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State of Conservation Rachid Karami ... 2024

Rachid Karami International Fair-Tripoli

Lebanon
Factors affecting the property in 2024*
  • Management systems/ management plan
  • Other Threats:

    - state of critical conservation conditions and need for emergency stabilisation measures - vulnerability to potential inappropriate developments

Factors* affecting the property identified in previous reports

Factors identified at the time of inscription of the property:

  • Local conditions affecting physical fabric (state of critical conservation conditions and need for emergency stabilisation measures)
  • Management and institutional factors (lack of management structure, lack of defined buffer zone, lack of financial resources)
  • Buildings and Development (Vulnerability to potential inappropriate developments)


Threats for which the property was inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger
  • state of critical conservation conditions and need for emergency stabilisation measures
  • vulnerability to potential inappropriate developments
  • lack of management structure
UNESCO Extra-Budgetary Funds until 2024

Total amount: USD 34,940 from the World Heritage Fund budget line dedicated to properties inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger; USD 224,514 from the Getty Foundation for the development of a Conservation Management Plan.

International Assistance: requests for the property until 2024
Requests approved: 0
Total amount approved : 0 USD
Missions to the property until 2024**
Conservation issues presented to the World Heritage Committee in 2024

The State Party did not submit the state of conservation report, which was requested by the World Heritage Committee at its 18th extraordinary session (UNESCO, 2023).

On 17 April 2024, the World Heritage Centre organized a meeting with the State Party, ICOMOS and UNESCO Regional Office in Beirut to discuss the previously invited joint World Heritage Centre/ICOMOS Reactive Monitoring mission to the property, planned from 3 to 7 June 2024, as well as the process for defining a Desired state of conservation for the removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger (DSOCR). The meeting gave the State Party the opportunity to present overviews of the current state of conservation, as follows:

  • The political and economic situation in the country remains a huge challenge;
  • The inscription of the property attracted potential investors and partnerships. At this stage, the Board of Directors of the Rachid Karami International Fair did not approve any proposal;
  • The restoration of the Guest House and its conversion into a temporary workshop within the initiative ‘Al Minjara’ financed by the European Union to preserve and revive Tripoli’s woodcraft heritage, has received the Aga Khan Award for Architecture 2022. It provides a model of adaptive reuse for other restoration works at the property;
  • The project funded by the Getty Foundation (2018-2024) to draft a Conservation Management Plan (CMP) for the property, developed through the technical assistance provided by the UNESCO Regional Office in Beirut in consultation with the State Party, has been completed. The project aims to clarify the diverse values of the property; address technical issues, impacts, vulnerabilities, opportunities, and constraints; develop guiding policies for preserving the property’s significance; and identify possible adaptive reuse strategies towards a compatible development of the property (see https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/developing-conservation-management-plan-tripoli-fair);
  • A capacity building workshop on Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) is planned in November 2024, funded by the World Heritage Fund budget line dedicated to properties inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger. It will be organized by UNESCO in collaboration with ICOMOS and ICCROM.
Analysis and Conclusion by World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies in 2024

It is unfortunate that the State Party did not provide an updated state of conservation report as requested by the Committee. However, based on the available information, the state of conservation of the property is not expected to have changed since its inscription on the World Heritage List. The invitation extended by the State Party for the Reactive Monitoring mission to visit the property is welcome. The State Party has also actively engaged with the UNESCO Regional Office in Beirut and the World Heritage Centre to identify funding sources for the implementation of capacity building workshop on impact assessments in a World Heritage context, planned for November 2024. The workshop will be organized in collaboration with ICOMOS and ICCROM. Incorporating HIA mechanisms into the planning process remains essential to guarantee that planning provisions are consistent with the protection of the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property.

The meeting of April 2024 served to initiate proceedings to define the DSOCR and corrective measures, and to delineate the buffer zone, as per the Committee’s requests (Decision 18 EXT.COM 5.1). These processes should proceed as a matter of priority. Other requests recorded by the Committee at the time of inscription, including providing exact geographical coordinates of the boundaries of the property, and developing detailed land-use and zoning guidelines for the planning of portions of the property as well its immediate setting, have not been addressed. The CMP, which has been submitted, will contribute to addressing other requests, including setting up a management structure for the property, carrying out a geometric and architectural survey and a detailed condition assessment of the built structures, and archival research. It will also contribute to providing a mechanism for the notification of the World Heritage Centre of projects that may affect the property’s OUV, in line with Paragraph 172 of Operational Guidelines. An HIA for any project proposals that may have an impact on the OUV of the property, such as the “Knowledge and Innovation Centre” (KIC) project, the revision of the master plans of El-Mina and Tripoli, or for the use of the dome, developed in accordance with the Guidance and Toolkit for Impact Assessments in a World Heritage Context, should also be submitted for review.

