France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement
Synthesis of the activities implemented
between 1999 and 2015

Table of contents
Foreword ...............................................................................................................................7
France-UNESCO - Cooperation Agreement ........................................................................9Part I - List of the activities implemented between 1999 and 2015 .................................13Part II - Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 2015 ......................25
Global ..............................................................................................................................27(1) 30th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention Virtual Congress: World Heritage
in the Digital Age. Conferences, workshops and special events (China, Egypt, France,
Mexico, Senegal)...........................................................................................................27(2) 30th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention. Urbino workshop (Italy) on“Partnerships for World Heritage cities – Culture as a vector for sustainable urban
development” ................................................................................................................29(3) Support for the annual seminar of the UNESCO Chair for "Culture, Tourism andDevelopment" ................................................................................................................30(4) Support for production of a documentary film on earthen architecture......................32(5) Support for the establishment of an on-line State of Conservation Information System(SOC) database on the state of conservation reports for World Heritage Properties .....33(6) Assistance to the project for the creation of a global network of World Heritage
forests. Seminar in Nancy, France ................................................................................34(7) Preparatory assistance for the nomination of the architectural work of Le Corbusier(Argentina, Belgium, France, Germany, India, Japan, Switzerland) ...............................35(8) Workshop “Rivers and Heritage”, 2 November 2009, French Senate in Paris, France......................................................................................................................................37(9) Booklet, 10th Anniversary of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement ............38(10) International Conference in Istanbul (Turkey) on the resistance of historic buildings
to earthquakes ..............................................................................................................39(11) Urban conservation and management of historic centres. Recommendation on the
Historic Urban Landscape .............................................................................................40(12) Rivers and Heritage ...............................................................................................43(13) Heritage and poverty alleviation (Senegal, Benin, Lao People's Democratic
Republic, China, Guyana) .............................................................................................46(14) Marine heritage: Support to the Central Pacific project and support to the World
Heritage marine programme ..........................................................................................47(15) Case Studies on the Conservation and Management of Historic Cities ..................49
France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 20151

(16) Support for the World Heritage Earthen Architecture Programme (WHEAP) ..........52(17) Support to the thematic programme for Small Island Developing States (SIDS),
support to the Seychelles seminar.................................................................................53(18) Support for international training in France for World Heritage site managers. .......54
Support to the Pôle international francophone (PIF) ......................................................54(19) Global Strategy: Support to agro-pastoral cultural landscapes ...............................56(20) Seminar at the Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans (France) on Tourism and World
Heritage Sites................................................................................................................60(21) Seminar in Cinque Terre (Italy) on cultural landscapes ..........................................61(22) “Public works and heritage”. International seminar in Paris, (France) on bridges ...62
Africa: Regional projects ...............................................................................................63(23) Capacity building “Cultural heritage and local development”, 18-21 November 2008,
Porto Novo, Benin .........................................................................................................63(24) Urban heritage and local development in Africa: participation in the Africities
Summits ........................................................................................................................64(25) Handbook on Cultural Heritage and Local Development for African Local
Governments Published ................................................................................................67(26) Durban Meeting (South Africa) on transboundary properties in Africa ....................68(27) Meetings in Paris (France) for the Directors of cultural heritage of Francophone
Sub-Saharan countries ..................................................................................................69(28) Support for the Second Cycle of the Periodic Reporting for Africa..........................70(29) Support for African local governments in the field of heritage (EU-AIMF project) ...71(30) Support to the School of African Heritage (EPA), Porto Novo, Benin .....................72(31) Seminar on raising awareness on Global Strategy in the South West islands of the
Indian Ocean and Madagascar......................................................................................73(32) Sub-regional seminar in Mauritius on awareness raising and presentation of
Tentative Lists for the Indian Ocean islands ..................................................................74(33) Seminar in Niamey (Niger) on Global Strategy in West Africa ................................75
Africa ...............................................................................................................................76(34) South Africa and Lesotho - Technical and preparatory assistance for the inscriptionof iSimangaliso Wetland Park and Maloti-Drakensberg Park, South Africa and Lesotho......................................................................................................................................76(35) Angola - Strategy for the preservation of rock art sites in Angola ...........................77(36) Benin - Preparatory assistance for the Slave Route, Benin ....................................78(37) Cameroon - Preparatory assistance for the updating of the national inventory ofcultural heritage of Cameroon .......................................................................................79

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 20152

(38) Comoros - Support for the identification, safeguarding and protection of heritage inComoros .......................................................................................................................80(39) Congo - Preparatory assistance for inscription of the Royal Domain of Mbé culturallandscape, Congo .........................................................................................................82(40) Côte d’Ivoire - Support for conservation and management of the Historic Town ofGrand Bassam, Côte d’Ivoire ........................................................................................83(41) Côte d’Ivoire - Preparatory assistance for the identification of heritage in Ehotilé
Islands National Park, Côte d’Ivoire ...............................................................................85(42) Ethiopia - Technical assistance to update the national inventory of cultural heritageof Ethiopia .....................................................................................................................86(43) Ethiopia - Preparatory assistance for an extension to the site of Tiya, Ethiopia ......87(44) Madagascar - Preparatory assistance for inscription of the Royal Hill of
Ambohimanga ...............................................................................................................89(45) Madagascar - Preparatory assistance for inscription of the Rainforests of the
Atsinanana, Madagascar ...............................................................................................90(46) Mali - Rivers and Heritage: Niger-Loire, Governance and Culture project.
Development of heritage and support for management of land and water resources, Mali......................................................................................................................................91(47) Niger - Preparatory assistance and establishment of a management plan for theHistoric Centre of Agadez, Niger ...................................................................................93(48) Central African Republic - Preparatory assistance for the inscription of The forest
and the residential encampments of the Aka Pygmies of the Central African Republic ..94
(49) Democratic Republic of the Congo - Emergency assistance to the Okapi Wildlife
Reserve of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ........................................................95(50) Senegal - Support for the establishment of the national inventory of cultural heritageof Senegal .....................................................................................................................96(51) Senegal - Preparatory assistance and technical support for the inscription,conservation and management of the Île de Saint-Louis, Senegal ................................97(52) Senegal, Gambia - Preparatory assistance for the inscription of Stone Circles ofSenegambia ................................................................................................................100(53) Togo - Preparatory assistance for the inscription of Koutammakou, the Land of the
Batammariba, Togo .....................................................................................................101
Latin America and Carribean : .....................................................................................102
Regional Project ...........................................................................................................102(54)Training workshops on new cultural heritage management techniques for Andean
countries (Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela(Bolivarian Republic of)) ..............................................................................................102

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 20153

(55) Support to the International seminar on the Rehabilitation of Historic Centres of
Latin American Cities (SIRCHAL) Programme: workshop on urban conservation andrestoration and creation of a tri-lingual glossary ..........................................................103(56) Global Strategy: Workshop on the identification of archaeological sites in the
Caribbean, and on major risks management ...............................................................105
Latin America and Caribbean ......................................................................................107(57) Argentina - Technical assistance for the valorisation of the Villa Ocampo, Buenos
Aires, Argentina ...........................................................................................................107(58) Bolivia (Plurinational State of) - Technical assistance for the creation of a museumon the archaeological and mining site of the City of Potosí, Bolivia (Plurinational State of)....................................................................................................................................108(59) Chile - Preparatory assistance for the inscription of the property and support for the
management of the Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works in Chile .............109(60) Colombia - Support to the UNESCO Chair in management of Cultural Heritage,
Manizales branch, National University of Colombia, Colombia ....................................110(61) El Salvador - Technical assistance for the management of the Joya de Cerén
Archaeological Site, El Salvador ..................................................................................111(62) Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of) - Technical assistance for the preparation andestablishment of a management plan for Coro and its Port, Venezuela (Bolivarian
Republic of) .................................................................................................................112
Asia and the Pacific......................................................................................................113(63) Bangladesh - Technical assistance for the conservation of the Ruins of the Buddhist
Vihara at Paharpur, Bangladesh ..................................................................................113(64) Cambodia - Preparatory assistance for the inscription of the Temple of Preah
Vihear, Cambodia ........................................................................................................114(65) Cambodia - Commemoration of ten years of international co-operation at Angkor,
Cambodia ....................................................................................................................115(66) China - Preparatory assistance for the inscription and protection of the Kingdom ofWu (The Six Canal Towns of the Lower Yangtze River) and support for theestablishment of a GIS at the University of Tongi, China .............................................116(67) India - Preparatory assistance and feasibility study for the inscription of Varanasi,
India ............................................................................................................................117(68) India - Technical assistance for the management of the Darjeeling Himalayan
Railways, the Mountain Railways of India ....................................................................118(69) India - Technical assistance for the conservation of the Group of Monuments at
Hampi, India ................................................................................................................119(70) India - Workshop on urban conservation, Chandigarh, India ................................121(71) India - Support for the creation of the Indian Heritage Cities Network (IHCN).......123(72) Japan - Preparation and publication: “Historic atlas of Kyoto”, Japan ...................127
France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 20154

(73) - Kyrgyzstan Preparatory assistance for the inscription of Issyk Kul warm-waterlake, Kyrgyzstan ..........................................................................................................128(74) Pakistan - Technical assistance for the valorisation of the Fort and Shalamar
Gardens in Lahore, Pakistan .......................................................................................129(75) Lao People's Democratic Republic - Support for the conservation and managementof Vat Phou and Associated Ancient Settlements within the Champasak CulturalLandscape, Lao People's Democratic Republic ...........................................................130(76) Lao People's Democratic Republic - Technical cooperation for the enhancement,
development and protection of the Town of Luang Prabang, Lao People's Democratic
Republic ......................................................................................................................133(77) Democratic People's Republic of Korea - Support for the conservation of theComplex of Koguryo Tombs in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea ................136(78) Thailand - “Humanize Bangkok” project, Thailand ................................................137(79) Viet Nam - Restauration and revitalization of the Complex of Hué Monuments andhistorical town, Viet Nam .............................................................................................138
Arab States : Regional projects...................................................................................139(80) Seminar on the cultural heritage inventories of Maghreb ......................................139
Arab States ...................................................................................................................140(81) Algeria - Workshop for heritage in Tlemcen, Algeria.............................................140(82) Algeria - Conservation and enhancement of the historic city of Bejaïa, Algeria ....141(83) Algeria - Conservation and preservation of the city of Constantine, Algeria ..........142(84) Algeria - Safeguarding and development of the M'Zab Valley and its five fortified
ksour (El Atteuf, Bou Noura, Beni Isguen, Melika and Ghardaïa), Algeria ...................143(85) Morocco - Preparatory assistance for the inscription of the Southern Oasis of
Morocco ......................................................................................................................144(86) Morocco - Technical Assistance for the protection and development of Ksar of AitBen-Haddou, Morocco ................................................................................................145(87) Mauritania - Technical assistance for urban management and rehabilitation of theAncient Ksour of Ouadane, Chinguetti, Tichitt and Oualata, Mauritania.......................146(88) Syrian Arab Republic - Support for research into ancient mosaics of the Museum ofMa'arat an-Noman, Syrian Arab Republic....................................................................148(89) Syrian Arab Republic - Preparatory assistance for the inscription of the Ancient
Villages of Northern Syria, Syrian Arab Republic .........................................................149(90) Syrian Arab Republic - Workshop on urban development, sustainable development
and tourism investment in the North district of Damascus, Syrian Arab Republic ........151

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 20155

Europe : Regional Projects ..........................................................................................152(91) Support for the restoration of the Christ the Saviour Church in Prizren, Kosovo(References to Kosovo shall be understood to be in the context of Security Council
resolution 1244 (1999)) ...............................................................................................152(92) Regional: Eastern Europe - Private property management in historic city centres ofEuropean countries in transition ..................................................................................153
Europe ...........................................................................................................................154(93) Albania - Technical assistance for the management of the Historic Centres of Beratand Gjirokastra, Albania ..............................................................................................154(94) Armenia-Technical assistance to the Shirak Museum, Armenia ...........................155(95) Russian Federation - Technical assistance for the restoration of Saint Basil's
Basilica, Moscow, Russian Federation ........................................................................156(96) Latvia - Technical assistance for the safeguarding, management and developmentof the Historic Centre of Riga, Latvia ...........................................................................157(97)Turkey - Technical assistance for the management of the Archaeological Site of
Zeugma and its surroundings, Gaziantep, Turkey .......................................................159(98) Turkey - Technical support for the management, enhancement and development of
the Historic Areas of Istanbul, Turkey ..........................................................................160
Annexe ..............................................................................................................................163

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 20156

Foreword
This document, drafted by the Secretariat of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement,
provides a synthesis of the different activities implemented in the framework of theagreement between 1999 and 2015, with the technical and financial support of the French
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Culture and Communication, the Ministry of
Ecology, and the former Ministry of Environment and the former Ministry of Equipment, andthanks to the support of the French Development Agency, local authorities, universities,
NGOs and experts associated. The document opens with the presentation of the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement, its objectives, its core mandate. The text of theAgreement is contained in the annex.
Each activity presents the main area of action and the assistance provided through theFrance-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement at the countries’ request.
The document first presents thematic activities concerning the world as a whole, inalphabetical order under the heading “Global”. Then, activities are classified by regions of theworld (Africa, Latin America and Caribbean etc.). For each region, the document first
introduces the different activities carried out at the regional level, then the activities carriedout at the country level in alphabetical order.
All activities are also available online on the World Heritage Centre website(http://whc.unesco.org/en/cfu). The digital version also provides annexed documents andhyperlinks to associate the activity with relevant documents.

