Decision 38 COM 5F.1

Follow-up to the Audit of the Working Methods of Cultural Conventions and to the Evaluation of UNESCO’s Standard-Setting work of the Culture Sector

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-14/38.COM/5F and its Annexes,
2. Welcomes the findings of the audit and the recommendations offered therein;
3. Takes note that the General Assembly of States Parties decided to establish a sub-account under the World Heritage Fund with regard to recommendation 1(a), to be funded from Voluntary Contributions and to be used exclusively for enhancing the human capacities of the Secretariat, and with regard to recommendation 1(e) to apply the cost recovery policy for the staff time spent in managing the World Heritage Fund within the limit of the funds made available under the sub-account; recalls the invitation of the General Assembly to States Parties to provide voluntary supplementary contributions to the sub-account in the amount of at least US$1,000,000 per year in total;
4. Takes further note that the established practice of the Convention with regard to translation and interpretation of statutory meetings – specifically, that costs of interpretation in languages other than English and French for Committee sessions are borne by extrabudgetary contributions – satisfies Recommendation 1(d);
5. Also welcomes the establishment by the Culture Sector of a Conventions Common Services Unit that aims to support the work of all convention secretariats, as suggested in Recommendation 3, and expects that it will add value and provide cost-effective solutions to the challenges facing the Conventions;
6. Acknowledges the necessity to prioritize the workload of the Secretariat to align it with available resources (Recommendation 1 (b)), while recalling that the Organization is confronting an unprecedented financial situation that demands creative solutions;
7. Considers that the annual frequency of sessions of the Committee is appropriate and welcomes the suggestion in Recommendation 1 (c) to reduce the duration and agenda of the sessions;
8. Takes note of the suggestion to synchronize the meetings of the States Parties to the different Conventions (Recommendation 1 (c)), but considers that this would not be an advantage to States Parties in view of the duration and location of the sessions.