Decision 47 COM 7B.171

Petra (Jordan)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/25/47.COM/7B.Add.2,
2. Recalling Decision 45 COM 7B.141 adopted at its extended 45th session (Riyadh, 2023),
3. Acknowledges the efforts of the State Party in conservation, sustainable development and community engagement, despite the recent downturn in visitation to the property, including ongoing work to address densification within the property’s setting and divert urban growth to the east, the GIS mapping program, and the information submitted about Um Sayhoun village;
4. Welcomes the commitment of the State Party to an Integrated Territorial Master Plan (ITMP) and the progress achieved through the completion of an Integrated Site Management Plan, Tourism Master Plan, Development Plan for the Six Communities, and, recalling its previous request to the State Party to afford priority to the ITMP, reiterates its requests the State Party to submit a comprehensive draft of the ITMP to the World Heritage Centre at the earliest opportunity, for review by the Advisory Bodies before the ITMP is finalized, formally adopted, and implemented;
5. Also welcomes the State Party’s advice about community awareness and training programmes, new water harvesting infrastructure and check dams in high-risk flood zones, the proposed renewable energy project, graffiti removal, erosion control, and structural rehabilitation, and initiatives directed at improving the visitor experience and reducing the impact of tourism;
6. Notes that the Heritage Impact Assessment for the Al Dara project concluded that the project has no significant impact on the Outstanding Universal Value of the property, but consistent with the 2025 ICOMOS Technical Review, also requests the State Party to undertake additional analysis and to identify and implement opportunities to reduce the visual impact on the setting of the Siq;
7. Further welcomes the completion of the Tourism Development Master Plan (2023-2033), and, consistent with the 2025 ICOMOS Technical Review, further requests the State Party to closely manage the growth of tourism at the property and identify its carrying capacity, so as to ensure sustainable tourism, and in that regard requests furthermore the State Party to submit the proposed crowd management study to the World Heritage Centre for review by the Advisory Bodies before it is finalized and implemented;
8. Recalling its previous requests regarding new regulations for a designated buffer zone and its larger setting, in line with the proposed ITMP and, while noting the concerns expressed by the State Party, reiterates its previous requests to the State Party to submit a Minor Boundary Modification request, in line with Paragraphs 163-164 of the Operational Guidelines, and to clarify the protective urban regulations of the planned buffer zone, in collaboration with the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies;
9. Further welcomes the previous invitation by the State Party for an Advisory mission in order to provide advice on this process and the steps needed to define a framework for a comprehensive planning approach to address related matters, including the proposed back exit road, the requested moratorium on new buildings and infrastructure that are visible from the property, and the mitigation of densification, tourism and development pressures;
10. Finally requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2026, 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 49th session.