The challenges in maintaining the OUV of the property, which were identified at the time of inscription and for which it was inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger (the state of critical conservation conditions and the need for emergency stabilization measures, its vulnerability to potentially inappropriate developments and lack of management structure) remain. The poor and fragile state of the built fabric calls for urgent action and well-considered intervention.

Based on the above, it is recommended that the Committee retain the property on the List of World Heritage in Danger.

Decisions adopted by the Committee in 2024
46 COM 7A.19
Rachid Karami International Fair-Tripoli (Lebanon) (C 1702)

The World Heritage Committee,

  1. Having examined Document WHC/24/46.COM/7A,
  2. Recalling Decisions 18 EXT.COM 5.1 and 45 COM 8C.2 adopted at its 18th extraordinary (UNESCO, 2023) and its extended 45th (Riyadh, 2023) sessions respectively,
  3. Regrets that the State Party did not submit a report on the state of conservation of the property, as requested by the Committee at its extended 18th extraordinary session, and however notes that some information was gathered during an online meeting with the State Party;
  4. Welcomes the holding of a capacity building workshop on impact assessments in a World Heritage Context, to be organized by UNESCO in collaboration with ICOMOS and ICCROM;
  5. Notes that the Conservation Management Plan for the property has been prepared and submitted, and includes a management framework, conservation policies and recommendations for future planning;
  6. Requests the State Party to:
    1. Provide the exact geographical coordinates of the boundaries of the property,
    2. Develop detailed land-use and zoning guidelines for the planning of the immediate setting of the Rachid Karimi International Fair-Tripoli and of the portion of the oval within the property outside the nationally relevant “core zone”,
    3. Set up a management structure for the property that also includes among its members representatives of the cultural heritage protection institutions, professionals and academic organisations and the civil society,
    4. Carry out a geometric and architectural survey and a detailed condition assessment of Niemeyer’s structures as a knowledge basis for emergency stabilisation measures, conservation and structural rehabilitation interventions,
    5. Consider a digital project of the documentation preserved at the various publicly accessible archives, to promote research and ensure that the original project documentation is not lost due to disasters or accidents,
    6. Inform the World Heritage Centre of the intention to undertake or authorise any major projects, which may affect the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property, in line with Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines,
    7. Develop and implement a Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) for any project proposals that may have an impact on the OUV of the property (including the “Knowledge and Innovation Centre” project) and for the revision of the master plans of El-Mina and Tripoli;
  7. Also requests the State Party to structurally embed HIA mechanisms into its planning processes to guarantee that planning provisions are consistent with the protection of the property’s OUV;
  8. Notes with appreciation the invitation from the State Party for the requested joint World Heritage Centre/ICOMOS Reactive Monitoring mission to the property, and also notes that the mission will also serve to provide advice on the delineation of the buffer zone for the property and on the development of the Desired state of conservation for the removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger (DSOCR) and related corrective measures;
  9. Finally requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2025, 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;
  10. Decides to retain Rachid Karami International Fair-Tripoli (Lebanon) on the List of World Heritage in Danger.
Read more
46 COM 8C.2
Update of the List of World Heritage in Danger (Retained Properties)

The World Heritage Committee,

  1. Having examined the state of conservation reports of properties inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger (WHC/24/46.COM/7A, WHC/24/46.COM/7A.Add, WHC/24/46.COM/7A.Add.2, WHC/24/46.COM/7A.Add.3 and WHC/24/46.COM/7A.Add.4),
  2. Decides to retain the following 55 properties on the List of World Heritage in Danger:
  • Afghanistan, Cultural Landscape and Archaeological Remains of the Bamiyan Valley
  • Afghanistan, Minaret and Archaeological Remains of Jam
  • Austria, Historic Centre of Vienna
  • Bolivia (Plurinational State of), City of Potosí
  • Central African Republic, Manovo-Gounda St Floris National Park
  • Côte d'Ivoire / Guinea, Mount Nimba Strict Nature Reserve
  • Democratic Republic of the Congo, Garamba National Park
  • Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kahuzi-Biega National Park
  • Democratic Republic of the Congo, Okapi Wildlife Reserve
  • Democratic Republic of the Congo, Virunga National Park
  • Egypt, Abu Mena
  • Honduras, Río Plátano Biosphere Reserve
  • Indonesia, Tropical Rainforest Heritage of Sumatra
  • Iraq, Ashur (Qal'at Sherqat)
  • Iraq, Hatra
  • Iraq, Samarra Archaeological City
  • Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls (site proposed by Jordan)
  • Kenya, Lake Turkana National Parks
  • Lebanon, Rachid Karami International Fair-Tripoli
  • Libya, Archaeological Site of Cyrene
  • Libya, Archaeological Site of Leptis Magna
  • Libya, Archaeological Site of Sabratha
  • Libya, Old Town of Ghadamès
  • Libya, Rock-Art Sites of Tadrart Acacus
  • Madagascar, Rainforests of the Atsinanana
  • Mali, Old Towns of Djenné
  • Mali, Timbuktu
  • Mali, Tomb of Askia
  • Mexico, Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of California
  • Micronesia (Federated States of), Nan Madol: Ceremonial Centre of Eastern Micronesia
  • Niger, Aïr and Ténéré Natural Reserves
  • Panama, Fortifications on the Caribbean Side of Panama: Portobelo-San Lorenzo
  • Peru, Chan Chan Archaelogical Zone
  • Romania, Roșia Montană Mining Landscape
  • Serbia, Medieval Monuments in Kosovo
  • Solomon Islands, East Rennell
  • State of Palestine, Hebron/Al-Khalil Old Town
  • State of Palestine, Palestine: Land of Olives and Vines – Cultural Landscape of Southern Jerusalem, Battir
  • Syrian Arab Republic, Ancient City of Aleppo
  • Syrian Arab Republic, Ancient City of Bosra
  • Syrian Arab Republic, Ancient City of Damascus
  • Syrian Arab Republic, Ancient Villages of Northern Syria
  • Syrian Arab Republic, Crac des Chevaliers and Qal’at Salah El-Din
  • Syrian Arab Republic, Site of Palmyra
  • Ukraine, Kyiv: Saint-Sophia Cathedral and Related Monastic Buildings, Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra
  • Ukraine, L’viv – the Ensemble of the Historic Centre
  • Ukraine, The Historic Centre of Odesa
  • United Republic of Tanzania, Selous Game Reserve
  • United States of America, Everglades National Park
  • Uzbekistan, Historic Centre of Shakhrisyabz
  • Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of), Coro and its Port
  • Yemen, Historic Town of Zabid
  • Yemen, Landmarks of the Ancient Kingdom of Saba, Marib
  • Yemen, Old City of Sana’a
  • Yemen, Old Walled City of Shibam.
Read more
Draft Decision: 46 COM 7A.19