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 20157

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 20158

France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 20159

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201510

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement (CFU)
Principles of the agreement
Signed in 1997, the Co-operation Agreement between UNESCO and the Government ofFrance for the protection and enhancement of the monumental, urban and natural heritage
was established to enhance understanding of cultural and natural heritage, to encourage theintegration of the preservation of heritage in urban and territorial development projects, andto ensure the inclusion of a social element to heritage conservation. The France - UNESCO
Co-operation Agreement between France and UNESCO was the first bilateral agreementwith UNESCO on heritage issues.
A working tool
The France UNESCO Co-operation Agreement was designed to support UNESCO's actions
to protect and enhance cultural and natural heritage through technical and financial aid thatdraws on France's acknowledged expertise in heritage conservation. The knowledge andskills in France were developed over many years of experience and specialized educational
and training programmes. Consequently France can put the skills of a wide variety ofprofessionals and experts - including researchers, historians, archaeologists, architects,
curators, urban planners, landscape architects, restoration professionals, legal experts andeconomists, local authorities, universities, NGOs, - at UNESCO's disposal, thus contributing
to its fieldwork in the countries that request its assistance.
Lever EffectOver the last 15 years approximately 100 projects have been undertaken in 50 countries
throughout the world. With a budget of approximately 3.7 million euros UNESCO has beenable to mobilize more than 18 million euros in the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation agreement.
For numerous projects, the France-UNESCO cooperation agreement provided minimal
financial input but essentially a qualitative one, as this seed money enabled the mobilizationof important donors such as the French Development Agency, European Union and theWorld Bank.
• Contribute to the World Heritage Global Strategy while following the strategic
objectives of the World Heritage Committee (5 C's) to develop a more representativeand balanced World Heritage List, and to promote UNESCO's strategy towards
culture and development and its commitment towards the objectives of the United
Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
• Serve as leverage for capacity building, focusing on local communities and promote
long-term support and implement projects focusing on sustainable economic andsocial development

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201511•

Provide impetus for developing city to city and site to site partnerships and promote
decentralized co-operation for heritage protection involving regional or local Frenchauthorities, and help foster international aid and co-operation programmes.

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201512

Part I
List of the activities implemented
between 1999 and 2015

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201513

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201514

List of the activities implemented between 1999 and 2015
Global(1) 30th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention Virtual Congress: World Heritage inthe Digital Age. Conferences, workshops and special events (China, Egypt, France, Mexico,
Senegal)(2) 30th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention. Urbino workshop (Italy) on“Partnerships for World Heritage cities – Culture as a vector for sustainable urban
development”(3) Support to the annual seminar of the UNESCO Chair for "Culture, Tourism, Development”(4) Support for production of a documentary film on earthen architecture(5) Support for the establishment of an on-line State of Conservation Information System(SOC) database on the state of conservation reports for World Heritage Properties(6) Assistance to the project for the creation of a global network of World Heritage forests.
Seminar in Nancy, France(7) Preparatory assistance for the nomination of the architectural work of Le Corbusier(Argentina, Belgium, France, Germany, India, Japan, Switzerland)(8) Workshop “Rivers and Heritage”, 2 November 2009, French Senate in Paris, France(9) Booklet, 10th Anniversary of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement(10) International Conference in Istanbul (Turkey) on the resistance of historic buildings toearthquakes(11) Urban conservation and management of historic centres. Recommendation on the
Historic Urban Landscape(12) Rivers and Heritage(13) Heritage and poverty alleviation (Senegal, Benin, Lao People's Democratic Republic,
China, Guyana)France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201515

(14) Marine heritage: support to the Central Pacific project and support to the World Heritage
marine programme(15) Case Studies on the Conservation and Management of Historic Cities(16) Support for the World Heritage Earthen Architecture Programme (WHEAP)(17) Support to the thematic programme for Small Island Developing States (SIDS), support
to the Seychelles seminar(18) Support for international training in France for World Heritage site managers. Support to
the Pôle international francophone (PIF)(19) Global Strategy: Support to agro-pastoral cultural landscapes(20) Seminar at the Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans (France) on Tourism and World
Heritage Sites(21) Seminar in Cinque Terre (Italy) on cultural landscapes(22) “Public works and heritage”. International seminar in Paris, (France) on bridges

Africa: Regional projects(23) Capacity building “Cultural heritage and local development”, 18-21 November 2008,
Porto Novo, Benin(24) Urban heritage and local development in Africa: participation in the Africities Summits(25) Publication of: “Cultural Heritage and Local Development. A Guide for African Local
Governments”. Development and implementation of a capacity-building programme(26) Durban Meeting (South Africa) on transboundary properties in Africa(27) Meetings in Paris (France) for the Directors of cultural heritage of Francophone SubSaharan countries(28) Support for the Second Cycle of the Periodic Reporting for Africa(29) Support for African local governments in the field of heritage (EU-AIMF project)(30) Support to the School of African Heritage (EPA), Porto Novo, Benin

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201516

(31) Seminar on raising awareness on Global Strategy in the South West islands of the
Indian Ocean and Madagascar(32) Sub-regional seminar in Mauritius on awareness raising and presentation of Tentative
Lists for the Indian Ocean islands(33) Seminar in Niamey (Niger) on Global Strategy in West Africa

Africa(34) South Africa and LesothoTechnical and preparatory assistance for the inscription of iSimangaliso Wetland Park andMaloti-Drakensberg Park, South Africa and Lesotho(35) Angola
Strategy for the preservation of rock art sites in Angola(36) Benin
Preparatory assistance for the Slave Route, Benin(37) Cameroon
Preparatory assistance for the updating of the national inventory of cultural heritage ofCameroon(38) Comoros
Support for the identification, safeguarding and protection of heritage in Comoros(39) Congo
Preparatory assistance for inscription of the Royal Domain of Mbé cultural landscape, Congo(40) Côte d’Ivoire
Support for conservation and management of the Historic Town of Grand Bassam, Côte
d’Ivoire(41) Côte d’Ivoire
Preparatory assistance for the identification of heritage in Ehotilé Islands National Park, Côte
d’Ivoire(42) Ethiopia
Technical assistance to update the national inventory of cultural heritage of Ethiopia(43) Ethiopia
Preparatory assistance for an extension to the site of Tiya, Ethiopia

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201517

Senegal, Gambia
Preparatory assistance for the inscription of Stone Circles of Senegambia[See Senegal, activity n°52]
South Africa and LesothoTechnical and preparatory assistance for the inscription of iSimangaliso Wetland Park andMaloti-Drakensberg Park, South Africa and Lesotho[See South Africa activity n°34](44) Madagascar
Preparatory assistance for inscription of the Royal Hill of Ambohimanga(45) Madagascar
Preparatory assistance for inscription of the Rainforests of the Atsinanana, Madagascar(46) MaliRivers and Heritage: Niger-Loire, Governance and Culture project. Development of heritageand support for management of land and water resources, Mali
(47) Niger
Preparatory assistance and establishment of a management plan for the Historic Centre of
Agadez, Niger(48) Central African Republic
Preparatory assistance for the inscription of The forest and the residential encampments of
the Aka Pygmies of the Central African Republic(49) Democratic Republic of the Congo
Emergency assistance to the Okapi Wildlife Reserve of the Democratic Republic of theCongo(50) Senegal
Support for the establishment of the national inventory of cultural heritage of Senegal(51) Senegal
Preparatory assistance and technical support for the inscription, conservation andmanagement of the Île de Saint-Louis, Senegal(52) Senegal, Gambia
Preparatory assistance for the inscription of Stone Circles of Senegambia(53) Togo
Preparatory assistance for the inscription of Koutammakou, the Land of the Batammariba,
Togo

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201518

Latin America and the Caribbean: Regional projects(54) Regional: Andean countries
Training workshops on new cultural heritage management techniques for Andean countries(Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela (Bolivarian Republicof))(55) Regional
Support to the International seminar on the Rehabilitation of Historic Centres of Latin
American Cities (SIRCHAL) Programme: workshop on urban conservation and restorationand creation of a tri-lingual glossary(56) Regional
Global Strategy: Workshop on the identification of archaeological sites in the Caribbean, andon major risks management

Latin America and the Caribbean(57) Argentina
Technical assistance for the valorisation of the Villa Ocampo, Buenos Aires, Argentina(58) Bolivia (Plurinational State of)Technical assistance for the creation of a museum on the archaeological and mining site of
the City of Potosí, Bolivia (Plurinational State of)(59) Chile
Preparatory assistance for the inscription of the property and support for the management of
the Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works in Chile(60) Colombia
Support to the UNESCO Chair in management of Cultural Heritage, Manizales branch,
National University of Colombia, Colombia(61) El Salvador
Technical assistance for the management of the Joya de Cerén Archaeological Site, El
Salvador(62) Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of)Technical assistance for the preparation and establishment of a management plan for Coroand its Port, Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of)France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201519

Asia and the Pacific(63) BangladeshTechnical assistance for the conservation of the Ruins of the Buddhist Vihara at Paharpur,
Bangladesh(64) Cambodia
Preparatory assistance for the inscription of the Temple of Preah Vihear, Cambodia(65) Cambodia
Commemoration of ten years of international co-operation at Angkor, Cambodia(66) China
Preparatory assistance for the inscription and protection of the Kingdom of Wu (The Six
Canal Towns of the Lower Yangtze River) and support for the establishment of a GIS at the
University of Tongi, China(67) India
Preparatory assistance and feasibility study for the inscription of Varanasi, India(68) India
Technical assistance for the management of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railways, theMountain Railways of India(69) India
Technical assistance for the conservation of the Group of Monuments at Hampi, India(70) India
Workshop on urban conservation, Chandigarh, India(71) India
Support for the creation of the Indian Heritage Cities Network (IHCN)(72) Japon
Preparation and publication: “Historic atlas of Kyoto”, Japan(73) Kyrgyzstan
Preparatory assistance for the inscription of Issyk Kul warm-water lake, Kyrgyzstan(74) Pakistan
Technical assistance for the valorisation of the Fort and Shalamar Gardens in Lahore,
Pakistan

