Decision 44 COM 7B.38

Historic Centre of Bukhara (Uzbekistan) (C 602bis)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/21/44.COM/7B,
2. Recalling Decisions 41 COM 7B.99 and 43 COM 7B.78, adopted at its 41st (Krakow, 2017) and 43rd (Baku, 2019) sessions respectively,
3. Welcomes the recent decisions by the State Party to address some significant threats to the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property, including the Roadmap for the implementation of the Committee’s decisions, regulatory changes and continued improvements to management planning and guidance documents, the establishment of the International Advisory Committee (IAC) for World Heritage properties in Uzbekistan and of the Steering Committee, the suspension and revision of the Project of Detailed Planning (PDP) of 2017, and the current moratorium on demolition and development within the property and buffer zone;
4. Also welcomes in particular the creation of the Public Advisory Council to reinforce dialogue with local communities and increase the understanding of all stakeholders when it comes to rules and regulations concerning physical intervention within the property;
5. Takes note of the ongoing preparation of the Master Plan for the City and the integrated Management Plan for the property, noting that additional work is still needed to integrate the approach of the 2011 UNESCO Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape (HUL), to coordinate with the Project for Detailed Planning of the Historical Centre of Bukhara, and to recognise adequately the World Heritage status of the property within the Master Plan, and requests that the moratorium on demolition and new development should remain in place until the Master Plan for the City and the integrated Management Plan for the property are finalised, following submission to the World Heritage Centre and positive review by the Advisory Bodies;
6. Further welcomes the 2020 joint World Heritage Centre/ICOMOS Reactive Monitoring mission and urges the State Party to implement its recommendations in full, having particular regard to:
   1. Improved communication concerning World Heritage requirements, processes and procedures, between the national, regional and municipal authorities of the State Party,
   2. Capacity building and training regarding requirements of the Convention, the Operational Guidelines and the HUL Recommendation,
   3. Priority for urgent structural stabilisation works to the Abdulazzizkhan Madrassah and further long-term conservation based on thorough investigations,
   4. Protection of the mahalla residential areas and vernacular architecture, and preparation of guidelines covering conservation requirements and renovation approaches, infrastructure installation, and the location, scale and form of new developments, alterations and additions,
   5. Improved public consultation and communication of World Heritage values to the local population;
7. Also requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, for review by the Advisory Bodies:
   1. Revised project documentation for the proposed Shakhristan Bazaar development, taking into consideration the findings and recommendations of the ICOMOS technical review,
   2. Revised project documentation for proposed conservation projects at Kalon Mosque, Ark Citadel, Abdulazzizkhan Madrassah, Mir Arab Madrassah, Amir Alimkhan Madrassah and Khoja Kalon Hauz, taking into consideration the findings and recommendations of ICOMOS Technical Reviews,
   3. Project documentation and Heritage Impact Assessments (HIAs), prepared in accordance with the ICOMOS Guidance on HIAs for Cultural World Heritage Properties, for the projects proposed at Ulughbek Madrassah, Rashid Madrassah and the private hotel on Gavkushon Street,
   4. Urban Design Guidelines with both principles and examples for urban works such as alterations to housing, infrastructure installation, and treatment of roads and public spaces;
8. Encourages the State Party to pursue the establishment and operation of the International Advisory Committee (IAC) for all cultural World Heritage properties in Uzbekistan, which can also provide technical assistance for the Historic Centre of Bukhara, including representatives of regulatory authorities and appropriately skilled and experienced experts, to oversee conservation of the property, the protection of its OUV and the implementation of Committee’s decisions and mission recommendations;
9. Finally requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2022, an updated report on the state of conservation of the property and the implementation of the above, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 46th session.