Monitoring Workshop for Historic Centres of Berat and Gjirokastra, Albania

Thanks to a contribution of 4,992 USD from the International Assistance World Heritage Fund, the State Party of Albania organized a training workshop for the development of monitoring indicators for the World Heritage property "Historic Centres of Berat and Gjirokastra”. The workshop took place in Berat, Gjirokastra and Tirana between 27 and 29 April 2016.

In 2009, the World Heritage Committee requested the State Party of Albania to develop detailed and appropriate monitoring indicators related to the attributes that carry the Outstanding Universal Value of the property. The World Heritage Committee reiterated this request in Decision 39 COM 7B.75, adopted at its 39th session (Bonn, 2015). In October 2015, the State Party requested International Assistance to the World Heritage Fund in this regard, which was granted in February 2016.

The overall aim of the training was to enhance monitoring activities based on well-defined indicators. Historic centres, such as those in Berat and Gjirokastra, require very specific monitoring as they are embedded in a rich living urban fabric where changes and alterations are constant, which may lead to transformations either preserving or deteriorating the heritage as a whole. Precise monitoring indicators developed with a clear articulation of the attributes of the Outstanding Universal Value of the World Heritage property “Historic Centres of Berat and Gjirokastra” are therefore key for its protection.

In close collaboration with the World Heritage Centre, ICOMOS International and the Ministry of Culture of Albania, the Institute of Cultural Monuments “Gani Strazimiri” organized a training workshop on the development of such monitoring indicators for the World Heritage property between 27 and 29 April 2016.

Representatives from the Ministry of Culture, the Institute of the Cultural Monuments, the Regional Directorates of National Culture of Berat and Gjirokastra, the Local Governments of Berat and Gjirokastra, the Office of Administration and Coordination of Butrint as well as other interested further institutions and NGO’s participated in this training which was led by two international experts from ICOMOS International.

The work undertaken as part of the workshop laid the theoretical foundation for the development and the successful implementation of a focused set of monitoring indicators clearly related to the attributes of the Outstanding Universal Value of the property, as requested by the World Heritage Committee. The workshop also contributed to strengthen the dialogue between all stakeholders, while promoting understanding and increased awareness on a number of World Heritage related issues.

For more information, please refer to the report of the ICOMOS Advisory Mission to the World Heritage property “Historic Centres of Berat and Gjirokastra” which can be consulted at the following link: https://whc.unesco.org/document/144304.