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201520

(75) Lao People's Democratic Republic
Support for the conservation and management of Vat Phou and Associated Ancient
Settlements within the Champasak Cultural Landscape, Lao People's Democratic Republic(76) Lao People's Democratic RepublicTechnical cooperation for the enhancement, development and protection of the Town ofLuang Prabang, Lao People's Democratic Republic(77) Democratic People's Republic of Korea
Support for the conservation of the Complex of Koguryo Tombs in the Democratic People's
Republic of Korea(78) Thailand“Humanize Bangkok” project, Thailand(79) Viet Nam
Restauration and revitalisation of the Complex of Hué Monuments and historical town, Viet
Nam

Regional Projects: Arab States
Regional
Seminar on the cultural heritage inventories of Maghreb

Arab States(81) Algeria
Workshop for heritage in Tlemcen, Algeria(82) Algeria
Conservation and enhancement of the historic city of Bejaïa, Algeria(83) Algeria
Conservation and preservation of the city of Constantine, Algeria(84) Algeria
Safeguarding and development of the M'Zab Valley and its five fortified ksour (El Atteuf, Bou
Noura, Beni Isguen, Melika and Ghardaïa), Algeria(85) Morocco
Preparatory assistance for the inscription of the Southern Oasis of Morocco

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201521

(86) Morocco
Technical Assistance for the protection and development of Ksar of Ait-Ben-Haddou,
Morocco(87) Mauritania
Technical assistance for urban management and rehabilitation of the Ancient Ksour of
Ouadane, Chinguetti, Tichitt and Oualata, Mauritania(88) Syrian Arab Republic
Support for research into the ancient mosaics of the Ma’arat an-Noman Museum, Syrian
Arab Republic(89) Syrian Arab Republic
Preparatory assistance for the inscription of the Ancient Villages of Northern Syria, Syrian
Arab Republic(90) Syrian Arab Republic
Workshop on urban development, sustainable development and tourism investment in the
North district of Damascus, Syrian Arab Republic

Regional Projects: Europe(91) Support for the restoration of Christ the Saviour Church in Prizren, Kosovo (References
to Kosovo shall be understood to be in the context of Security Council resolution 1244
(1999))(92) Private property management in historic city centres of European countries in transition

Europe(93) Albania
Technical assistance for the management of the Historic Centres of Berat and Gjirokastra,
Albania(94) Armenia
Technical assistance to the Shirak Museum, Armenia(95) Russian Federation
Technical assistance for the restoration of Saint Basil’s Basilica, Moscow, RussianFederation

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201522

(96) Latvia
Technical assistance for safeguarding, management and development of the Historic Centreof Riga, Latvia(97) Turkey
Technical assistance for the management of the Archaeological Site of Zeugma and its
surroundings, Gaziantep, Turkey(98) Turkey
Technical support for the management, enhancement and development of the Historic Areasof Istanbul, Turkey

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201523

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201524

Part II
Synthesis of the activities implemented
between 1999 and 2015

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201525

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201526

Global(1) 30th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention Virtual Congress: World
Heritage in the Digital Age. Conferences, workshops and special events (China, Egypt,France, Mexico, Senegal)
On the occasion of the 30th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention, conferences andworkshops were organized with the support of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement,such as the Urbino workshop (11-12 November, Pesaro, Italy) on “Partnerships for World
Heritage Cities” or the organization of a Virtual Congress to enhance the potential value ofelectronic tools for the valorization of heritage, the highlight of which was a conference at the
Senate in Paris, France.
The Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage wassigned on 16 November 1972. The 30th Anniversary celebrations included the organizationof the international conference “World Heritage 2002: Shared Legacy, Common
Responsibility” The conference took place from 14 to 16 November in Venice, Italy, and wasattended by more than 600 experts from around the world. On the occasion of this event,nine workshops were held from 11 to 16 November 2002 in various Italian towns, bringing
together approximately 400 experts of 63 nationalities to discuss the following points:• The Legal Tools for World Heritage Conservation, Siena• Cultural Landscapes: The Challenges of Conservation, Ferrara• Towards Innovative Partnerships for World Heritage, Venice• Partnerships for the Conservation of World Heritage Cities, Urbino-Pesaro• Monitoring World Heritage, Vicenza• The World Heritage Convention: Partnerships to Conserve Nature and Biodiversity,
Trieste• World Heritage University Training, Feltre• World Heritage Site Management, Padova• Mobilizing Youth for World Heritage, Treviso
In parallel, during October and November 2002, a Virtual Congress was organized and cofunded by the Netherlands and the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement.
Its objective was to identify the challenges of protecting World Heritage in the context ofsustainable development. Consisting of a series of one day conferences held around theworld, it enabled discussions on the following topics:• Heritage Management Mapping: GIS System (Geographic Information Systems) andMultimedia, Alexandria, Egypt, 21 to 23 October• Architecture, Sustainable Tourism and World Heritage, Beijing, China, 15 to 17
October• Teaching World Heritage and New Information and Communications Technology inAfrica, Dakar, Senegal, 15 to 17 October• Heritage Management of Historic Cities: Planning for Mixed Use and Social Equity,
Mexico City, Mexico, 6 to 8 November
France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 2015

27

•
•
•

World Heritage, the Challenge of Decentralization, Paris, 16 October
Applying Aerospace Engineering to Heritage Conservation, Strasbourg, 5 to 8
NovemberGreat World Heritage Rivers: From Crisis to a Risk-Management Culture, Tours, 21 to
24 October

The inaugural virtual conference was held at the Senate in Paris. It allowed many
international elected representatives to reflect on the theme “World Heritage, a challenge ofdecentralization” The presentations aimed to raise awareness amongst elected
representatives (local, national, European and international) of the challenges for World
Heritage including: identification, protection, and enhancement. The participants addressed
topics such as: the capacities of elected representatives with regard to the protection ofWorld Heritage, aid programmes at national, European and international levels, the functionof international cooperation and the role of decentralized cooperation.
The “World Heritage, a challenge of decentralization” Conference proceedings are available
on-line on the website of the French Senate.
The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement also provided support to the regional
workshop on tangible heritage and economic and social development: “Heritage
Management of Historic Centres: Planning for Mixed Use and Social Equity,” which took
place from the 6 to 8 November 2002 in Mexico City, Mexico. This regional meeting in
Mexico City aimed to demonstrate the usefulness of GIS (Geographic Information System)
technology, among others, to enhance integrated urban development planning by collating
data on socio-economic factors as well as on additional urban features of historic centers intheir relation to the greater city and its environment. It was stressed that while conserving theoutstanding universal value for which these urban properties were inscribed, they also needto cater to the needs of inhabitants and the growing number of visitors. Local authorities andinvestors have a decisive role to play in determining the future of urban areas which dependon the choice of the development strategy.
A first session was organised by Mexico’s INAH (National Institute of Anthropology andHistory), the Mexican Association of World Heritage Cities, the Ministry of Education of
Mexico, and the Cultural Heritage Division. The second session, organised by the World
Heritage Centre under the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement and Mexican partners
lasted three days, and involved the presentation of six case studies from six different
countries. Four thematic workshops provided participants the opportunity to shareexperiences in topics such as integrated management, indicators and monitoring and review,
inventories, impact of tourism and regional planning.
The “Heritage Management of Historic Cities: Planning for Mixed Use and Social Equity”
Conference proceedings (Mexico City, 6-8 November 2008) are available online.

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(2) 30th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention. Urbino workshop (Italy) on“Partnerships for World Heritage cities – Culture as a vector for sustainable urban
development”
The Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage wassigned on 16 November 1972. The 30th Anniversary celebrations included the organizationof the international conference “World Heritage 2002: Shared Legacy, Common
Responsibility” The conference took place from 14 to 16 November 2002 in Venice, Italy, andwas attended by more than 600 experts from around the world. On the occasion of thisevent, nine workshops were held from 11 to 16 November 2002 in various Italian towns,
bringing together approximately 400 experts of 63 nationalities.
On the occasion of the 30th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention conferences andworkshops, such as the Urbino workshop (Pesaro, Italy) on “Partnerships for World Heritage
Cities” were organized with the support of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement.
These contributed to the organization of a Virtual Congress to enhance the potential value ofelectronic tools, the highlight of which was a conference at the Senate in Paris, France.
Amongst the international conferences in Italy, the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement
supported the organization of the Urbino workshop (11 and 12 November 2002) on thetheme of “Partnerships for World Heritage Cities: Culture as a Vector for Sustainable Urban
Development”. The workshop took place under the patronage of the municipalities of Urbino
and Pesaro, bringing together many elected representatives and international experts who
examined how the World Heritage Convention serves as a catalyst for the promotion of longterm urban development of historical cities.
Experts involved in the workshop drafted over 400 articles. Proceedings of the Urbino
workshop are published in the UNESCO World Heritage Paper n˚9 “Partnerships for World
Heritage Cities: Culture as a Vector for Sustainable Urban Development” and are available
on-line.

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201529

(3) Support for the annual seminar of the UNESCO Chair for "Culture, Tourism andDevelopment"
Tourism represents an important but double-edged challenge for World Heritage Properties,
which is the subject of ongoing discussion through initiatives and programmes launched by
the World Heritage Centre. In 2012, in order to encourage a sustainable approach, the 36th
session of the World Heritage Committee (Saint Petersburg, 2012) adopted the "World
Heritage and Sustainable Tourism Programme" that represents a new approach centred on
dialogue and cooperation between stakeholders, and where heritage management andtourism development are combined for the purpose of integrated management of theterritory.
The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement participated in this international discussion,
firstly by organising an expert meeting on "Tourism and World Heritage sites", held on 6 to 8
March 2008 at the Royal Saltworks of Arc et Senans (France), and also, since 2010, by
supporting the UNESCO Chair for "Culture, Tourism and Development" to organise one dayseminars on sustainable tourism. These seminars were held mainly at the UNESCO
headquarters and were highly appreciated by site managers, as it gave them a platform to
exchange ideas based on theory and practice.
In 1998, the Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, and its Institut de Recherche et d'Etudes
Supérieures du Tourisme (IREST), in collaboration with UNESCO, created the UNESCO
Chair for "Culture, Tourism and Development". The purpose of the Chair is to promote acomprehensive system of research activities, training, information and documentation that
may contribute to the formulation of cultural tourism strategies to support sustainable
development, ensuring the long-term conservation of sites, participation of local communities
in projects and also realising the benefit of tourism, while facilitating dialogue between
cultures. The Chair's activities also contribute to local, regional and inter-regional cooperation
between internationally renowned researchers and professors, and the researchers andprofessors of the university. Subsequently, in 2002, at UNESCO's request, the UNITWINUNESCO network for "Culture, Tourism and Development" was created.
Since 2010, the UNESCO Chair for "Culture, Tourism and Development" has organised
annual seminars on the various links between the properties inscribed on the World Heritage
List and tourism.
These seminars were addressed to several stakeholders: heritage managers and specialists(site managers of properties inscribed on the World Heritage List, the French Ministry of
Culture, heritage architects, environmental officers); tourism managers and specialists;mayors and elected representatives of World Heritage cities; researchers and academics;
PhD candidates and students; specialised journalists.

