Third Cycle of the Periodic Reporting Exercise kicks off in Africa
As part of the Third Cycle of the Periodic Reporting Exercise in Africa, over 80 participants from 46 African States Parties with 96 World Heritage properties (53 cultural, 38 natural and 5 mixed) will be meeting at Grand Bassam, Cote-d’Ivoire, from 11 to 14 September 2019, to go through the statutory processes of the World Heritage Convention.
This regional meeting organized by the World Heritage Centre in cooperation with the UNESCO Offices in the Africa region and in close collaboration with the African World Heritage Fund (AWHF) and the Advisory Bodies aims to familiarize the National Focal Points of the Africa region with the Periodic Reporting statutory processes of the World Heritage Convention. It also aims to provide them with the tools to support the World Heritage Site Managers in their reporting exercises.
During the 4-day meeting, participants, mostly National Focal Points will be briefed on the outcomes of Action Plan of the Second Cycle, Periodic Reporting process, on the new introduction of the revised questionnaire. Representatives of the Advisory Bodies to the World Heritage Convention, IUCN and ICOMOS will present specific aspects of the Outstanding Universal Value of sites and their attributes. The exercise will help lead to a number of useful discussions and sharing of experience between the Focal Points of the region and to promote regional cooperation.
At the opening ceremony, Edmond Moukala Chief of Africa Unit emphasized that this event is crucial for the future of the World Heritage Convention in Africa, it echoes the hope expressed by the Director-General of UNESCO to support, protect and promote African heritage for the common cause of our shared history.
The main foreseen outcomes of the meeting include the establishment of closer contacts between the Focal Points with a view to future cooperation on Periodic Reporting, and the defining of the role of the AWHF as the key regional partner for the Periodic Reporting in the Africa region.
Periodic Reporting is one of the core conservation monitoring mechanisms of the World Heritage Convention. Every six years, the States Parties are invited to submit to the World Heritage Committee a Periodic Report on the application of the World Heritage Convention in their territory.
Reporting in the Africa region will last approximately 10 months and will run from September 2019 to July 2020. During this time, participants will gather relevant information and complete and submit their questionnaires
Further meetings on Periodic Reporting for World Heritage Site Managers in the region are foreseen for winter 2020.
Decisions (1)
The World Heritage Committee,
- Having examined Document WHC/23/45.COM/10C,
- Recalling Decision 44 COM 10B adopted at its extended 44th session (Fuzhou/Online, 2021),
- Welcomes the progress made in the follow-up of the implementation of the Third Cycle of Periodic Reporting Action Plan in the Africa region (2021-2027);
- Expresses its appreciation to the African World Heritage Fund for its follow-up on the implementation of the Action Plan for Africa (2021-2027);
- Notes with appreciation the financial contribution of the Governments of China, France, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland and the Sultanate of Oman, to the activities carried out in the framework of the implementation of the Action Plan 2021-2027 for the Africa region;
- Calls upon States Parties to financially and technically support the implementation of the Regional Action Plan for the Africa Region through follow-up activities with the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, the Advisory Bodies, the École du patrimoine mondial africain and the African World Heritage Fund;
- Takes note with satisfaction of the creation of the African Site Managers Network, working to develop a network of African universities and five centres of excellence in each of the five subregions to empower local experts and better institutionalise capacity development in implementing the World Heritage Convention in Africa and, notably, in synergy with the other UNESCO Culture Conventions;
- Requests the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, in collaboration with the Advisory Bodies, the African World Heritage Fund and with the support of States Parties, to continue its efforts to coordinate and implement the Regional Capacity Building Programme according to the Action Plan 2021-2027;
- Acknowledges with appreciation that the Strategy for World Heritage in Africa was informed by an inclusive consultation process, which included the seven Arab States located in the African Continent, and that it is aligned with the regional Action Plans for Africa and the Arab States;
- Also acknowledges with appreciation that the outcomes of the UNESCO World Conference on Cultural Policies and Sustainable Development – MONDIACULT 2022 (Mexico City, 2022), and the reflections undertaken at the international conference The Next 50 - The Future of World Heritage in Challenging Times, Enhancing Resilience and Sustainability (Delphi, 2022), as well as the Yaoundé Call to Action adopted at the Sub-Regional Celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the UNESCO World Heritage Convention in Central Africa (Yaoundé, 2022) have been taken into consideration in the implementation of activities carried out thereafter;
- Further reminds States Parties of the Africa region, which have not already done so, to submit their Retrospective Statements of Outstanding Universal Value by 1 February 2024 at the latest, as well as clarifications of boundaries by 1 December 2023 at the latest;
- Reiterates its request to the UNESCO World Heritage Centre to monitor the implementation of the Regional Action Plan, in collaboration with the African World Heritage Fund, in view of preparing a mid-cycle assessment report to be presented to the World Heritage Committee at its 46th session.