National History Park – Citadel, Sans Souci, Ramiers

• Management systems/ management plan (lack of conservation, management and risk preparedness plans)
• Water damage (issue resolved)
• Vandalism (issue resolved)
• Earthquake vulnerability
• Impacts of tourism / visitor / recreation
• Ground transport infrastructure
• Effects arising from use of transportation infrastructure
• Major visitor accommodation and associated infrastructure

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

On 13 December 2017, the State Party submitted a state of conservation report, available at http://whc.unesco.org/fr/list/180/documents/, which reported on the following developments:

• The consultant's terms of reference to provide guidance for the development of the buffer zone of the property were defined, while clarification of the boundaries of the property was carried out in the context of the retrospective inventory exercise;
• Extensive consultation was conducted for the development of the property’s Management Plan with all institutional partners and the communities residing within and close to the park. A provisional management authority for the Park has been set up, while a proposal for the management structure of the National History Park, Citadel, Sans Souci, Ramiers (HNP-CSSR), was finalized in October 2017 for approval by the Government;
• A draft conservation plan ("Management, Conservation and Safeguarding Plan of the HNP-CSSR") carried out within the framework of the World Bank project, also contains the terms of reference of the studies for conservation, consolidation, rehabilitation, enhancement and interpretation of the property. As this document focuses exclusively on the monumental component of the property, the State Party has expressed its intention to complete the Plan as regards to the section for the natural component part of the Park;
• A Sustainable Tourism Plan for the period 2017-2020 was finalized in June 2017 through close collaboration between the Ministries of Culture and Tourism, with the assistance of the technical institutions concerned. The Plan contains objectives aimed at institutional and judicial strengthening for the management, promotion and awareness-raising, and the strengthening of the tourism offer – sustainable tourism, promotion of research and training for institutions and the resources of the Great North, and the promotion of the partnership for sustainable tourism;
• Concerning the National Road No. 3 (RN003) project, the State Party was able to identify a source of funding for the impact study required by the World Heritage Committee, thanks to the financial support of the European Union, through the Office of the Authorizing Officer of the European Development Fund in Haiti (BONFED). The terms of reference of the study have been established and include analysis of possible impacts on the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property. In anticipation of the results, no work has been undertaken on the Park road;
• The implementation of the World Bank-funded Cultural Heritage Preservation and Tourism Support Project (PAST) continued throughout the period 2016-2017. This project includes support for ISPAN in the development of capacities and management of the property, as well as for concrete conservation and presentation interventions.

Certain results indicated in the report submitted by the State Party should be noted. In particular, the finalization of the Sustainable Tourism Plan for the period 2017-2020 is a positive result, which also highlights the necessary collaboration between the Ministry of Culture and the Haitian Ministry of Tourism.

The implementation of the "Development, Conservation and Safeguarding of the HNP-CSSR" also deserves to be noted, although it is still necessary, as indicated in the report provided by the State Party, to complete this plan with a section relating to the natural component of the property.

Finally, it is also noted that the terms of reference relating to the construction studies of the RN003 have been completed, including an environmental and heritage impact study based on the OUV of the property.

However, many delays are still to be regretted in terms of the essential tools for good management of the property, and this despite the partnership established by the State Party with major funders such as the World Bank and the European Union.

It is also regrettable that, to date, the buffer zone has not been established, and that the Management Plan could not be implemented despite numerous consultations, including with the communities. Moreover, it is worrying that the structure in charge of managing the property still remains at the stage of provisional authority. This is all the more worrying as these points have already been addressed in previous decisions of the Committee.

Examination of the terms of reference of the study of the RN003 by ICOMOS shows that this is the third version of the terms of reference proposed in response to the request of the Committee in 2010 to "halt the construction of the RN003 within the limits of the property pending the development of other alternatives to be evaluated” (34 COM 7B.110). However, contrary to previous versions, the new terms of reference, and without this being clarified, retain only one option, the rehabilitation of the RN003 in the crossing of the National History Park, to the standards of a national road.

Thus, these new terms of reference strictly recall the situation observed in 2010 and the concerns that motivated the Committee's initial decision. However, they introduce a new element. This is the construction of a new road within the Park, following the route of an existing road and destined to connect the RN003, in its western section, to the parking area providing access to the Citadel in Choiseul. While it is interesting to exploit other accesses to the Park's monuments, the issue posed by these terms of reference is that of a necessarily motorized access, to the detriment of an action aimed at promoting "soft" modes of discovery of the Park, not only of its monuments, but also of its landscapes, the vernacular built heritage, and the cultural and artisanal practices of the inhabitants.

In conclusion, the new terms of reference do not in any way make it possible to alleviate the concerns already expressed as to the risk that this road infrastructure poses to the Outstanding Universal Value of the property.  No progress appears to have been made in the search for alternative solutions, and the new terms of reference provide no appeasement to fears of major damage caused by this infrastructure to the integrity of the property.

Although some delays may be explained in the context of the State Party's heightened vulnerability, it is recommended that the Committee should stress that the lack of sustainable progress in these areas may jeopardize the OUV of the property.

It is recommended that the Committee request the State Party to urgently finalize a proposal for the buffer zone, the management plan, the conservation plan for the entire property, the impact studies of the various technical projects related to the improvement of the road crossing the Park and the deviation of the RN003. It is also recommended that the State Party establishes a permanent structure in charge of the management of the property and submit the above-mentioned relevant documents by 1 December 2019 to the World Heritage Centre for technical review by the Advisory Bodies.