News

The World Heritage Committee will consider the inscription of 40 sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage List when it meets in Doha (Qatar) from 15 to 25 June under the chair of Sheikha Al Mayassa Bint Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani. Sites to be considered include five that are extensions to sites already on the List. The state of conservation of existing World Heritage sites will also be ...

In May 2014, forty participants, including site managers and local community representatives from World Heritage sites in Africa, participated in two separate “Entrepreneurial Training Workshops for World Heritage” in Ghana and Senegal, coordinated by the African World Heritage Fund (AWHF) in partnership with the World Heritage Centre, UNESCO Offices in Accra and Dakar, the Ecole ...

UNESCO will establish an observatory in Beirut (Lebanon) to monitor and assess the state of Syria’s cultural heritage. The decision was made during an international meeting of experts held at UNESCO from 26 - 28 May. The Observatory will monitor the state of buildings, artefacts and intangible cultural heritage to combat illicit trafficking and collect information to restore heritage ...

The Kingdom of Buganda, once the largest of all the traditional kingdoms in East Africa, bears an eloquent witness to the living cultural traditions of present day Uganda. At the heart of this legacy lies the former palace of the Kabakas (Kings) of Buganda, built in 1882 and later converted into the royal burial grounds known as the Muzibu Azaala Mpanga. After the fire in 2010 the main ...

UNESCO Sites are symbols of our work in support of sustainable development. The international community helps us ensure these sites, of outstanding universal value, function as models of heritage conservation and sustainable human living. In Ethiopia, UNESCO's work includes developing integrated management plans for sites such as Simien Mountains National Park, the Castles of Gondar, and Lake ...

UNESCO has renewed its partnership with NTT Docomo, Dentsu and Evergreen (Japan), with the goal of educating elementary school pupils about World Heritage through dedicated apps for tablets and web content for teachers. First launched in 2013, the current agreement is extended to spring 2015 with a focus on teaching children in Japanese schools about natural World Heritage through games, ...

A practical guide on climate change adaptation for natural World Heritage sites has been published in the latest edition of the UNESCO World Heritage Paper Series, thanks to the generous support of the Netherlands Funds-in-Trust and the Belgian Federal Public Service Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment.  Climate change has become more prominent as a management concern. The World ...

At its 38th session to be held in Doha, Qatar, from 15 to 25 June 2014, the World Heritage Committee will examine the state of conservation of 150 World Heritage properties.  The full reports are now publicly available through the World Heritage State of conservation Information System at the following Web address: whc.unesco.org/en/soc As part of the reactive monitoring process for ...

On the occasion of the 38th Session of the World Heritage Committee (Doha, Qatar), the World Heritage Centre and the African World Heritage Fund are organizing a Roundtable Discussion for African Ministers responsible for World Heritage with the Director General of UNESCO on 21 June. This Roundtable Discussion will allow African Ministers to share their views on the accomplishments, ...

The reconstruction of the Tombs of Buganda Kings at Kasubi in Uganda was launched today at a ceremony held on the World Heritage site, which was partially destroyed by fire in March 2010.The project , which is financed by Japan, is being implemented by the Ugandan Government and UNESCO. The ceremony was attended by several government representatives including Uganda’s Permanent ...

From 22 to 25 April 2014, government leaders, ocean practitioners, business, science, donors and international agencies came together at the Global Oceans Action Summit for Food Security and Blue Growth. The Summit, hosted by the government of the Netherlands, aimed at identifying solutions, financing mechanisms and mobilizing innovative partnerships to scale up the efforts toward healthy ...

UNESCO Bangkok Director Gwang-Jo Kim and Designated Areas for Sustainable Tourism Administration (DASTA) Director-General Nalikatibhag Sangsnit officially launched the “Cultural Heritage Specialist Guides for the Historic Town of Sukhothai and Associated Historic Towns World Heritage Site” project at a ceremony in Sukhothai on 21 April. The Historic Town of Sukhothai and ...