State of Conservation (SOC)
Mount Nimba Strict Nature Reserve (1990)
UNESCO Extra-Budgetary Funds
International Assistance granted to the property
Requests Approved: 0
(from1981-1989)
Total Amount Ap proved: 147,882USD
| 1989 | Purchase of an all terrain vehicle for Mount Nimba | 20,000 USD |
| 1988 | Consultancy mission and meeting for preparing technical ... | 15,000 USD |
| 1986 | Equipment for Mount Nimba Reserve | 6,500 USD |
| 1983 | Financial contribution to a seminar/workshop on the elaboration ... | 22,000 USD |
| 1983 | Consultant services to prepare requests for technical cooperation ... | 6,082 USD |
| 1982 | Financial contribution to a tripartite meeting (Guinea, Ivory ... | 8,000 USD |
| 1981 | Equipment for Mount Nimba | 70,300 USD |
Missions**
November 1988
Factors* affecting the property identified in previous reports
Lack of Management Plan; Lack of funding; Poaching; New railway; Mining
Corrective Measures
Current conservation issues
The concern of the Committee and the Bureau regarding the impact of the proposed mining of iron-ore in this site had already been communicated to the Guinean authorities, the French authorities (in view of the interests of a French mining company), as well as the World Bank. Neither the Guinean nor the French authorities have replied at the time of writing.
The threat to this site is being further exacerbated by the incursion of several thousand refugees from Liberia who, at the time of writing, were receiving emergency aid from the United Nations.
The World Bank (Occidental and Central Africa Department) has informed the Secretariat that at present it is administering a US $ 500,000 Japanese grant for an environmental assessment study. US $ 300,000 from this grant have been provided to a Unesco ecological study on Mt. Nimba which is likely to provide information necessary for making future environmental assessments. The Bank has furthermore informed the Secretariat that it has recommended the Guinean authorities not to approve any mining project as long as the environmental assessment study has not been completed.
The mining group, which includes American, French, and Japanese interests, has in the meantime commissioned its own environmental assessment, including an environmental protection plan, which should be completed by mid-November and be available for inspection and review, by the World Heritage Committee as by others.
Conclusion
Decision
14COMIX
Link to the decision
Mount Nimba Strict Nature Reserve (Guinea and Cote d'Ivoire)
The Committee took note of the information supplied by IUCN concerning the Mount Nimba mining project and the fact that this project, according to IUCN, would threaten the intrinsic value and integrity which had justified the inscription of this property on the World Heritage List. The IUCN General Assembly, which had just ended in Australia, adopted a resolution urging the Guinean authorities not to allow this project and to implement a development plan for the region which would insure the protection of the site.
The Guinean observer confirmed the Guinean Government's intention to mine iron-ore at this site and noted that the prospect of such mining had always been clearly understood, even at the time this property was inscribed on the World Heritage List. He indicated, however, that the mining area covered only 800 ha and was actually located outside the boundaries of the World Heritage Site, and that its impact on this site would be minimized in accordance with the results of an impact study which would be announced shortly. The Guinean observer also added that the mining operations would provide jobs for the many refugees whose presence on the site now present a threat to its integrity.
The Committee requested the Secretariat to ask the Guinean authorities in writing to confirm, by means of appropriate cartographic documentation, that the mining project is indeed located outside the site inscribed on the World Heritage List; the Committee also requested the Bureau to reexamine this issue at its next session, in the light of the said documentation.
The Committee also wished to ask the two States Parties which have business interests directly involved in the mining project, namely U.S.A. and France, to examine whether Article 6.3 of the World Heritage Convention might apply to this undertaking.
No draft Decision
Mount Nimba Strict Nature Reserve
Guinea
Côte d'IvoireDocuments
Original Documents
CC.90/CONF.003/03 CC.90/CONF.004/04Other Documents
View inscribed site documents, nomination file, reports, decisions, ...
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Detailed List of SOC reports
Threats*
Inscription on the Danger List
Year: 1992Threats to the Site:
The Reserve was inscribed on the List of the World Heritage in Danger as a result of two factors:
- a proposed iron-ore mining concession to an international consortium;
- the arrival of a large number of refugees to areas in and around the Guinean part of the site.
The granting of the concession was announced in 1992 and included portions of the WH site.
* :
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.
