Decision 43 COM 7B.60

Historic Monuments and Sites in Kaesong (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) (C 1278rev)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/19/43.COM/7B,
2. Recalling Decision 41 COM 7B.89, adopted at its 41st session (Krakow, 2017),
3. Welcomes the information provided by the State Party concerning the formal endorsement of the Tourism Management Plan for the property, including the Interpretation Plan, the process to establish work plans for the 2019-2023 period, and the reported enhancements to the structure of the property management system in order to strengthen the monitoring and implementation of sustainable tourism initiatives;
4. Notes that there are ongoing challenges to the conservation of wooden structures, roof tiles and mural paintings in the tombs, and encourages the State Party to develop and implement further capacity-building initiatives in these areas of technical expertise, including the provision of suitably skilled personnel within the management bodies responsible for the conservation of the inscribed property;
5. Requests the State Party to ensure that all planned projects or works, including those that form part of the Tourism Management Plan, are subject to Heritage Impact Assessments (HIAs) in conformity with the 2011 ICOMOS Guidance on HIAs for Cultural World Heritage Properties, and that information about any planned project that could have an impact on the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the inscribed property is submitted to the World Heritage Centre for review by the Advisory Bodies, in accordance with Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines;
6. Also encourages the State Party to actively address issues of urban heritage conservation in the old residential quarter of Kaesong, located within the buffer zone of the property, and to make full use of the principles and tools developed for the implementation of the 2011 UNESCO Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape;
7. Also requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2020, an updated report on the state of conservation of the property and the implementation of the above for review by the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies.