The Italian government and UNESCO have entered into a joint agreement to enhance their cooperation within the framework of the 1972 Convention Concerning the Protection of the Cultural and Natural Heritage. The aim of the agreement is to reinforce the effectiveness of the World Heritage Convention, promote Global Strategy for a more representative World Heritage List, and improve the management of cultural and natural sites inscribed on it.
The goal of the agreement is to assist State Parties to the Convention in:
Under the Italian Funds-in-Trust agreement, defined between UNESCO and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, US$ 3,176,249 was made available for the period 2001-2009, with activities reviewed annually. The objectives defined are structured under three components:
In 2004, Italy also committed US $300,000 in funding to continuing work to conserve the five World Heritage sites in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.