Various conservation and training activities for La Amistad

The Committee examined document WHC-92/CONF/002/8, 8Add. and 8Add.2, as well as information on additional requests received by the Committee from States Parties during its session, and approved the following projects:

A. Technical Co-operation                                            US$

Galapagos National Park (Ecuador)                             29,000
Revision of the Management Plan to harmonize its goals and objectives to that of the tourism and conservation plan. The Committee instructed the Centre to provide these funds to the Galapagos authorities on the condition that they finalise the implementation of on-going projects receiving assistance from the World Heritage Fund and nominate in 1993, the marine park as an extension to the World Heritage site.

Old City of Cairo (Egypt)                                                            50,000
Restoration of monuments and sites damaged by the earthquake which occurred in Cairo and elsewhere in Egypt in October 1992.

Mt. Nimba Nature Reserve (Cote d'Ivoire/ Guinea)            35,000
Organization of an interdisciplinary mission to ascertain boundaries of the site in Guinea, assess impacts of iron-ore mining projects and influx of refugees into the region and plan integrated rural development projects benefiting the local population. The Committee instructed the Centre to contact donors such as UNDP and the World Bank to explore the feasibility of obtaining funds for the organization of the interdisciplin­ary mission and to keep costs of organizing this mission to the minimum possible level.

Historic Areas of Istanbul (Turkey)                                          30,000
Provision of materials and equipment for the restoration of mosaics in St. Sophia.

World Heritage Cities Organization                                 50,000
Support to allow participation at the General Assembly and colloquium of the World Heritage Cities Network, mid-1993, Fez, Morocco.

Sub-total (Technical Co-operation) 194,000

B. Training

1. Saudi Arabia                                                              30,000
Organization of a training course (4-19 April, 1993) on protected area management for the Arab region.

2. France/Mali                                                               30,000
Organization of a one-month (January­- February 1993) course for Francophone Africa in ecology and conservation in the Boucle de Baoule Biosphere Reserve, Mali.

The Committee instructed the Centre to request:

a) the organizers to incorporate a component on the philosophy and work of the Convention in the course curriculum;
b) undertake an evaluation of the course, covering the last 5-year period, and providing specific information on the extent to which course participants have returned to African States Parties to assume responsibilities concerned with natural heritage protection;
c) to ensure in the future that these field courses take place, if possible, at an African natural site inscribed on the World Heritage List.

The Committee also requested the Centre to inform the course organizers (ENGREF/France), that contributions from the Fund for this course will, in the future, depend upon the findings of this evaluation.

3. ICCROM
a) Financial contributions to trainees from States Parties participating in two courses, namely architectural conservation and scientific principles of conservation, respectively, to be held in Rome, Italy, January-March 1993.               30,000

b) Financial contribution to trainees from States Parties participating in the 10th International course on Technology of Stone Conservation and organization of study tours during the course, Venice, Italy, autumn 1993.        44,000

Sub-total (Training) 134,000

The Committee took note of the fact that it approved, at its .fourteenth session in Banff, Canada, a sum of US$50,000 for the Talamanca-La Amistad Reserves of Costa Rica, subject to the State Party satisfying two conditions, viz. that the Costa Rican authorities (a) report on the completion of the projects for which the Committee had already provided funds and, (b) revise the boundaries of the site in accordance with IUCN's recommendations. The Committee was satisfied to note that the Costa Rican authorities have completed the implementation of two of three on-going projects which receive assistance from the World Heritage Fund. The Committee requested the Centre to contact the Costa Rican authorities and to urge them to expedite the implementation of the remaining project and revise the boundaries of the Talamanca-La Amistad Reserves in accordance with IUCN's recommendations.

The Committee took note of the fact that the implementation of the project to prepare a Master Plan for the Machu Picchu Historic Sanctuary, Peru, for which the Committee approved a sum of US$40,000 during its fifteenth session in Carthage, Tunisia, has not progressed according to the timetable foreseen in the project proposal due to changes in the co­operating government agencies.

