Neolithic Site of Çatalhöyük

On 31 January 2013, the State Party submitted a state of conservation report, including “The Draft Management Plan of Çatalhöyük Neolithic Site”. In accordance with the relevant regulations, the draft plan is currently in the process of submission to the Executive and Monitoring Council for evaluation and approval. Following the approval of the Executive and Monitoring Council, the final Management Plan will be submitted to the World Heritage Centre before the 37th session of the World Heritage Committee. At the time of the preparation of this report, the final version of the plan had not been received by the World Heritage Centre.

a)  Finalization and implementation of the Management Plan

The State Party submitted the updated draft Management Plan, which aims to ensure the recognition and conservation of the significance and values of the property by all stakeholders, including visitors. The main management issues have been defined based on the analysis of the situation and information derived from a stakeholder consultation. Management policies and actions are planned around a series of key issues: Archaeological Excavations and Research, Visitor Management and Presentation, Tourism and Promotion, Accessibility, Education, Participation, Local Development, and Risk Management.

The required actions have been prioritized, the duration of their implementation estimated, and parties responsible for implementation identified; the requirement for strengthening legal powers and financial provision for effective implementation is prioritized for 2013-2014. 

b)  Defining, besides the Çatalhöyük Research Project, the national and local entities responsible for the custody of the inventories and documentation on the property

This issue has been addressed in the draft Management Plan, which states that all collections, inventories and documentation are managed and regulated by the Directorate General for Cultural Heritage and Museums through the Directorate of Konya Museum. Storage facilities on site have recently been significantly enhanced and further work is in progress to strengthen documentation including compiling visual sources and written materials in different languages related to Çatalhöyük (excavation reports, photographs, related articles etc.). It is planned to store and present the compiled literature in one of the sections of the Konya Museum.

c)  Including amongst the monitoring indicators, the evaluation of environmental and climatic impacts, as well as those related to the effects of agriculture, tourism or other developments, which might affect the property

All of these issues have been addressed in the draft Management Pan and appropriate actions identified.

d)  Financial strategy for the conservation and maintenance of the property

The Action Plan has identified priorities and the agencies responsible for implementation. In addition, the source of finance for each of the actions is identified. 

The World Heritage Centre and Advisory Bodies recommend that the Committee express its satisfaction with the progress made by the State Party in response to the Committee decision.

However, they note that while a number of the actions listed within the Action Plan refer to monitoring, no monitoring indicators have been identified. There is a need for a monitoring plan with appropriate indicators in order to ensure that the implementation of conservation and management objectives proves effective.

They also point out that it is not clear how many of the activities are already funded, and whether there is a need to seek additional funding for some of the activities (in particular prioritised activities). It would, therefore, be useful to develop a complete financial strategy.

The draft Management Plan has been completed; however this document needs final approval by the relevant agencies in order for its implementation to move forward.