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201530

These seminars were organised by the Association des biens français du patrimoine mondial(French association of French World Heritage sites), ICOMOS France and the World
Heritage Centre in the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, anddepending on the years, by Cités-Unies. The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, withthe support of the French Ministry of Culture, provided technical support to these annual
meetings, by participating in developing the programme and suggesting topics, identifying
good practice and case studies, and promoting exchanges between the World Heritage sitemanagers. The programmes and some of the seminar proceedings published by IREST are
available online.
The 1st seminar of the UNESCO Chair for "Culture, Tourism and Development", on thetheme of "World Heritage Cities in France and Tourism: Protection, Management andEnhancement" was held on 27 May 2010 at the Musée du Louvre in Paris, France. (The
programme and the seminar proceedings are available online).
The 2nd seminar of the UNESCO Chair for "Culture, Tourism and Development", on thetheme of Monitoring and Evaluating Tourism at World Heritage Sites: Questions and Tools",
was held on 30 May 2011 at UNESCO in Paris, France. (The programme and the seminarproceedings are available online).
The 3rd seminar of the UNESCO Chair for "Culture, Tourism and Development" and the
UNITWIN-UNESCO network for "Culture, Tourism and Development", entitled "World
Heritage and Tourism Destination Management" was held on 9 October 2012 at UNESCO in
Paris, France. (The programme is available online).
The 4th seminar of the UNESCO Chair for "Culture, Tourism and Development" and the
UNITWIN-UNESCO network for "Culture, Tourism and Development", which focused on thetheme of "Visitors and Residents at World Heritage Sites" was held on 22 October 2013 at
UNESCO in Paris, France. (The programme is available online
The 5th seminar of the UNESCO Chair for "Culture, Tourism and Development", which
focused on the theme of "Tourism and Economic Diversification at UNESCO World Heritage
Sites", was held on 22 December 2014 at UNESCO in Paris, France. (The programme isavailable online).

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201531

(4) Support for production of a documentary film on earthen architecture
The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement supported the production of a documentaryon earthen architecture. In 2004, François Le Bayon directed the documentary “New Forms
in Earthen Architecture.” The documentary was produced by R.F.O, Lieurac Productions andNanook Productions with UNESCO’s participation, within the framework of the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement, of Planète, of Radio Televisão Portuguesa and of theCentre National de la Cinématographie, and with the support of the French Ministry ofForeign Affairs.
The documentary looks at the use of earth as a construction material over thousands ofyears. It was filmed in Egypt, the Syrian Arab Republic, Peru, Burma, Mali (in the Old Towns
of Djenné inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1988) and on the island of Mayotte (Indian
Ocean). It illustrates how, at the beginning of the 21st century, earth has become thematerial of the future of construction for poor countries as well as for rich countries. Almost 2
billion people live in earthen housing. It was used in the construction of the first towns andallows for all desired architectural formations. It only needs to be dried in the sun, after which
it becomes almost as hard as concrete. Virtually free, it is drawn directly from theconstruction site and does not require any heating or transport. Totally natural, it iscompletely respectful of the environment. It perfectly retains its coolness in the summer andheat in the winter. Earth remains the most available, accessible and economical material.
The availability of this construction material, and the ease of its use, perfectly correspond to
the needs of the poorest countries (it is estimated that there are 1.1 billion poorly housed
people in the world).

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201532

(5) Support for the establishment of an on-line State of Conservation Information
System (SOC) database on the state of conservation reports for World Heritage
Properties
With the support of the Flemish Government, and later within the framework of the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement, the World Heritage Centre launched an online
Information System on the state of conservation (SOC) of World Heritage properties and thefactors affecting their Outstanding Universal Value in order to valorize this pricelessdocumentation and make it publicly accessible to all stakeholders of the 1972 World Heritage
Convention and any interested parties.
This public consultation tool includes an advanced search form per property, per region, perState Party, per year, per type of threat, etc., in order to extract specific data from the state ofconservation reports concerning World Heritage properties. The SOC reports facilitate
informed decision making and offer unique access to all available statutory documentation on
World Heritage properties, and provide access to the last 40 years’ worth of conservation
reports. It is aimed at States Parties, property managers, natural and cultural heritage
professionals, researchers, etc.
This online tool allows the visualization of the evolution of the state of conservation of aproperty over time and the conduct of comprehensive analyses of the threats to identify
potential trends over time, thus helping States Parties to improve mitigation measures on
World Heritage properties.
As one of the most comprehensive monitoring systems on-line, the Online Information
System is also unique in that it is one of the few to offer information in both French andEnglish. This tool allows to capitalise on acquired data collected or produced by the World
heritage Centre.

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201533

(6) Assistance to the project for the creation of a global network of World Heritage
forests. Seminar in Nancy, France
The objective of this project was to establish a global network of World Heritage forests toassist the World Heritage Forest Programme.
In 1998, the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), IUCN and the World
Heritage Centre organised an experts meeting on World Heritage forests in Berastagi,Indonesia. The meeting emphasized the importance of the 1972 World Heritage Convention
in the conservation of the biodiversity of forests with Outstanding Universal Value. In 2001,
the World Heritage Committee approved the planning of a programme for World Heritage
forests. Since that meeting, several activities have been undertaken to conserve thebiodiversity of these sites.
In 2005, the École Nationale du Génie des Eaux et Forêts (French school for forestry
engineering and research) organised an international colloquium on 7 and 8 March in Nancy(France) to mark the 100th anniversary of the establishment of the United States Forest
Service (USFS). Subsequently, l’École Nationale du Génie des Eaux et Forêts received a
Canadian mission from the International Model Forest Network to examine the possibility of
establishing a model forest in Lorraine, France. On 9 to 11 March 2005 the World Heritage
Centre, with the support of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, used theseopportunities to organize a meeting called “World Heritage Forests: Leveraging Conservation
at the Landscape Level” in Nancy. The proceedings of this 2nd World Heritage Forests
meeting are available in the World Heritage Series n°21 - May 2007.

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201534

(7) Preparatory assistance for the nomination of the architectural work of Le Corbusier(Argentina, Belgium, France, Germany, India, Japan, Switzerland)
Le Corbusier is one of the greatest architects of the 20th century, and his work both built andwritten have had a huge impact on the world, and demonstrate major technical andconceptual changes of the Modern Movement in the field of architecture and Urbanism. His
work reflects an ongoing search for new forms as well as constructive principles and models
for living. Le Corbusier wanted his work to be profoundly universal, and as such included
types of programmes for all types of people. His work had an international scope, and hisachievements are found on almost every continent. The architect of many projects, Le
Corbusier was also a prolific theorist and his ideas were not only disseminated through his
projects and constructions but also through his writings.
When its Tentative List was being revised in the early 2000’s, France added Villa Savoye,
one of the emblematic works of Le Corbusier, to its new Tentative List as few “Modern”
works featured on the World Heritage List at the time. Following this, and on the basis of anomination project for the urban design of Firminy-Vert, where two works of Le Corbusier
existed (without counting an unfinished project from that time), a review was conducted by
the French Ministry of Culture and the Fondation Le Corbusier on the works of Le Corbusierthat could and should be proposed for nomination for the World Heritage List. After initially
focusing on the iconic monument of Le Corbusier, the reflection then turned to all of his workand the programmatic categories that they fall into in order to analyse the work and its
international influence. This led to cooperation between several States Parties (France,
Germany, Argentina, Belgium, Switzerland and India) and a project to develop atransboundary nomination proposal centred on the series of his work and its influence at theinternational level. On France’s initiative, with the support of the Fondation Le Corbusier, an
important preparatory work was initiated to examine the feasibility of a nomination proposal.
In order to provide international support to this serial and transnational nomination proposalof Le Corbusier’s heritage, the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement assisted in theorganization of two international experts’ meetings by the Fondation Le Corbusier and theFrench Ministry of Culture. One of them took place at the Fondation Le Corbusier on 18 June
2004 in Paris, followed by a second in Firminy-Vert and at Couvent de la Tourette (France)on 19 June. These information, coordination, and awareness-raising meetings withinternational experts led to the launch of a working group to put in place a working method inorder to develop a nomination proposal. The challenge within the context of the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement was to participate in an approach to promote modern
heritage, underrepresented at that time on the World Heritage List, and to support reflection
on the methodology of a serial and transboundary nominations.
Several meetings organized by France and project partner countries allowed theestablishment of an International Committee, composed of experts from the different
countries concerned, and coordinated by the Fondation Le Corbusier, which had theFrance-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201535

responsibility of identifying and defining the nomination criteria, and to select the component
parts of a series proposed for nomination, as well as to lay out arguments demonstrating theOutstanding Universal Value of the work. This Committee was set up not only to prepare thenomination proposal but also in order to further work to consolidate or create specificnetworks such as those of towns where the works of Le Corbusier can be found, or to launchcooperation projects between sites and manage awareness raising activities with the owners
involved or local authorities of a famous but nonetheless fragile work.
Afterwards, the World Heritage Centre organized a workshop, with the support of the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement, within the framework of the Netherlands Funds in Trustand in partnership with UNESCO’s New Delhi Office and the school of architecture of
Chandigarh and Chandigarh’s Administration (India), on the urban conservation of
Chandigarh from the 18th to the 21st December 2007.
First submitted in 2008, the nomination proposal was examined during the 33th Session of
the World Heritage Committee (Sevilla, 2009), but was referred, and was once again
examined during the 35th Session of the World Heritage Committee (Paris, 2011), where it
was deferred. A revised version has been submitted in 2015.

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201536

(8) Workshop “Rivers and Heritage”, 2 November 2009, French Senate in Paris, France
A workshop on the theme “Rivers and heritage” was held on 2 November 2009 at the French
Senate in Paris, France. The workshop was organised by the France-UNESCO Cooperation
Agreement in partnership with the French Senate. Hosted by Erik Orsenna from the
Académie française, the meeting gathered approximately a hundred participants, including
representatives of the water and culture sectors, local authorities, stakeholders of thecooperation that are engaged in safeguarding projects and river enhancement, as well as
experts and academics that have initiated work on the theme of the river through researchsuch as geography, anthropology and history. The meeting’s objective was to focus on thetransversal theme of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, on which various
operations have been engaged (Mali, Lao People's Democratic Republic, etc.).
The discussions were organised around three key questions: restructure the river forsustainable development; enhancing the cultural resources of the river; and exploring the“rivers of man”. Different engaging actions have been undertaken to enhance or revive thecultures of and by the river. Several types of activities have been presented on the basis ofcase studies of projects implemented on several rivers, including those of the Niger, Mekong,
Nil, Ganges, Loire, Rhône. As the “river to river” cooperation experiences exemplify, theparticipants recalled the importance of this cultural approach in the renewal of urban planningand international cooperation.
The proceedings of the “Rivers and heritage” workshop are available online.
In the continuity of this meeting, a workshop on “Knowledge and Dissemination of Heritage
and River Cultures, Perspectives on the Development of River Territories” was organised in
November 2010 in Senegal by the Saint-Louis River House at the Island of Saint-Louis, inpartnership with the Rhône River House, France, within the framework of the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement and in link with the “Niger-Loire: Governance and Culture”
project.

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201537

(9) Booklet, 10th Anniversary of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement
In 2009, on the occasion of the 10th Anniversary of the France-UNESCO Cooperation
Agreement, a booklet describing the heritage safeguarding and valorisation activities
implemented in the first 10 years (1999-2009), was produced by France and the World
Heritage Centre and edited by the Secretariat of the France-UNESCO Cooperation
Agreement with the support of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, French Ministry of
Culture, and French Ministry of Ecology and published in French and English by the World
Heritage Centre.
This publication presents this Cooperation Agreement, its main goals and a detailed
presentation of 12 activities as well as interviews of project managers and heritage
professionals:
In a first section, the activities in support of the World Heritage Convention are described:
Megalithic sites of Senegambia: preparatory assistance; Ancient cities of North Syria:
preparatory assistance; Preparatory assistance for the inscription of the Rainforests ofAtsinanana, Madagascar; Saint-Louis, Senegal: support for conservation of the heritage, andfor decentralised cooperation with the urban community of Metropolitan Lille; Historical Atlasof Kyoto. Spatial analysis of the memory systems of a city, its architecture and its urban
landscape; Hampi, Inda: support for the elaboration of a conservation and management plan;
Luang Prabang, Laos: support for the conservation and management of the city.
In a second section, the activities implemented in the framework of thematic projects areillustrated:
Niger-Loire: Governance and culture; Sustainable management of World Heritage for poverty
alleviation; Capacity building of local African communities in the field of heritage protection
and valorisation; Cultural heritage inventories: a coordinated action for the Maghrebcountries; Support for the conservation policy of the historic cities in India.
Since 2009, many other pojects have been implemented and the list of activities described in
the publication has been updated, and the complete list of activities implemented between
1999 and 2015 are also available on-line.

