International World Heritage Expert Meeting on Integrity for Cultural Heritage

Dr. Sami El-Masri, Deputy Director General for Arts, Culture and Heritage, Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority, with the Director of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Mr Kishore Rao, opened today the International Expert Meeting on Integrity for Cultural Heritage. The meeting is held from 12 to 14 March 2012, in Al Ain and is hosted by the United Arab Emirates in collaboration with the World Heritage Centre.

The experts from all regions of the world who attend this meeting discuss issues relating to the conditions of integrity for cultural heritage and review the current text in the Operational Guidelines. The report of the meeting, together with any recommendations including potential changes to the Operational Guidelines will be presented to the World Heritage Committee at its 36th session (24 June - 6 July 2012, Saint Petersburg, Russian Federation).

The Director of the World Heritage welcomed the efforts of the experts to further elaborate on the concept of integrity: “This expert meeting on the notion of integrity was requested for some time and is certainly part of a broader reflection of the statutory process, as it is necessary bring the approaches of natural and cultural heritage closer together”.