Cultural Landscape and Archaeological Remains of the Bamiyan Valley

• Commercial development
• Ground transport infrastructure
• Housing
• Others (Risk of collapse of the Giant Buddha niches; Irreversible deterioration of the mural paintings)

• Site security not ensured
• Long-term stability of the Giant Buddha niches not ensured
• State of conservation of archaeological remains and mural paintings not adequate
• Management Plan and Cultural Master Plan (the protective zoning plan) not implemented

Adopted with Decision 31 COM 7A.21, see page https://whc.unesco.org/en/decisions/1287

Adopted with Decision 31 COM 7A.21, see page https://whc.unesco.org/en/decisions/1287 

Not yet identified

Total amount granted: USD 7,324,120 (2003-2018) from the UNESCO/Japan Funds-in-Trust; USD 159,000 (2011-2012) from the UNESCO/Switzerland Funds-in-Trust; USD 6,845,121 (2013-2021) from the UNESCO/Italy Funds-in-Trust; USD 7,336,166 (2013-2019) from UNESCO/Republic of Korea Funds-in Trust; USD 1,500,000 (2017-2026) from the Government of Afghanistan; USD 3.8 million from the Japanese Government for the project ‘Sustainable Management of the Property - Preparing the Removal of Bamiyan from the List of World Heritage in Danger’ (2020-2022); USD 79,212 from UNESCO Heritage Emergency Fund: Emergency assessment and urgent measures for the protection of cultural objects and cultural sites within the Bamiyan World Heritage property (2022).

Following the major changes that occurred in August 2021 in Afghanistan, and subsequent halt of the field operations, some projects have resumed since February 2023 in particular the projects funded by Italy and Japan.

As of February 2024, the World Heritage Centre has not received a state of conservation report on the property. UNESCO through its Office in Kabul and in the framework of the operational projects, provides the following information concerning resumed activities contributing to the corrective measures, as follows:

• Western Buddha Niche: Elaboration of the methodology for stabilization works, feasibility assessment, reinforcement of security and visitor safety, repair of drainage channels at the top of the western Buddha Cliff;
• Eastern Buddha Niches: installation of new doors to numerous caves for reinforced access control, consolidation of plaster for several mural paintings in the caves including those between two Niches;
• Removal test of the blue paint graffiti in the caves adjacent to the Eastern Buddha caves
• Vulnerability assessment and operational interventions at Shahr-i-Zohak and Shahr-i-Ghulghulah sites to mitigate water erosion and facilitate controlled visitor access;
• Emergency condition assessments for preparing interventions within the Foladi and Kakrak valleys;
• Preparation of the 19th Bamiyan Working Group Meeting to be held in Japan in September 2024, within the framework of the UNESCO/JFiT project ;
• Finalisation of the Management Plan for the property;
• The UNESCO/JFiT project’s social impacts such as the hiring of a total of 300 laborers, combining 124 laborers at the Buddha Cliff and 176 laborers at Shahr-i-Zuhak, resulted in a total of 10,216 work-days thus far, and expected double number of this in 2024;
• UNESCO Heritage Emergency Fund assistance to carry out an emergency assessment of the conservation status of all sites comprising the property as well as to implement remedial interventions to prevent further damage to the collections;
• Transfer of artefacts under threat from four separate storages to the Bamiyan Cultural Centre;
• The implementation of the World Heritage International Assistance project approved in May 2021 to valorise the Bamiyan and Jam properties put on hold in view of the prevailing situation.

The following actions which were requested prior to the political change of August 2021 remain to be accomplished:

• Revision of the Strategic Management Plan based on the ICOMOS review on the several aspects of the Plan;
• Revision of the proposed Action Plan for the removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger, provided by the World Heritage Centre to the State Party in February 2021, considering the ICOMOS technical review, including identifying the attributes of the property that contribute to its Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) and maintaining the property's recognition as a cultural landscape;
• Revisions of the development projects such as a road construction near Tepe Almas, reviewed in July 2020, and the ‘Bamiyan Energy Supply project’, in October 2021.

Several reports came to the attention of the World Heritage Centre in 2023 and early 2024 concerning the state of conservation of the Buddha niches, “Old Bazaar” area and around Shahr-i- -Ghulghulah. The historical caves, the main parts of the property located throughout different component sites, such as the Foladi Valley, were reported to be used as warehouses and kitchens since 2021. Over the two previous years, a considerable number of families have returned to dwell in caves because of poverty and persistent unemployment. Graffiti and other traces of uncontrolled access to the caves were also reported.

The possible reinstallation of the historic Bazaar in direct vicinity to the western Buddha niche, an area of high archaeological sensitivity, was also brought to the attention of UNESCO in summer 2022 and local owners also communicated their wishes to reinstall the Bazaar in order to invigorate the local economic life.

Other repeated threats reported are the development in the buffer areas with new infrastructures such as gas stations and houses. The transformation of agricultural areas, prohibited by the applied laws, seems to be occurring without control. It witnesses the absence of progress with the development of effective regulating mechanisms to address population growth and industrial development in the vicinity of the property.