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201538

(10) International Conference in Istanbul (Turkey) on the resistance of historicbuildings to earthquakes
The “International Conference on the Seismic Performance of Traditional Buildings” was held
in Istanbul, Turkey from 16 to 18 November 2000, under the patronage of UNESCO,ICOMOS and Turkey’s Ministry of Culture. It was organized by ICOMOS’ International Wood
Committee with the support of UNESCO in the framework of the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement, and the Kress Foundation in New York City (United States ofAmerica).
Experts including architects, building engineers and representatives of consulting firms fromover 20 different countries examined wooden structures and the use of masonry, as well as
the use of traditional materials such as earth, in conjunction, or as a substitute for steel,reinforced concrete and modern techniques. Various interventions have confirmed that
historic buildings are more resistant to earthquakes in comparison to modern buildings.
The challenge to better understand traditional materials and structures is twofold. It is, firstly,
to expand our general knowledge on seismic resistance, which would benefit modern
constructions. And secondly, to encourage countries with traditional systems of architecture
to reconsider and re-evaluate earlier methods of construction, techniques directly linked toinhabitants’ culture and lifestyle, instead of importing exogenous architectural models.
The conference proceedings are available online.

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201539

(11) Urban conservation and management of historic centres. Recommendation on the
Historic Urban LandscapeCities and urban areas are the most represented types of heritage on the World Heritage
List. World Heritage Cities are also among the World Heritage Properties that appear mostoften in state of conservation reports.
Economic, social and political changes in recent years – globalization, multiplication of key
players, decentralization, and diminution of the role of centralized planning – have forced
many countries to change their approach to urban conservation and development.
Very many projects implemented within the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation
Agreement have focused on urban conservation. One can cite projects centred on sites suchas Luang Prabang (Lao People's Democratic Republic), Hué (Viet Nam), Saint-Louis(Senegal), Grand-Bassam (Ivory Coast), Bejaïa (Algeria), the fortified towns (Ksours) ofMauritania, and Riga (Latvia), as well as the establishment of projects such as the Indian
Heritage Cities Network, or the cultural mapping of urban heritage in the Comoro Islands.
There are also initiatives such as the special sessions organised at the Urbino Workshop in
Italy as part of the 30th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention, and Africities
Summits that bring together members of African local authorities. The France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement has also participated in producing books about cities, such as ‘The
Historical Atlas of Kyoto’, publications such as ‘Partnerships for World Heritage Cities:
Culture as a Vector for Sustainable Urban Development’, and “Developing Historic Cities:
Keys for Understanding and Taking Action. A compilation of case studies on theconservation and management of historic cities”. The France-UNESCO Cooperation
Agreement has also provided support to the World Heritage Cities Programme as well as
assistance with drawing up the Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape.
The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement has actively contributed to the developmentof integrated and coordinated management and development methodologies that use
economic, sociological and cultural resources. The outstanding example of this is thecollaborative project for the protection and development of the city of Luang Prabang in Lao
People's Democratic Republic. These methodologies drew inspiration from a participatory
approach to conservation, development and governance, taking into account the dynamic
and changing nature of cities, where the preservation of a living urban culture is the key toconservation, rehabilitation and integrated growth.

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201540

Managing Historic Cities (No. 27)
As part of the World Heritage Cities Programme, and following ideas put forward at the 2005
Vienna Conference which examined the integration of contemporary architecture in historic
centres, the World Heritage Centre published a paper in its World Heritage series entitledManagement of Historic Cities (No. 27). The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement gave
financial and technical support to this publication, offering the expertise of a French urban
architect and carrying out a detailed revision of the translation, mainly from English into
French. This publication tackled current thinking on management and conservation of historic
centres as much from the theoretical point of view as from a practical one against abackground of unprecedented development and urban growth.
Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape
Following the adoption in 2005 of the Vienna Memorandum on ‘World Heritage andContemporary Architecture: Managing the Historic Urban Landscape’, the World Heritage
Centre launched a programme of themed meetings and discussions on this subject. The
Vienna Memorandum introduced the concept of historic urban landscape: the historic city inits ‘topographical’ and ‘environmental’ context, understood in the broader territorial andlandscape context, expressing ‘specific economic and sociocultural values’, and constantly
evolving. It defined the conditions for integrating contemporary architecture in the historicfabric of a city. New elements in the document included: firstly, broadening of the spatial
scale and secondly, consideration to be given to the preservation of historical traces as partof the inevitable changes. The Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape - theresult of six years of reflection and work as well as many consultations and discussions - hasmade it possible to understand changing situations and take into account the challenges
faced in recent years concerning conservation of the built environment and territories inspatial strategic planning and urban development.
France, which has a strong tradition of urban conservation, expertise in urban and regional
development and a wealth of well-developed partnerships, has given its support to thisrecommendation and to the international debate.
In 2009, the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement gave its support to the international
discussion on the concept of historic urban landscape and supported the organisation ofseminars on the French experience of historic urban landscapes. These seminars, held 8
and 9 June 2009 in Bordeaux, France, were organised in conjunction with ICOMOS France(the French branch of the International Council on Monuments and Sites), the Association
nationale des architects des bâtiments de France, ANABF (the National Association of theArchitects of the Buildings of France) and the Association Nationale des Villes et Pays d'Artet d'Histoire & des Villes à Secteurs Sauvegardé, ANVPAH & VSSP (the French National
Association of Towns and Regions designated Villes et Pays d’Art et d’Histoire) and Towns
with a Protected Sector or in an Architectural Heritage Protection Zone).

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201541

With regard to the elaboration of the Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape,within the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, thanks to backing
from the French Development Agency (AFD) financial support was provided for theorganisation of a meeting of experts (category VI) in May 2011 to prepare a draft of the
proposed Recommendation prior to its submission to the General Conference. Furthermore,
the Secretariat of the France-UNESO Cooperation Agreement lent support to the preparationof the Recommendation, in particular concerning French terminology.
55 Member States took part in the meeting, which was supported among others by theFrance-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, and which followed Resolution 42 adopted by theGeneral Conference at its 35th session (16 October 2009). A revised draft, includingcomments from Member States, was presented and discussed in 2009. The final draft of a
new UNESCO Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape was completed on 27
May 2011. It is this Recommendation, apart from a few modifications, which was approvedby acclamation on 10 November 2011 at the 36th session of UNESCO’s General Conference(October/November 2011). A glossary of terminology was drawn up to explain technicaltermsThis Recommendation was the first standard-setting instrument concerning a historic urban
issue to be adopted by UNESCO in 35 years. The last one was the 1976 Nairobi
Recommendation concerning the Safeguarding and Contemporary Role of Historic Areas. A‘Recommendation’ is different from ‘Conventions’ in that it is a non-binding document. It
concerns standards that are not subject to ratification, but that Member States are asked to
put into practice, make known and disseminate in the wider community. The document isaccessible on line. http://whc.unesco.org/fr/activities/638/
The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement has taken part in numerous workshops andconferences in order to support the monitoring of the Recommendation on the Historic Urban
Landscape.

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201542

(12) Rivers and Heritage
Learning from experiences of the Rivers and Heritage initiative.
The Rivers and Heritage initiative proposes to support the process of cultural development ofrivers and to contribute to the protection and the management of river sites. While rivers
around the world undergo a new phase of development with significant and controversial
impacts, there is a renewed interest in the river as a common good. For the territories
concerned, the river is considered a resource with multiple cultural, economic, environmental
and social values.
UNESCO’s “Rivers and Heritage” initiative, jointly supported by the sectors of Culture andScience, as well as the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, aimed to promote anddelve further into sociocultural issues connected to the management of water, and to raiseawareness among local populations, public authorities and development agencies.
Demographic expansion and the concentration of populations in river valleys are causing
greater pressure on water resources, notably with agriculture and energy production. The
explosion of urban centers influences the ecological balance of rivers: the discharge of waste
and wastewater pollutes aquatic environments, and uncontrolled planning along riverbanks
creates a barrier between people and the river.
River management comes as a response to a number of economic issues, including water
resources, energy production, river basin management, transport and navigation. In thiscontext, how can the river's natural resources be preserved for local populations faced withthe risk of flooding? How can the fragile nature of these ecosystems be taken into account?
How can the creation of wealth and social value continue along the river's banks? How can
new links be created between people and rivers? “Rivers and Heritage” shares theseconcerns and recognises their international relevance.
The issue of water sharing causes conflicts and is liable to become a major politicalchallenge on the regional level. Decentralisation, at work in a number of African countries,
gives local communities new skills in the area of water and local development. The
juxtaposition of traditional modes of governance and new modes of management causes
conflicts and management problems.
In this context, cultural re-appropriation of the river and a refined knowledge of theseenvironments are essential. In order to anticipate future changes and find a balance between
the needs of the populations and the conservation of the resources, knowledge of the riverand distribution of this knowledge among civil societies and stakeholders is imperative.
The project “Niger-Loire: Governance and Culture”, initiated in 2004 and launched in 2007 to
2011, permitted the exploration of this theme in a comprehensive way, notably throughinventory of river cultures. Other projects supported by the France-UNESCO Cooperation

France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201543

Agreement or its partners also offer interesting food for thought on this theme: The Senegal
River in Saint-Louis (Senegal), the Mekong in Luang Prabang (Lao People's Democratic
Republic), the Ganges in Benares (India), the Daugava in Riga (Latvia), etc.
Capitalisation work has been carried out on this theme in cooperation with different partners(Central Region, Loire Valley Mission, Rhône River House, etc.). A workshop session washeld at the Senate on 24 October 2009 on the theme “river to river”. It enabled a focus oncooperative activities initiated by local communities in support of rivers and exploration of
examples of cooperation from river to river.
In the wake of the meeting at the French Senate in Paris in 2009, a workshop on the theme“Knowledge and Dissemination of Heritage and River Cultures, Perspectives on theDevelopment of River Territories” was organised in November 2010 in Saint-Louis, Senegal,by the Saint-Louis River House in partnership with the Rhône River House. Discussions
began between the World Heritage Centre and the sector of Sciences to launch a “Rivers
and Heritage” initiative to capitalise on the experiences carried out on this theme.
A number of activities initiated by local communities or civil society demonstrate these new
objectives, as the river house experience illustrates. The river house structure can takedifferent forms and follow various objectives according to needs and the local context:
museographic organisations, resource centres to collect information on the river orinformation centres for users and project experimentation. Whatever the scenario, theseplaces provide support for local development. These organisations are centres of knowledge,
information and advice.
In the framework of the “Rivers and Heritage” initiative, a website was created. The “Rivers
and Heritage” website shares the concerns of the process of cultural reclamation of rivers
and recognise realities at the international level. It aims to provide a network for existing
experiences in cultural enhancement of rivers, thus promoting innovation in the area of local
development and governance. Launched in the framework of the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement, and coordinated by its secretariat, the website is managed by the
Val de Loire mission.
In 2014, UNESCO also created with technical support of the France-UNESCO Cooperation
Agreement within the framework of the “Rivers and Heritage” initiative, a UNESCO Chair at
the University François Rabelais de Tours entitled “Rivers and heritage: natural and cultural
diversity of fluvial landscapes”.
The chair will bring together natural sciences and societies to promote cross-disciplinary
studies and training on rivers and river heritages as a heritage for humanity, reservoirs of
biodiversity and places of cultural convergence. The point is to create an international
synergy through the exchange of North/South/South exchanges between universities andmanagement organisations in Europe, South America, Africa and Asia.

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The research will look both at (a) the ecological functioning of river systems under the
influence of development techniques and (b) landscapes as a result of continuousinteractions between societies and their environment. The knowledge acquired will form thebasis of a transfer, to developers/managers, of skills in the sustainable management of
natural resources, preservation of biodiversity and enhancement of landscapes. Activities
include Master's modules, workshops, discussion between scientists and the development ofscientific projects and dissemination (publications, website, and guides).

