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National History Park – Citadel, Sans Souci, Ramiers

Haiti
Factors affecting the property in 2014*
  • Deliberate destruction of heritage
  • Earthquake
  • Effects arising from use of transportation infrastructure
  • Ground transport infrastructure
  • Impacts of tourism / visitor / recreation
  • Major visitor accommodation and associated infrastructure
  • Management systems/ management plan
  • Water (rain/water table)
Factors* affecting the property identified in previous reports
  • Lack of a Management Plan;
  • Lack of a Conservation Plan;
  • Water damage;
  • Vandalism;
  • Seismic activities;
  • Infrastructure projects;
  • Lack of a Risk Preparedness Plan;
  • Potential non controlled touristic development.
UNESCO Extra-Budgetary Funds until 2014

Total amount granted: USD 14,780 for the July 2010 Technical Mission partially funded by the Spanish Funds-in-Trust for World Heritage.

International Assistance: requests for the property until 2014
Requests approved: 7 (from 1982-2010)
Total amount approved : 246,110 USD
Missions to the property until 2014**

September 2006: UNESCO Havana Office Technical Visit; July 2010: Joint Expert Technical Mission; March 2011: UNESCO Preparatory Mission for Haiti Donor’s Conference; January 2012: World Heritage Centre Technical Mission; March 2012: Multidisciplinary Technical Mission; May 2013: ICOMOS Mission; May 2013: Multidisciplinary Technical Mission; July 2013: Technical Assistance Mission World Heritage Centre / ICOMOS.

Conservation issues presented to the World Heritage Committee in 2014

On 11 February 2014, the State Party submitted a report of activities carried out in 2013 in connection with the project "Cultural Heritage and Sustainable Tourism" funded by the World Bank for the years 2013 to 2018, available at https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/180/documents, and specifying the following:

  • In response to emergencies identified, sealing and shoring work has been done to stabilize the most endangered structures while awaiting restoration. Unsafe areas accessible to the public have been made secure, and the access road to the Citadel has been consolidated.
  • Public reception facilities have been built at the Citadel and the Choiseul Welcome Centre; and walls, vaults and the rooms open to visitors have undergone major restoration. The enhancement of the monuments is carried out in the framework of a proposed Tourism Development Plan for the Citadel.
  • A preparatory phase of the Action Plan was initiated in June 2013 (not submitted), and thus for the launch of the project “Cultural Heritage Preservation and Tourism Sector Development Support in the North of Haiti“.  The Action Plan has still not been submitted.  
  • The boundary determination of the perimeter of the Park was completed and preceded by awareness-raising and information actions targeting local elected officials and residents of the Park. A decree certifying the boundary of PNH - CSSR is awaiting approval by the Council of Ministers since January 2014.
  • Established by decree of 16 August 2012, the Interdepartmental Management Committee of the Park was officially established on 10 January 2014. ISPAN is the permanent secretariat
  • The World Heritage Centre / ICOMOS mission carried out in July 2013 analyzed the threats posed by a national highway crossing through the site, and proposed  the creation of a deviation of the RN3 bypassing the Park, and the rehabilitation of the “Park Road” as a strictly local road. It stressed the timetable discrepancy between the works of the national highway, to be completed up to the gates of the Park by the end of 2015, and the time needed for the studies and the completion of the deviation -- five to six years at least. The document submitted by the State Party throws no light on this issue. 
Analysis and Conclusion by World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies in 2014

It is to be noted that considerable progress has been made in stabilizing the structures of the Citadel, and in rehabilitating, making safer, and enhancing the areas accessible to the public. The creation, through a well-conceived Tourism Development Plan, of welcome facilities and services providing space to local producers (craft shops, food outlets) are significant contributions to the development of the property. The establishment of the Interdepartmental Management Committee can also be attributed to these advances.

However, these positives aspects do not diminish the massive amount of structural consolidation work that remains to be carried out on the monuments of the Park and primarily on the Citadel. The commitment of the "Cultural Heritage and Sustainable Tourism" project financed by the World Bank, which gives priority to supporting restoration and structural reinforcement of the monuments, is a guarantee for the continuation of this work, in the framework of the conservation plan which still remains to be finalized.  It is very important that this project also envisages contributing to strengthening ISPAN on site and the establishment of a team dedicated to the Park’s management.

The physical delimitation of the Park by boundary markings is a significant advance, and which also provided an opportunity for dialogue with local authorities and Park residents. Further work is needed to define the buffer zone for the Park and to implement appropriate regulatory measures.

Efforts have been undertaken to raise awareness and inform local communities. Indeed, the World Heritage Centre / ICOMOS technical assistance mission of July 2013 noted the increased awareness of the local communities.