Under the Strategic Framework for Afghanistan (UNSFA) (from July 2023-onwards), operational activities have remained slow, while the situation of the education and cultural sectors in Afghanistan remains critical. However, the Committee may wish to appreciate the resuming of the large operational activities, with the funding from Japan and Italy, which enable the implementation of emergency work in both Buddha Niches as well as at Shahr-i-Zohak and Shahr-i-Gholghola sites, regular monitoring on the different components of the property, including the Foladi and Kakrak valleys. The Committee may recommend that UNESCO keep monitoring the field situation. Priority should be given to the operational activities to achieve the Desired state of conservation for the removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger (DSOCR), while generating local employments for over 300 labourers as it has already achieved so far. These include the revision of the above-mentioned Action Plan for the removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger, in close consultation with the World Heritage Centre and ICOMOS, the documentation and research activities using previously collected data, together with the finalization of the Management Plan for the property and addressing urgent conservation issues at various component sites, including the stabilization of the Western Buddha niche. It is desirable that all heritage-related projects be supportive of humanitarian situations, to the extent possible.

The reported use of the historic caves as dwellings, chaotic access to the caves, the uncontrolled development of the buffer areas of the components with the conversion of agricultural areas into commercial zones with new constructions, are all alarming. While satisfied with the UNESCO’s emergency intervention to reinforce security in some of the vulnerable locations throughout the inscribed zone, continued monitoring is necessary. The existing legal regulations setting the zoning rules on the agricultural land within protected areas of the property remain valid. However, as repeatedly pointed out, the entire agricultural landscape of the Bamiyan Valley (most of which is outside the World Heritage boundaries) is not legally protected from development, although UNESCO recommends controls on inappropriate construction.

Bamiyan’s urban environment has developed steadily over the past 20 years, with housing projects and road construction taking place in various parts of the valley´s landscape. All stakeholders need to be informed of the technical requirements provided by the World Heritage Convention and its Operational Guidelines to mitigate the negative impacts of the development projects such as the road from Dasht-e Isa Khan to Gholghola Bazaar and the Bamiyan Energy Supply project, on the OUV of the property and to prevent further developments that could be detrimental to the OUV.

The revision of the Strategic Master Plan “Bamiyan, the legal instrument for the urban development in the Bamiyan Valley” and adopted by the Ministry of Urban Development and Housing in 2021 and its subsequent enforcement should include effective provisions of cultural landscape protection, community engagement, and the revision of the buffer zones for the World Heritage property, with a clear land use scheme, in line with the ICOMOS Technical Review and previous decisions of the Committee to support the DSOCR.

Two holes near the top part of the Western Buddha niche should be backfilled and the reinstalled drainage system needs to be kept effective. It would be appropriate for the Committee to request a report on the conservation status of all significant artefacts, including those housed at the Cultural Centre, following the UNESCO assistance for the moveable heritage collection management, through Heritage Emergency Fund.

The “Old Bazaar” area in front of the Giant Buddha niche was a commercial hub, part of which is privately owned land before its destruction in the 1990s. Owners began reconstruction on the “Old Bazaar” in August 2022, but this was immediately suspended following the advice of UNESCO to address shortfalls in planning, management, and impact on the property. However, the local owners are still seeking permission to rebuild the “Old Bazaar” at its previous location. The proximity of the bazaar site to the western Buddha niche, in an area of high archaeological sensitivity suggests that a comprehensive technical proposal also considering an alternative location for the ‘Old Bazaar’ could be elaborated considering potential impact on the OUV of the property.

In order to ensure the consistency of all safeguarding activities towards sustainable results, the Bamiyan Working Group (BWG) meeting is expected to continue being a forum for exchanging views on methodologies and experiences on previous interventions and ways forward for ensuring the knowledge transfer to the Afghan experts in the future. The World Heritage Committee may wish to recommend that details on activities relating to the DSOCR are submitted to the World Heritage Centre for sharing with the Advisory Bodies.

The Committee may wish to thank the international community for its continued support for the property itself and its moveable heritage, which are integral part of the World Heritage site and to encourage UNESCO, working with academia, NGOs, and institutions in the field of culture, continues addressing various issues at the property. The Committee may also wish to recall that the long-standing international effort to protect this World Heritage property has been an initiative of confidence-building and cooperation in the spirit of the World Heritage Convention.

It is recommended that the Committee also reiterate the importance of preserving Afghanistan’s cultural heritage, in line with humanitarian law and international instruments, such as the Geneva Convention, the UNESCO 1954 Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, 1970 Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property as well as the 2015 UNESCO Recommendations on the Museums and Collections, and the 1972 Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage. The Committee may also wish to express its solidarity with the Afghan people and call upon the international community to provide support in safeguarding the Afghanistan’s heritage and cultural rights on its path towards achieving its Sustainable Development Goals in light of the UN Agenda 2030.

The property remains subject to ascertained and potential threats and the DSOCR has not been achieved, so it is appropriate for the property to remain on the List of World Heritage in Danger.