The World Heritage Committee,

  1. Having examined Document WHC/24/46.COM/7A,
  2. Recalling Decisions 18 EXT.COM 5.1 and 45 COM 8C.2, adopted at its 18th extraordinary (UNESCO, 2023) and its extended 45th (Riyadh, 2023) sessions respectively,
  3. Regrets that the State Party did not submit a report on the state of conservation of the property, as requested by the Committee at its extended 18th extraordinary session, and however notes that some information was gathered during an online meeting with the State Party;
  4. Welcomes the holding of a capacity building workshop on impact assessments in a World Heritage Context, to be organized by UNESCO in collaboration with ICOMOS and ICCROM;
  5. Notes that the Conservation Management Plan for the property has been prepared and submitted, and includes a management framework, conservation policies and recommendations for future planning;
  6. Requests the State Party to:
    1. Provide the exact geographical coordinates of the boundaries of the property,
    2. Develop detailed land-use and zoning guidelines for the planning of the immediate setting of the Rachid Karimi International Fair-Tripoli and of the portion of the oval within the property outside the nationally relevant “core zone”,
    3. Set up a management structure for the property that also includes among its members representatives of the cultural heritage protection institutions, professionals and academic organisations and the civil society,
    4. Carry out a geometric and architectural survey and a detailed condition assessment of Niemeyer’s structures as a knowledge basis for emergency stabilisation measures, conservation and structural rehabilitation interventions,
    5. Consider a digital project of the documentation preserved at the various publicly accessible archives, to promote research and ensure that the original project documentation is not lost due to disasters or accidents,
    6. Inform the World Heritage Centre of the intention to undertake or authorise any major projects, which may affect the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property, in line with Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines,
    7. Develop and implement a Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) for any project proposals that may have an impact on the OUV of the property (including the “Knowledge and Innovation Centre” project) and for the revision of the master plans of El-Mina and Tripoli;
  7. Also requests the State Party to structurally embed HIA mechanisms into its planning processes to guarantee that planning provisions are consistent with the protection of the property’s OUV;
  8. Notes with appreciation the invitation from the State Party for the requested joint World Heritage Centre/ICOMOS Reactive Monitoring mission to the property, and also notes that the mission will also serve to provide advice on the delineation of the buffer zone for the property and on the development of the Desired state of conservation for the removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger (DSOCR) and related corrective measures;
  9. Finally requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2025, 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;
  10. Decides to retain Rachid Karami International Fair-Tripoli (Lebanon) on the List of World Heritage in Danger.
Report year: 2024
Lebanon
Date of Inscription: 2023
Category: Cultural
Criteria: (ii)(iv)
Danger List (dates): 2023-present
Documents examined by the Committee
WHC/24/46.COM/7A
arrow_circle_right 46COM (2024)
Exports

* : The threats indicated are listed in alphabetical order; their order does not constitute a classification according to the importance of their impact on the property.
Furthermore, they are presented irrespective of the type of threat faced by the property, i.e. with specific and proven imminent danger (“ascertained danger”) or with threats which could have deleterious effects on the property’s Outstanding Universal Value (“potential danger”).

** : All mission reports are not always available electronically.


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