The Committee was informed by the Regional Coordinator for the UNDP/UNESCO Project on Cultural Heritage in Latin America and the Caribbean that the situation is now stable and that the implementation rate of the project is expected to improve in 1993.

After having taken cognizance of document SC.91/CONF.001/5, the Bureau approved  request for international assistance in the amount of US$ 30,000 submitted by Cuba for the purchase of 183 cubic metres of timber for the restoration of the structural frames and  panelling of a group of XVIIIthe and XIXth century houses situated in the historic centre of Trinidad.

The Bureau wished the architects of the Regional Office for Culture for Latin America and the Caribbean, based in Havana and already involved in the international campaign for the preservation of the Plaza Vieja in that city, to be associated with the restoration work which was to be carried out in Trinidad.

La Amistad National Park (Costa Rica):

The Bureau recalled that the Committee, at its last session, approved US$ 50,000 for this site under two conditions, and instructed the Bureau to determine whether these conditions had been met before deciding whether to award an appropriate amount to Costa Rica.

The Bureau concluded that neither of the two conditions, i.e. completion of the implementation of projects for which funds had already been provided and the revision of the Park's boundaries in accordance with IUCN recommendations, had been completely met.

Hence, the Bureau deferred the decision on awarding any part of the US$ 50,000 until next session of the Committee in December 1991.

46. The Committee examined the document prepared by the Secretariat in this regard and congratulated the Secretariat on its clear presentation of the requests submitted. Considering the Bureau's recommendations, the Committee decided to approve the following requests:

A - TECHNICAL CO-OPERATION

CULTURAL PROPERTIES

1.  Ngorongoro Conservation Area (United Republic of Tanzania) US$49,782
Purchase of a Land Rover and radio equipment for the archaeological and paleontological site of Olduvai.

2.  Studenica Monastery (Yugoslavia) US$51,000
Purchase of computer and photographic equipment and equipment for the restoration of murals. With respect to this site, the Committee has noted with satisfaction the assurances provided by the Yugoslavian authorities that there will be no dam construction near the monastery which could jeopardize the outstanding value of this site.

3.  Archaeological site of Delphi (Greece) US$50,000
Purchase of a sandblaster and seven dehumidifiers for the restoration of objects from the site which have been placed in the Delphi museum. The Committee examined the possibility of acceding to requests concerning the conservation of objects from archaeological sites, and it asked the Secretariat to draw up a draft decision on this issue for inclusion in the Operational Guidelines, to ensure that the fund allocation limits for objects from archaeological sites protected by the World Heritage Convention are clearly defined. This draft decision is to be presented to the Bureau and Committee at their next sessions.

4.  Timbuktu (Mali) US$45,138
Consolidation of the Djingareiber mosque and improvement of terrace rainwater drainage systems. Removal of sand from the walls and interior court of the Sankore mosque, and installation of bollards to divert traffic away from the mosque.

5.  International symposium on the "Preservation of Urban Historic Areas in Changing Times" (Canada) US$26,000
Publication of the proceedings of the symposium.

NATURAL PROPERTIES

1. La Amistad National Park (Panama) US$50,000
As part of the described management plan, financing of the construction of three guard posts; purchase of field equipment and materials for environmental education activities; organization of training seminars for park guards.

2. Salonga National Park (Zaire) US$60,000
Reinforcement  of park protection through infrastructure construction (ranger posts, jetty) and purchase of an all-terrain vehicle and small­scale equipment.

3. Talamanca Range-La Amistad National Park (Costa Rica) US$50,000
The Committee approved this request under two conditions: that the Costa Rican authorities report on the completion of the previous projects and that the boundaries of this property be revised in accordance with IUCN recommendations. The Committee instructed the Bureau to determine at its next session whether these conditions had been met before deciding whether to award an appropriate amount to Costa Rica.

47. With respect to Banc d'Arguin National Park (Mauritania), the Committee noted that a request for technical cooperation had been submitted to the Secretariat but that this request needed to be reformulated. The Committee encouraged the Mauritanian authorities to prepare and submit a new request for consideration at its next session.