Decision 41 COM 7A.55

Minaret and Archaeological Remains of Jam (Afghanistan) (C 211 rev)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/17/41.COM/7A.Add,
2. Recalling Decision 40 COM 7A.27 adopted at its 40th session (Istanbul/UNESCO, 2016),
3. Notes with regret that the State Party has neither adopted the detailed topographic map of the property produced in 2012, nor submitted a proposal for a minor boundary modification, and reiterates its request to the State Party to adopt the 2012 topographic map of the property and to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2018, a proposal for a minor boundary modification, in accordance with Paragraphs 163-165 of the Operational Guidelines, for review by ICOMOS;
4. Regrets that the State Party has not carried out any conservation work at the site since 2012;
5. Urges the State Party to approve the Conservation Action Plan, which was established as an outcome of the Emergency International Assistance granted from the World Heritage Fund, along with the necessary financial resources, and to start implementing this Action Plan as soon as possible;
6. Also urges the State Party, as a matter of urgency, to address the two issues that have been reported as urgent for several years already:
   1. The installation of a monitoring instrument on the Minaret of Jam to measure its inclination, and
   2. The emergency stabilization work for the wooden staircases, in order to prevent further destabilization of the Minaret’s structure;
7. Requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2018, the detailed Conservation Action Plan along with details on the means allocated towards its implementation, including any financial measure;
8. Also requests the State Party to construct a footbridge over the Hari Rud River and a guesthouse at the property, in order to improve access to the property and site security, which the State Party itself has highlighted as urgent for a number of years;
9. Calls upon the international community to provide technical and financial support, in co-operation with the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies, for the implementation of above-mentioned Action Plan, which will be part of a strategy to implement the corrective measures adopted by the World Heritage Committee at its 31st session (Christchurch, 2007);
10. Further requests the State Party to revise the timeframe for the implementation of the corrective measures and to submit it to the World Heritage Centre by 1 February 2018;
11. Requests furthermore the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2018, an update report on the state of conservation of the property and the implementation of the above, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 42nd session in 2018;
12. Decides to retain the Minaret and Archaeological Remains of Jam (Afghanistan) on the List of World Heritage in Danger.