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(13) Heritage and poverty alleviation (Senegal, Benin, Lao People's Democratic
Republic, China, Guyana)
Urban heritage preservation policies, when separated from development strategies, can leadto a marginalization of the poorest populations. Constraints caused by regulations, in theabsence of assistance mechanisms, lead to the exclusion of certain categories of the
population. In the same way, tourism development stimulates rising property prices anddestabilizes the local commercial infrastructure by threatening services intended for the local
population (schools, local businesses, etc.). The loss in revenue of local communities andthe transformation of their environment often pushes them to leave.
It is in this context that UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre launched a project in 2002 entitled“Poverty Reduction through Sustainable World Heritage Management”. This projects falls
within the framework of a call for proposals, made in 2002, by the Director General of
UNESCO in order to select cross-sector projects on the theme of eliminating poverty andextreme poverty. It aims to promote an approach combining heritage conservation andsustainable development and to explore assistance mechanisms for communities. Fiveproperties inscribed on the World Heritage List or Tentative Lists were selected: The City ofPorto-Novo : ancient districts and Royal Palace (Benin), Island of Saint-Louis (Senegal), The
Ancient Waterfront Towns in the South of Yangtze River (China), Town of Luang Prabang(Lao People's Democratic Republic) and Georgetown (Guyana).
For each site, surveys were carried out in different neighborhoods to study the socioeconomic profile of the inhabitants and land use and property. Based on these studies
different activities were developed such as: establishment of a fund for the rehabilitation of
housing and microcredit, training for income-generating activities, establishing a tourism tax,
and raising awareness in schools. These actions, carried out on a small scale, were basedon projects supported by other programmes in progress on the same sites (projects of theEuropean Union, the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank; decentralizedcooperation agreements).
Within the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement methodologicalsupport was provided for this cross-sector project through economic and legal expertisegiven by the Caisse des dépôts et consignations (a public group serving the general interest
and economic development).
A microcredit project was implemented in Senegal, in Saint-Louis, which led to somesuccessful small scale activities.

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(14) Marine heritage: Support to the Central Pacific project and support to the World
Heritage marine programme
The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement provided support to the valorisation of the
Pacific Marine Heritage and support to the World Heritage Marine Programme.
The “Marine heritage project: Central pacific”, on World Heritage and preparatory assistanceto the transboundary inscription in Kiribati and the Cook Islands fell within the Global
Strategy for a more balanced World Heritage List as initiated by the World Heritage Centre in
1996 and aimed to improve representation of small islands and marine areas of the Pacificzone on the World Heritage List. Only a few rare marine zones of the Pacific Ocean were
inscribed on the World Heritage List in the early 2000’s. In 2002, UNESCO hosted aworkshop in Hanoi, Viet Nam, bringing together experts from 25 countries in order to identify
potential tropical marine zones for the list. More than 40 priority zones were proposed among
which UNESCO launched three pilot projects. The “World Heritage project in the central
Pacific zone” recommended naming a series of geologically ancient atolls and low altitude
coral islands located in the central and remote part of the Pacific Ocean (territories of theUnited States of America, Kiribati, Cook Islands and French Polynesia) in order to inscribe
them on the World Heritage List. These atolls and islands represent essential refuges forflora and fauna (marine and terrestrial), for migratory and sedentary species that reproduce
there, and essential habitats for numerous endemic species that are threatened.
Furthermore, these areas are of volcanic origin and the coral reef exhibits the stages of theevolution that led to the formation of the largest biotopes on earth.
The “World Heritage project in the central Pacific zone” held a first workshop in Honolulu,
Hawaii, in June 2003. Organised in partnership with the UNESCO Office in Apia and several
international experts supported by the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, theworkshop reviewed the natural and cultural characteristics of the various proposed islands
and atolls, discussed the economic and practical long-term management of remote andcross-border insular zones shared by several States Parties, agreed on a series ofprovisional sites and actions relevant to developing the project, and finally identified key
partners in the region.
Subsequently, a second workshop was organised 5 to 9 October 2004 in Kiritimati, thecapital of Kiribati with the support of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement. The
workshop was an opportunity to present the 1972 World Heritage Convention and theprocess for inscription on the World Heritage List. It also confirmed the relevance of thezones proposed by the government of Kiribati, considered new zones to include in thenomination dossier, established an action plan for the nomination proposal, identified aid andpartners Kiribati would need for preparation of the nomination and preservation of the
proposed sites, and discussed the general strategy and future developments of the PacificCentral project within each participating country.

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In this way, the Phoenix Islands Protected Area was inscribed on the World Heritage List in
2010. It was Kiribati Island’s first property to be inscribed on the World Heritage List.
Furthermore, the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement with the support of the French
Ministry of Ecology, provided assistance to the World Heritage Marine Programme. This
programme was launched in 2005 and its mission is to establish effective conservation ofexisting and potential marine areas of Outstanding Universal Value. The three major goals of
the programme are the effective management of World Heritage marine sites, the creation of
an international network of World Heritage marine sites and of a marine World Heritage sitemanagers network.
The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement provided general support to this programme
in terms of substance, the identification of experts, and the organisation of site manager
meetings.
More particularly, the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement provided support to theorganisation of the “2nd Global World Heritage Marine Site Managers Conference”, held in
Ajaccio from 18 to 20 October 2013 and organised by the World Heritage Centre, as well as
support to the organisation of the “Special Evening Event: Celebrating the Crown Jewels of
the Ocean” during the consecutive International Marine Protected Areas Congress (IMPAC3)
that was held in Corsica and in Marseille, France.
In the continuity of the former meetings, and in the pursuit of the valorisation process ofmarine heritage and exchanges of good practices to strengthen the coordination of marine
World Heritage Sites, a meeting of site managers has been organised at the occasion of the“2014 IUCN World Parks Congress” that took place in November 2014 in Sydney, Australia,
on the theme “Parks, People Planet: Inspiring Solutions”.

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(15) Case Studies on the Conservation and Management of Historic Cities
Since 2008, the World Heritage Centre, within the framework of the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement, supported and participated in the initiative “Developing Historic
Cities: Keys for Understanding and Taking Action. A compilation of case studies on theconservation and management of historic cities”. This project was jointly launched by theOrganization of World Heritage Cities (OWHC), the City of Lyon (France), the Getty
Conservation Institute, the Council of Europe, ICOMOS’s International committee on historic
towns and villages (CIVVIH) the World Heritage Centre (in the framework of the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement and extrabudgetary funds from the Netherlands), and theFrench Ministry of Culture with the support of several World Heritage Cities and particularly
French World Heritage Cities (Lyon, Bordeaux, Albi) and UrbaLyon the Lyon urban planning
agencyAdopting a participatory approach based on the experiences of member cities of the OWHC,
the project’s aims were to:• Conduct an analysis of urban conservation and identify tools developed by sitemanagers and decision-makers based on specific cases of urban projects proposedby cities and to share the skills developed by local governments. To identify urban
conservation strategies and processes in light of project implementation, andtherefore to show the positive links between conservation and development;• Prepare a collection of case studies that have been analysed and synthesised withina database;• Create a dynamic partnership within the cities’ network.
This project is part of the interest of different partners and their involvement on issues
pertaining to the role of culture and urban development and on governance and urban
management issues. This case study project also reflects the ongoing international dialogue,
as much led by UNESCO (Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape) as bygovernments (national and local), and development banks that are increasingly becoming
aware of the importance of heritage in urban development strategies. Historic centres, orprotected areas in an urban context, generally represent less than 5% of a city’s area;
however the demands regarding conservation and projects are significant and often poorly or
minimally included in city planning tools or in modernisation and revitalisation projects, which
are very sector based.
In 2010, a partnership with the UrbaLyon, the Lyon urban planning agency, was established,which enabled to develop methodological tools and a framework to analyse the collected
data. This was very positive for the project.

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The 40 case studies collected reflect a significant body of best practices in the area of urban
heritage. The report and analysis are drawn from data provided by the contributing cities that
responded to a questionnaire which was specifically developed for the study. The result of 4
years of work is compiled in 2 volumes, an analysis report and case studies. The 40 casestudies are presented and summarised, standardised in 4-page fact sheets to enable a
comparative analysis.
The first part of each summary presents qualitative and quantitative data on the city and the
project. Schematic maps based on Google Earth identify the city’s boundaries as well as thelimits of the World Heritage property and the perimeter of the project. Finally, the inscription
criteria, the date and a brief description, which are provided by the World Heritage Centre,
indicate the main characteristics of the property. The two central pages describe thechallenges, processes, partners, tools (regulatory, institutional and technical), funding andprogress of the project. The process of implementation and relationships between
stakeholders are described and summarised in diagrams. One section presents therelationship between the project and the value of the property. In conclusion, the last page
presents the results of the urban project and an analysis of the lessons learned andquestions raised.
The analysis of the questionnaires, completed by the participating cities showed ageographical distribution comparable to the general distribution of properties inscribed on theWorld Heritage List. The studies highlight different types of urban and heritage interventions:flow management; conservation and valorisation; planning and development; economic,
social and cultural development; tourism management; governance and public relations;specific financing arrangements; taking energy challenges into account; and crisis
management.
The purpose of this compilation of case studies is to encourage cities and World Heritage
sites to share their practices and issues in a concrete way, as well as to reinforce theimportance of taking heritage values into account as an initial step in urban development
projects. The final publication, “Developing Historic Cities: Keys for Understanding andTaking Action. A compilation of case studies on the conservation and management of historiccities” was made available online in three languages (French, English, and Spanish) in 2012,and hard copies were later published by UNESCO’s World heritage Centre in the frameworkof the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement with the support of the French Ministry of
Culture.
In order to continue the dynamic cooperation and exchange between cities, the City of Lyon
organised with the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement an international meeting in May
2013 entitled “Changing Cities and Heritage Management: New Players? New Practices?” toshare the lessons learned from the case studies and contribute to the debate on methods
that favour interaction between heritage values, urban projects and public expectations. MoreFrance-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201550

than 250 participants from all the regions of the world attended this conference, whichallowed cities and local authorities to express their views. The programme and proceedingsof the meeting are available online.

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(16) Support for the World Heritage Earthen Architecture Programme (WHEAP)
In 2007, the World Heritage Centre, with the support of the France-UNESCO Cooperation
Agreement, launched a study and analysis of the World Heritage List and the Tentative Lists(of States parties which have signed the 1972 World Heritage Convention) to identify earthenarchitecture among the listed properties.
In 2008, the 10th International Conference on the Study and Conservation of Earthen
Architectural Heritage, Terra 2008, provided the opportunity to assess the global situation ofearthen architecture and the scientific research that supports it, and to launch the World
Heritage Earthen Architecture Programme (WHEAP). One of the principal conclusions of theConference was the recognition of the study of earthen architecture as a discipline in its own
right. This growing appreciation creates considerable potential for the dissemination anddevelopment of traditional and new knowledge in the field of earthen architecture
conservation.
It was also following Terra 2008, that the interest for a study and a detailed inventory wasconfirmed. The object of the study, carried out by CRAterre-ENSAG center for the research
and application of earth architecture, Grenoble National School of Architecture (France), wasto establish an up-to-date inventory of earthen architecture properties included on the World
Heritage List and on Tentative Lists and to establish the basis for an analysis, by means of aquestionnaire, of the state of conservation and management of the earthen architecture
properties included on the World Heritage List. This analysis was structured around four
themes: 1. Typology and methods of construction; 2. Current situation of the properties; 3.
Threats to the properties; and 4. Priorities for action. The study provided the opportunity todevelop a roster of experts, site managers and competent national institutions.
This study improved the knowledge of the properties, including the identification of key
issues and requirements, which, in turn, allowed better targeting of both the programme andthe content of its activities of safeguarding and capacity building. It is all the more important
for the World Heritage Centre who manages earthen architecture conservation projects, andmust plan priority actions.
In 2012, the World Heritage Inventory of Earthen Architecture was finalised anddemonstrated the importance of the presence of earthen architecture among the listed
properties. It is available on-line and identifies 150 properties listed per region (Africa, ArabStates, Asia & the Pacific, Europe & North America and Latin America & the Caribbean). It
presents data, provided by site managers; and synthesised in illustrated data sheets, which
present each property in its geographic and cultural context. Furthermore, it describes thecharacteristics and singularities of earthen architecture.

