Decision 38 COM 7B.49

Lamu Old Town (Kenya) (C 1055)

Decision: 38 COM 7B.49

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-14/38.COM/7B.Add,
2. Recalling Decisions 34 COM 7B.46, 35 COM 7B.39, 36 COM 7B.43 and 37 COM 7B.40, adopted at its 34th (Brasilia, 2010), 35th (UNESCO, 2011), 36th (Saint-Petersburg, 2012) and 37th (Phnom Penh, 2013) sessions respectively,
3. Strongly regrets that the Lamu Port – South Sudan – Ethiopia Transport (LAPSSET) Corridor Development Authority project was not halted, and reiterates its request to the State Party to halt all work on the LAPSSET development project until the Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) report has been finalized and its results discussed by the World Heritage Committee;
4. Takes note of the delay in the finalization of the HIA, and urges the State Party to complete the report and submit it to the World Heritage Centre as soon as possible for review by the Advisory Bodies;
5. Also takes note of the progress made on the development of a new chapter of the management plan covering the LAPSSET development project, requests that it integrates the results of the HIA, and that the finalized version be submitted to the World Heritage Centre for review by the Advisory Bodies as soon it is completed;
6. Also requests the State Party to encourage the involvement of the local community in the development and implementation of the planning and mitigation mechanisms that will be developed to offset the impacts of the LAPSSET project;
7. Also reiterates its request made at its 34th (Brasilia, 2010), 35th (UNESCO, 2011), 36th (Saint-Petersburg, 2012), and 37th (Phnom Penh, 2013) sessions that the State Party furnish maps clearly showing the boundaries of the property and its buffer zone, and further requests that any extensions to the buffer zone be submitted to the World Heritage Committee as a minor boundary modification as soon as they are completed and approved at the State Party level;
8. Requests furthermore the State Party to invite a joint UNESCO/ICOMOS/ICCROM reactive monitoring mission to the property to discuss the results of the HIA and their implementation with the State Party and local stakeholders, to examine the work already undertaken for the LAPSSET development project, and to examine the state of conservation of the property;
9. Requests moreover the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre by 1 February 2015, an updated report, including a 1-page executive summary, 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.