challenges of management. The publication looks at the cross-regional dialogue for landscape conservation and updates information on legal protection.

No.8: Mobilizing Young People for World Heritage. (in English and French). This publication records the workshop held in Treviso, Italy in November 2002, another event linked to the celebration of the 30th anniversary of the World Heritage Convention. It considers innovative ways of mobilizing young people in the promotion and preservation of World Heritage, including the skills and techniques of the production of cartoons as a means of communicating with young people. 

No.9: Partnerships for World Heritage Cities - Culture as a Vector for Sustainable Urban Development. (in English and French). This publication provides a summary of the papers presented and the debates held at the Urbino workshop, November 2002, to mark the 30th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention. 

No.10: Monitoring World Heritage. (in English). This publication contains the proceedings from the Vicenza workshop, November 2002, to mark the 30th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention. 

No.11: Periodic Report and Regional Programme. Arab States 2000-2003. (in English and French). Highlights the results of the first steps of the Periodic Reporting exercise in the Arab Region, and provides an overview of the state of conservation of the World Heritage properties in the region.