In terms of space management within the perimeter of the Park and its surroundings, everything remains to be done to develop the participatory Management Plan that must be a priority for the Interdepartmental Management Committee given the threats that the ongoing infrastructure projects pose to the integrity of the Park. Although the road deviation work has begun, the State Party will face a very delicate period of increased traffic on the road through the Park, a situation that could pose serious threats to the Outstanding Universal Value of the property.  It is therefore essential that it be provided in advance with the tools and the means to monitor and control the evolution of the use of space during this transitional period. This is a risk factor for the integrity of the property and makes it particularly urgent to undertake studies on the deviation and to define measures for the management of the road and its surroundings in this transitional period.

Decisions adopted by the Committee in 2014
38 COM 7B.44
National History Park – Citadel, Sans Souci, Ramiers (Haiti) (C 180)

The World Heritage Committee,

  1. Having examined document WHC-14/38.COM/7B,
  2. Recalling Decision 37 COM 7B.98 adopted at its 37th session (Phnom Penh, 2013);
  3. Recognizes the extreme social, economic and environmental vulnerabilities facing the State Party and by extension the impacts on its heritage assets;
  4. Welcomes the measures taken by the State Party to implement the decisions of the World Heritage Committee, and acknowledges the efforts of the Institute for the Protection of National Heritage to ensure the safeguard of the property, as well as the ongoing efforts to raise awareness and inform local communities;
  5. Notes the latest results of the studies on the structural stability of the Citadel and the emergency shoring work that have been made, and requests the State Party to continue and finalize the work of structural reinforcement, in cooperation with technical and financial institutions, and to submit for approval as soon as possible the conservation plan of the buildings;
  6. Also takes note of the request for assistance for expertise on the welcome capacities of the monuments;
  7. Reiterates its request to the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre the Tourism Development Plan including an analysis of the welcome capacities of the monuments before continuing with the development of tourism projects;
  8. Further notes the demarcation process for the perimeter of the Park and also requests the State Party to submit proposals to define the boundaries of the buffer zone of the Park, as well as the results of the cadastral survey;
  9. Further requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre:
    1. a timetable and methodology for developing the Management Plan for the Park and the buffer zone, by 1 December 2014, for examination by the Advisory Bodies,
    2. the terms of reference for the study of the deviation of the National Highway No. 3 and the programme for project of rehabilitation of the “Park road”, as well as an environmental and heritage impact assessment for this project;
  10. Also reiterates its request to the international community to ensure, by all means, its support for the implementation of the recommendations, and to quickly approve the financial and human resources to enable the State Party to ensure the conservation of the entire property, paying particular attention to the quality of life of the inhabitants;
  11. Further requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2015, an updated report, including a one-page executive summary, on the state of conservation of the property and on the implementation of the above mentioned points, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 40th session in 2016.
Draft Decision:   38 COM 7B.44

The World Heritage Committee,

1.  Having examined document WHC-14/38.COM/7B,

2.  Recalling Decision 37 COM 7B.98 adopted at its 37th session (Phnom Penh, 2013);

3.  Takes note of the measures taken by the State Party to implement the decisions of the World Heritage Committee, and acknowledges the efforts of the Institute for the Protection of National Heritage to ensure the safeguard of the property;

4.  Notes the latest results of the studies on the structural stability of the Citadel and the emergency shoring work that have been made, and requests the State Party to continue and finalize the work of structural reinforcement, in cooperation with technical and financial institutions, and to submit for approval as soon as possible the conservation plan of the buildings;

5.  Also takes note of the request for assistance for expertise on the welcome capacities of the monuments;

6.  Reiterates its request to the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre the Tourism Development Plan including an analysis of the welcome capacities of the monuments before continuing with the development of tourism projects;

7.  Further notes the demarcation process for the perimeter of the Park and also requests the State Party to submit proposals to define the boundaries of the buffer zone of the Park, as well as the results of the cadastral survey;

8.  Further requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre:

a)  a timetable and methodology for developing the Management Plan for the Park and the buffer zone, by 1 December 2014, for examination by the Advisory Bodies,

b)  the terms of reference for the study of the deviation of the National Highway No. 3 and the programme for project of rehabilitation  of the “Park road”, as well as an environmental and heritage impact assessment for this project;

9.  Also reiterates its request to the international community to ensure, by all means, its support for the implementation of the recommendations, and to quickly approve the financial and human resources to enable the State Party to ensure the conservation of the entire property, paying particular attention to the quality of life of the inhabitants;

10.  Further requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2016, an updated report, including a one-page executive summary, on the state of conservation of the property and on the implementation of the above mentioned points, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 40th session in 2016.

Report year: 2014
Haiti
Date of Inscription: 1982
Category: Cultural
Criteria: (iv)(vi)
Documents examined by the Committee
SOC Report by the State Party
Report (2014) .pdf
arrow_circle_right 38COM (2014)
Exports

* : The threats indicated are listed in alphabetical order; their order does not constitute a classification according to the importance of their impact on the property.
Furthermore, they are presented irrespective of the type of threat faced by the property, i.e. with specific and proven imminent danger (“ascertained danger”) or with threats which could have deleterious effects on the property’s Outstanding Universal Value (“potential danger”).

** : All mission reports are not always available electronically.


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