Decision 45 COM 7B.122

Asmara: A Modernist African City (Eritrea) (C 1550)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/23/45.COM/7B,
2. Recalling Decision 44 COM 7B.117 adopted at its extended 44th session (Fuzhou/online, 2021),
3. Acknowledges the progress made in finalising the detailed Urban Conservation Master Plan (UCMP) and the Asmara Planning and Technical Regulations (APTR) and encourages the State Party to continue its endeavours to designate the property as a protected area under the auspices of the Cultural and Natural Heritage Proclamation of 2015;
4. Notes the State Party’s commitment to developing the UCMP using the Historic Urban Landscape (HUL) approach and welcomes the proposal to develop the Integrated Historic Parameter (IHP) to ensure the protection of the property, promotion of socio-economic development for its resident, and enable sustainable urban development for its broader urban context and its geographic setting;
5. Notes the clarification provided by the State Party on the roles and functions of the stakeholders and requests the State Party to improve the structure of the Asmara Heritage Project (AHP) to enhance its responsibilities to conserve, manage and promote the property but also to maintain its link with institutions dealing with cultural development and urban planning and development;
6. Also requests the State Party to continue working with the World Heritage Centre to develop the Local Economic Development Plan (LEDP) with a view to supporting the implementation of the UCMP and providing a mechanism to ensure a viable financial resource for sustainable conservation of the property;
7. Further requests the State Party to provide an update report on the state of conservation of the 14 historical buildings identified in 2018 as an initial priority conservation and restoration phase to the World Heritage Centre;
8. Reiterates its invitation to the State Party to seek international financial and technical support towards the preparation of detailed conservation proposals, including criteria, methods, and materials to be used for the conservation and restoration of the 14 historical buildings identified in 2018 and to submit such proposals to the World Heritage Centre for review by the Advisory Bodies;
9. Encourages the State Party to continue with the mobilisation, engagement and capacity building of stakeholders and rightsholders, also with regards to managing the historic urban landscape and to the physical conservation of the built attributes of the property;
10. Finally requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2024, 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 47th session.