Historical Monuments of Mtskheta

• Lack of a management mechanism (issue resolved)
• Lack of definition of the unified buffer zone (issue resolved)
• Lack of Urban Master Plan of the City of Mtskheta
• Insufficient coordination between the Georgian Church and the national authorities
• Privatization of surrounding land
• Natural erosion of stone
• Loss of authenticity during previous works carried out by the Church
• Inappropriate urban development within a sensitive historical environment (issue resolved)

• Lack of a management mechanism
• Privatisation of surrounding land
•  Loss of authenticity of some components due to restoration works conducted using unacceptable methods

Adopted, see page https://whc.unesco.org/en/decisions/4103

Adopted, see page https://whc.unesco.org/en/decisions/4103

Total amount provided: Funds-in-Trust. Georgia-UNESCO Agreement: Cultural heritage advisory service to the NACHP (National Agency for Cultural Heritage Preservation of Georgia) to be implemented under the Third Regional Development Project (RDP III). Total budget: USD 250 000

On 12 October 2017, the final Activity Report, including detailed recommendations of the UNESCO technical assistance to Georgia, was transmitted by the World Heritage Centre to the State Party within the framework of the UNESCO/Georgia Agreement.  On 30 January 2018, the State Party submitted a report on the state of conservation providing progress made with the implementation of the recommendations adopted by the Committee at its 41st session. The joint World Heritage Centre/ICOMOS/ICCROM Reactive Monitoring mission was carried out in February 2018.  The three reports are available at http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/708/documents/. 

• The Terms of Reference (ToR) for the Urban Land-Use Master Plan (ULUMP) have been prepared including the Historical Cultural Base Plan and building regulations. The Technical Committee composed of all relevant governmental stakeholders has been established and the administrative process for validation of the ToR is progressing;
• Institutional and technical capacity of local and national authorities has been enhanced, cross-institutional collaboration improved and management mechanisms have been reinforced through the UNESCO/Georgia agreement. The Mtskheta self-governing town has been merged with the Mtskheta municipality resolving the management issue of the World Heritage property and its buffer zone. The Cultural Heritage and Tourism Development Center has been created as an independent public entity under local administration;
• Owing to the complexity of the development of the ULUMP, necessitating further coordination among stakeholders as well as financial and human resources, the moratorium on Urban Development and Land Privatization in the Cultural Heritage Protection Zones of Mtskheta has been prolonged until 31 December 2018, with the condition that a full set of town planning documentation including the ULUMP and Historical-Cultural Base Plan be elaborated;
• Technical reviews and recommendations for projects proposals for the new bridge on the river Mtkvari and the Samtavro Monatsery Garden have been received and the decision to implement the projects has accordingly been taken;
• As a result of the methodological recommendations provided by the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies along the development of the Western Route Export Pipeline (WREP) and Mtskheta New Archaeological Museum projects proposals, these two projects have now been revised and consented to. The project proposal for the rehabilitation of western wall of Svetitskhoveli Cathedral was discussed during the mission.

While the State Party has achieved remarkable progress in addressing the factors affecting the property, devoting all its efforts to implementing the recommendations provided over the past years, it is noted that basic conservation issues of the property remain crucial. The historic urban landscape of Mtskheta is currently undergoing step-by-step changes with increased commercial tourism development, rehabilitation of public spaces and changes in the overall historic urban landscape, as well as environmental degradation due to lack of waste and water/sewage management. It should be noted with concern that these threats, if not addressed in time with appropriate and immediate measures, may impact in the medium term on the attributes which contribute to the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property, including its conditions of authenticity and integrity.

The Decree of the Moratorium has had a positive impact, successfully tackling uncontrolled land privatization and development within the Mtskheta Protection Zone. To improve the protective instruments, the State Party adopted in June 2017 the Unified Visual Protection Area by the Decree of the Minister of Culture and Monuments Protection of Georgia under the Law of Georgia on Cultural Heritage (2007). The elaboration of a comprehensive set of mapping and planning documentation for the preparation of the ULUMP has been achieved. On the basis of updated databases and site surveys by the Technical Assistance project, the borders of built-up regulation zone areas, archaeological zones and the historical landscape protection zone were corrected. The 2018 mission recommended that the Moratorium be maintained until the urban planning documentation has been adopted, and control and monitoring is fully in place. Also, as there is confusion among the citizens about the contents and implementation of the Moratorium, information is needed about the steps required for the lifting of the regulation and about the monitoring and management of the historical core of the town, after the expiration of the Moratorium.

The mission concluded that while the State Party has made significant progress in establishing a clear institutional coordination and mechanism, it is not fully implemented and operational in daily practice. Neither the Steering Committee, nor the municipality and civil society are involved in the development of the ULUMP concept yet. There is lack of a functioning participatory process and communication within all levels of planning and management. The mission highlighted the importance of a coordinated inter-ministerial and institutional decision-making process regarding the protection of the property. A continuous dialog and transparency between all stakeholders of the Master Plan should be the guiding principle for all actors, especially at the conceptual stage of new proposals. The priority need is to reinforce the role of the municipality in all training and capacity building programmes for the planning and management of Mtskheta. The mission highlighted the crucial need to raise awareness on the World Heritage benefits and commitments among the local authority and all the citizens and stakeholders.

A number of development projects were reviewed by the mission and recommendations provided within the mission report. However, noting in particular the “Second Jerusalem” project in the Historical Landscape protection zone and the Buffer Zone of the property, including interventions such as a new pedestrian bridge over the river Aragvi and universal baptistery in the Mtkvari-Aragvi riverside area of Mtskheta. It also includes related infrastructure with new walkways, connecting roads and look-outs at the historically important area at the banks of the Aragvi and Mtkvari rivers and by the Jvari Church. It is recommended that the Committee encourage the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, in conformity with Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines, all detailed documents, including Heritage Impact Assessments (HIAs) to be carried out already at the strategic level, for review by the Advisory Bodies.

It is also recommended that the Committee endorse all recommendations of the 2018 mission, and in particular on the integrated planning process of elaboration of the Urban Planning Documentation, that the responsibility of the Steering Committee should be in practice, and that no project, independently of its contents and potential positive or negative impacts, should be realized without the active support of all relevant stakeholders, including the Local Authorities, and without the approval of a HIA in accordance with the 2011 ICOMOS Guidance on HIAs for Cultural World Heritage properties.

It is finally recommended that the Committee invite the State Party to implement all recommendations of the UNESCO Advisory service to Georgia implemented within the framework of the agreement signed between the State Party and UNESCO, and financially supported by the World Bank (UNESCO/Georgia Agreement).