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(17) Support to the thematic programme for Small Island Developing States (SIDS),
support to the Seychelles seminar
Small Island Developing States (SIDS) are islands of the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic,
Indian and Pacific Oceans. They are generally small in size, relatively remote, vulnerable toenvironmental challenges, and offer a valuable cultural and natural heritage. The SIDS wererecognized as a distinct group of developing countries in June 1992, at the UN Conference
on Environment and Development. The 29th session of the World Heritage Committee(Durban, 2005) adopted the World Heritage Programme for SIDS.
The World Heritage Centre organised a sub-regional capacity building workshop for Indian
Ocean Small Island Developing States (SIDS). The workshop focused on the managementof World Heritage property as a lever for local sustainable development and took place 30
April to 3 May 2012, in Victoria, at the Seychelles.
Fourteen people from 5 States parties (Mauritius, Seychelles, Comoros, Maldives andMadagascar) participated alongside representatives of the African World Heritage Fund, theUnited Nations Development Programme (UNPD) and SIDS Caribbean and Pacific. It
allowed the development of the first action plan for SIDS in the Indian Ocean to mobilise
partners and funds and provide a framework for a programme of activities.
The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement provided support to the project by contributing
matching funds to cover the mission costs of one participant.

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(18) Support for international training in France for World Heritage site managers.
Support to the Pôle international francophone (PIF)
Managing a heritage site today involves much more than just conservation. It's also aboutsite protection, enhancement and the arrangements for hosting and managing visitor flows,
as well as commitment to developing the area, respect for the environment, participation in
local economic development, etc. The role of the site manager for properties inscribed on theWorld Heritage List has developed over the past few years; this can also be seen in France,
for examples for sites listed as "Grands Sites de France"(emblematic sites in France
protected under French law). However, we see throughout the world that training andcapacity building still are still failing to meet the needs of effective conservation andenhancement of heritage of all kinds.
Since 2007, the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement has supported training andcapacity building initiatives for heritage management.
The World Heritage Centre has encouraged France to organise training for Francophone
heritage site managers, to improve the skills of these professionals, and even to promote thedevelopment of this role and the protection of sites which are poorly protected or notprotected at all. As a result, the Institut Universitaire Professionnalisé Denis Diderot(University of Burgundy, France), the Cluny campus of the École Nationale Supérieure d'Artset Métiers, France and the archeological site of Bibracte (France), with the support of theFrench Ministry of Culture, decided to establish an international training cycle, in close
collaboration with the World Heritage Centre, for Francophone heritage professionals. The
heritage department of the French Ministry of Culture (then called the "Direction del'architecture et du patrimoine"), the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, several
World Heritage sites, as well as the Réseau des Grands Sites de France (RGSF), a French
network of Sites and the archaeological site of Bibracte contributed to the preparation andimplementation of the first training session in 2007 at the Cluny Campus of the École
nationales supérieure des Arts et Métiers. It brought together twenty-seven participants fromtwelve countries, mostly high-level practising professionals, selected from over sixty
applicants.
The second training session was held from 22 to 28 March 2009. Thereafter, new partners
became involved in support of the training project: the French National Commission for
UNESCO, the Réseau des Grands Sites de France (RGSF), ICOMOS France, the French
Ministry of Ecology and the French Ministry for Foreign Affairs. Finally, the third training
session took place in 2011 and was organised by the Réseau des Grands Sites de France.
For the coordination and provision of training, the Pôle international francophone deformation et d'échanges des gestionnaires de sites patrimoniaux (PIF) was created in 2010
under the auspices of the RGSF, and designed, organised and implemented a series oftraining sessions in 2009, 2011, 2013 and 2015, as well as other thematic workshops.
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The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, thanks to financial support from the French
Ministry of Culture and the French Ministry for Foreign Affairs, contributed to the training
organisation by co-financing the participation costs of several participants and hosting theclosing sessions at the World Heritage Centre.
The intensive training held every two years is an opportunity to share experience, work ingroups and hold expert discussions, as well as making site visits, followed by several days of
immersion in one specific site chosen to suit the needs and profile of each trainee. The
closing session bringing all the participants and PIF partners together is an opportunity totake stock and discuss what has been learned from the training.
PIF/RGSF, with the support of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, has also
created and uploaded an online discussion platform, an important tool for communication
between the managers who participated in the training and a network of heritage
professionals. The development, update and management of the discussion and training
platform is intended as an extension and enhancement of the training activities led by thePole. It should allow the site managers who participated in training sessions to have ongoing
access to up-to-date documentary resources in French, an exchange platform for members,
examples of good practice, and a question-and-answer tool allowing direct exchange ofexperiences between managers. This highly dynamic platform has met with great successsince its creation for the training participants and has become an international network.

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(19) Global Strategy: Support to agro-pastoral cultural landscapes
Pastoralism is defined as a system of livestock farming which depends, for the most part, on
the generally non-intensive use of naturally-occurring plant materials for grazing, either on a
farm or as part of a transhumant or nomadic lifestyle. One of the oldest human practices,
widespread across the world and involving many types of livestock; pastoralism is intimately
connected to the environment and based on a subtle interaction between humans andlandscapes. Cultural pastoral landscapes are complex and take many forms. Culturallandscapes embody this interaction between humans and nature.
Under the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, France therefore supported theorganisation of a number of meetings between experts, who helped to identify the values ofagro-pastoral heritage and the issues at stake in considering agro-pastoral landscapes. This
provided the opportunity for a collective consideration of the issue in operational terms in the
Mediterranean regional.
At the initiative of the French Government, a first thematic meeting of experts on the agropastoral cultural landscapes in the Mediterranean was organised from 20 to 22 September
2007 in Meyrueis, Lozère (France). The objective of this meeting was to create aninternational expert network, to identify and to characterise agro-pastoral heritage and todescribe and analyse it promote its value without turning it into a museum piece. The
meeting was attended by 44 participants, representing 9 countries of the Mediterraneanbasin, as well as UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre, ICOMOS, IUCN, the European Forumon Nature Conservation and Pastoralism (EFNCP), the French state and French regional,
local and departmental authorities. This meeting enabled the creation of a network ofinternational experts on agro-pastoralism.
Subsequently, a second expert meeting on pastoralism was held in Tirana (Albania), from 12
to 14 November 2009 on the theme “Mediterranean pastoralism: cultural and landscape
heritage and sustainable development”, and was organised under the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement by the European University of Tirana, the Mountain Areas
Development Agency (MADA) and the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of MontpellierInternational Centre for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies, with the support of
UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre, the French Ministry of Ecology and the French Ministry of
Culture.
This second meeting, which contributed to a collective effort of promotion and identification of
the global and local heritage in the framework of the World Heritage Convention, enabled
further discussion of the issues of establishing pastoralism heritage and its links withsustainable development. The meeting confirmed the value and interest in pastoralism aswell as its relevance to the category “Evolving cultural landscape”. Approximately 40 experts
participated in this meeting and presented comments on social, cultural, bio-zootechnical andFrance-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201556

agricultural aspects, as well as on territory management and urban planning policy issues. At
the end of the meeting, participants adopted a recommendation identifying the principal
priority areas. The proceedings of this second expert meeting were published by the
CIHEAM (the International Centre for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies), in the“Options Méditerranéennes” collection, and are available on-line.
Following the Tirana meeting and taking forward the decision taken in Meyrueis, in 2009, a
website specifically dedicated to pastoralism was created entitled Mediterranean Network –“Pastoralism and Society”. The aim of this website is to provide the expert network with an
exchange platform and a common working tool. Launched by the CIHEAM-IamM with thesupport of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, this platform gathers researchers,
operators and institutions linked to pastoralism for its recognition as cultural and landscape
heritage in the sense of the 1972 World Heritage Convention. This network which mainly
concerns the Mediterranean region (South West Europe, the Balkan Region, Maghreb and
Near-East) aims to deepen the interactions between humans and nature and more
specifically between the cultural and landscape heritage, the sustainable development of
pastoral areas and pastoral economies in the Mediterranean region.
At the 35th session of the World Heritage Committee (Paris, 2011), The Causses and the
Cévennes, Mediterranean agro-pastoral Cultural Landscape were inscribed on the World
Heritage List and the Committee recommended that France, as a State Party to the World
Heritage Convention, should, among other things:- continue the work begun at the international level to better document agro-pastoral culturallandscapes, with a view to encouraging nominations for inclusion on the World Heritage Listof other properties which reflect distinct and exceptional cultural responses associated withdifferent types of Mediterranean pastoralism.
By way of follow-up to the World Heritage Committee Decision and the further in-depth
consideration of agro-pastoral landscapes, a third expert meeting was organised and washeld from 1 to 5 October 2012 in Montpellier and at the World Heritage site of the Causses
and Cevennes, in France.
Entitled “Cultural Landscape and Sustainable economic development: Managing a CulturalLandscape and Building a new mode of Governance. The Causses and the Cévennes:
Learning from the World Heritage nomination process and the cooperation with the countriesof the Mediterranean basin.” (Patrimoine culturel et développement économique durable :quelle gouvernance et gestion territoriale ? Les Causses et les Cévennes : L’expérienced’une inscription sur la Liste du patrimoine mondial et coopération avec les pays du bassin
méditerranéen), this meeting was organised by the Alliance for the Causses and the
Cévennes (Entente interdépartementale Causses et Cévennes), the Association for the
Promotion of the Causses and Cévennes (AVECC), International Centre for Advanced
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Mediterranean Agronomic Studies/the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Montpellier(CIHEAM/IamM), and the UNESCO World Heritage Centre within the framework of theFrance-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, under the auspices of the French Ministry of
Ecology, the French Ministry of Culture and with the support of The Arab Regional Centre forWorld Heritage (ARC-WH). It took place in Montpellier at the CIHEAM and at the Causses
and Cévennes site.
This third International Meeting on the cultural landscapes of agro-pastoralism was centredon the promotion of cultural landscapes of agro-pastoralism, the governance of the sites, thesharing of experience of preparing nominations on the World Heritage List and thedevelopment of exchanges with the countries of the Mediterranean basin. It enabled theexperiences of the Causses and Cévennes to be capitalised, and the development ofcooperative relationships with the Mediterranean countries with a view to the identification(by researchers and State Party representatives) of new agro-pastoral cultural landscapesand to start to consider the specific governance issues arising in relation to large-scale
properties.
This week of meetings, which gathered around a hundred participants, mobilized several
experts of the countries surrounding the Mediterranean and of the Arab States,
representatives of Swedish and Dutch world heritage sites, a certain number of institutions
such as the FAO, ICOMOS, ICCROM, IUCN, as well as institutions in charge of the
management of the property, research institutes and network representatives (Association
des biens français du patrimoine mondial and the Réseau des grands sites de France(RGSF)).
These meetings focused on three principal topics. A first seminar was held in Montpellier
which presented on one hand the international norms and frameworks regarding heritage,
and on the other hand, the French experience and the elaboration of a nomination. Then,
three and a half days of fieldwork and exchanges took place on the territory of the Causses.
To close this week, three public meetings were organised in three different towns tocomplete the exchanges on the field, enable to inform the residents and talk about the
management-preservation-development of agro-pastoral heritage issues with the local
actors. Each thematic meting enabled the presentation of an example on the international
and another on the local scale.
This week of exchanges helped to promote the World Heritage Convention, the culturallandscapes in general on the local and international level, the local actors, residents,
farmers, elected representatives, and stakeholders as well as the role of culture and heritage
in the socio-economic development. This week was also an opportunity to share experiencesat the local and international level regarding the protection and management challenges of
traditional cultural landscapes and the identification of cultural agro-pastoral landscapes.

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Finally, the week helped to create exchanges and networking between universities, toidentify the needs and requirements in terms of training and management, to produce
training tools, as well as to make an inventory of the World Heritage properties (inscribed on
the World Heritage List and on the Tentative Lists) which relate to agricultural and pastoral
practices.

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(20) Seminar at the Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans (France) on Tourism and World
Heritage Sites
An international expert meeting focusing on “Tourism and World Heritage Sites” was heldfrom 6 to 8 March 2008 at the Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans, France. (The Saltwork ispart of a property inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1982: From the Great Saltworks ofSalins-les-Bains to the Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans, the Production of Open-pan Salt).
This workshop was organized as part of an initiative to raise the profile of tourism andmanagement for World Heritage Sites, and to provide site managers with a set of principles,
tools, and methods to develop skills and technical capacity. A group representing UNESCO
and the World Heritage Centre, with the support of the France-UNESCO Cooperation
Agreement, several international NGOs, and representatives from various ministries andsites also participated. Over the course of several meetings, participants discussed the
management of tourism and the public use of protected regions in general, and World
Heritage properties particularly.
The goal of this initiative is to understand existing obstacles and provide site managers withnew ideas and innovative tools to surmount those obstacles, to increase managerial
efficiency, and develop sustainable financing mechanisms and the administration’s ability towork in conjunction with its constituent bodies. Currently, one of the main concerns of World
heritage sites is unexpected and uncontrolled tourist pressure, along with the development of
infrastructure that is incompatible with the Outstanding Universal Value of these sites. Evenas pressure grows, the advisory bodies of the World Heritage Centre, including the IUCN,ICOMOS and ICCROM, as well as major stakeholders, such as the World Bank and
UNWTO, are not yet able to provide common policies and approaches on tourism
development and management issues. The hope was that this exercise would develop not
only a range of common working practices, but would also lead to the adoption of a series ofmanagement instruments which would form the basis of a World Heritage programme on
tourism and visitor management. This would lead to the training of experts who would use
similar methods, working in pre-selected World Heritage properties, who would then train site
staff on these common methods, and would facilitate the creation of local or regional
networks or platforms that could use the World Heritage sites as an anchor point for training.
Subsequently, further work and discussions took place and workshops were organised whichlead to the development of the World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism Programme,
adopted by the World Heritage Committee at its 36th session (Saint Petersburg, 2012).

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(21) Seminar in Cinque Terre (Italy) on cultural landscapes
In 1992, the World Heritage Committee changed the Operational Guidelines for the
inscription of cultural landscapes on the World Heritage List. It was defined as the “combined
works of nature and man” as set out in Article I of the 1972 World Heritage Convention.
Within the framework of the Global Strategy, studies and conferences were held on thetheme of cultural landscapes in Africa, Asia-Pacific, the Andes, and in Europe (West andEast). In 1999, a workshop was organized on the management of cultural landscapes in
Slovakia. Experts recommended preparing a guide for the management of culturallandscapes to assist site managers, which cover a wide variety of interactive events between
man and his natural environment.
In 2000, supported by the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, UNESCO funded theparticipation of five experts and took part at the workshop to prepare the guide. Eight experts
participated in the final meeting, which took place in Cinque Terre, Italy, from 18 to 20 March
2001. (The property Portovenere, Cinque Terre, and the Islands (Palmaria, Tino and Tinetto)
is inscribed on the World Heritage List since 1997.)

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(22) “Public works and heritage”. International seminar in Paris, (France) on bridges
Connecting river banks and cultures, bridge are a work which has, today, acquired great
symbolic value, whether as historical testimony or contemporary creation. Reconstruction of
the Mostar Bridge (which is part of a property inscribed on the World Heritage List in
2005: Old Bridge Area of the Old City of Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina) has been aparticularly strong example of this, and, more recently, the shock caused by destruction(Bordeaux, France) and construction (Dresden, Germany), plus numerous other cases
the World Heritage Committee faces.
From a heritage perspective numerous bridges protected by national status or included on
the World Heritage List are threatened today. How can new uses and rules for identicalrestoration, respect for authenticity, and the needs of traffic and safety be reconciled? Can
the construction of new bridges in protected sites enhance their character? How canplanning and economic development be reconciled without altering the traditional landscape?
From a development perspective, numerous new infrastructure projects may threaten areas,
sites and landscapes and have impacts which need to be clearly evaluated hopefully before
the project design. Because what is at stake here, is managing change and sustainable
territorial development and insuring that culture and heritage’s importance is fully taken into
account.
This international seminar was held from 26 to 28 November 2008, in Paris, France, under
the auspices of UNESCO. It was co-sponsored by the National Institute of Cultural Heritage(INP) and the Cité de l’architecture et du patrimoine (centre for architectural study, research,
exhibition and museum) with the participation of the French National Commission, l'École
nationale des Ponts et Chaussées (school of engineering), and the French Ministry of
Culture within the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement. It enabled
review of heritage issues connected to this type of construction and the degrees ofknowledge and inventory; protections implemented and omitted; issues of restoration anddevelopment; uses reserved for decommissioned bridges, etc. Several participantspresented case studies connected to issues of authenticity, restoration pressures andupgrading. A number of contemporary projects were presented focusing on the complexity ofthis type of operation, the gap in professional knowledge, problems in governance in the areaof infrastructure projects and standardization of decision-making processes at the local andnational levels.

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Africa: Regional projects(23) Capacity building “Cultural heritage and local development”, 18-21 November
2008, Porto Novo, Benin
Held on 18-21 November 2008 in Porto Novo, Benin, the first training session of the
programme “Cultural heritage and local development” gathered local representatives from
Benin, Togo and Burkina Faso. Held at the Scool of African Heritage (EPA) with support of
the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, this first training session aimed to raiseawareness on cultural heritage and local development in Africa for local representatives andmunicipal staff was planned jointly with the workshop of the Directors of cultural heritage of
the “Africa 2009 Programme”.
The first day of the training session focused on the technical aspects of cultural heritage andaimed to build capacity specifically among local authorities and experts. Participants of thefirst training session were able to analyse a case study based on the fieldtrip organised aspart of the workshop to see the heritage work carried out by the City of Porto Novo, some ofwhich is implemented in the framework of the decentralised cooperation with the City ofLyon, France.
Days two and three of the first training session (19-20 November 2008) gave focus to the
dialogue between central and local decision makers. The Directors of cultural heritage for the“Africa 2009 Programme” exchanged with the attending local representatives and addressed
the question of decentralisation in their respective countries.
Workshop discussions led to the identification of the following main themes:• 1. Institutional relations and regulations• 2. Financial, economic and social potential• 3. Urban regulations, development plan and construction permits• 4. Capacity building
The closure of the elected representative training session was co-organised with the closureof the “Africa 2009 Programme” on 21 November 2008 in the presence of the Minister ofCulture of Benin.
The recommendations from the training sessions, as well as the conclusions of its four
working groups are available in a summary of discussions.

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(24) Urban heritage and local development in Africa: participation in the Africities
Summits
The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement developed several activities centred on
heritage and sustainable local development in Africa in particular.
Since 2003, this Cooperation Agreement initiated the organisation of special sessions on
heritage and sustainable development at the Africities Summits. Three sessions took place –at the Africities 3 Summit, which was held from 2 to 6 December 2003 in Yaoundé,
Cameroon, at the Africities 4 Summit, which took place from 18 to 24 September 2006 in
Nairobi, Kenya, and finally, at the Africities 5 Summit, which was organised from 1 to 5
December 2009 in Marrakech, Morocco. These sessions were the opportunity begin to bring
together and raise awareness among the African stakeholders on the role heritage can play
as a driver of national development and to launch projects to develop awareness raising or
capacity building tools, or actual operational projects.
The Africities 3 Summit (in Yaoundé, Cameroon 2003) focusing on “Accelerating access tobasic services in African local governments”, was the opportunity for the Partenariat pour ledéveloppement municipal (PDM) (Partnership for Municipal Development) and the UNESCOWorld Heritage Centre, in the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement toengage in a collaboration to ensure that African municipalities are concerned with heritage
issues. The special session led to the development of a book “Cultural Heritage and Local
Development. A Guide for African Local Governments”, which was created as tool to help
decision making, but also to engage local officials in the protection and promotion of theirheritage. This book, prepared at the request of the local African city authorities, was coedited by the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement and CRATerre ENSAG, andpublished by UNESCO in 2006.
The Africities 4 Summit (in Nairobi, Kenya 2006) focused on “Building local coalitions toachieve the Millennium Development Goals in African local governments”. The generalprogramme of the summit was structured around eight thematic sessions, corresponding to
the eight millennium goals, and special sessions, centred on more specific subjects. The
France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement with the support of the French Ministry of Public
Works, the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the French Ministry of Culture, has beenpresented again at Africities by organising a second session which focused on broadening
the discussions. This special session “Patrimoine culturel des villes et territoires, les enjeux
du partenariat” (Cultural heritage of towns and territories. The issues and challenges ofpartnerships) which took place on 20 September 2006 during Africities 4, was organised incooperation with the World Heritage Centre and the Val de Loire mission. It enabled
discussions to continue on the role culture and heritage play in development and to present
and distribute the book “Cultural Heritage and Local Development. Guide for African Local
Governments”.

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At the session, officials emphasised the primary importance of training, not only for municipal
technicians, but also for decision-makers, and requested that the World Heritage Centre
prepare and carry out training on heritage and cultural resource management. The firstphase of reflection on a global training strategy and its implementation took place at a threeday meeting held in Paris, France in September 2007. This meeting allowed key actors
within the area of heritage and town planning in African local governments to meet, toappreciate their shared interests and to review their expectations with regards to the training
to be developed.
Based on the outcomes of these events, a two-year pilot phase (2008-2009) was launched to
conduct the training. The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement and the PDM, joined by
the International Association of Francophone Mayors (AIMF) in 2008, were the project
leaders, with technical assistance of CRATerre ENSAG. The first training session of the
programme “Cultural heritage and local development”, for officials of Benin, Togo andBurkina Faso, took place in November 2008 in Porto Novo, Benin, from 18 to 21 November.
This awareness-raising seminar, which took place at the École du patrimoine africain (ÉPA)(School of African Heritage), was organised jointly with the workshop for Cultural Heritage
Directors of the Africa 2009 Programme.
Then, in 2009, training was planned at the national level for Mali and Mauritania. A project
proposal, supported and initiated by the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement who
carried out the project design, was submitted to the European Union. The project selected forfunding by the European Union had the AIMF as leader to significantly facilitate the progressof the activity during the period of three years, with the support of the World Heritage Centre
in the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement. This project met ademand clearly expressed by the African elected representatives and provided for theorganisation of four awareness-raising sessions and two knowledge exchange workshops forthe elected representatives, as well as four training sessions and two in-depth classes for
local government technical staff. There was also a section on “knowledge enhancement”,
which allowed the parameters of the training content to be set at the start of the project, anda “dissemination and communication” section about the project and issues at stake.
The Africities 5 Summit (in Marrakesh, Morocco in 2009) reflected on “the response of local
and regional African governments to the global crisis: promoting sustainable local
development and employment”. During this Summit, the France-UNESCO Cooperation
Agreement coordinated the participation of UNESCO in a 3rd special training session entitled“Heritage and Development: Diversity as an Alternative”. The training session was funded by
the European Union and directed by the AIMF. Approximately 60 participants attended thesession including a large number of mayors.

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65

This fifth Africities edition emerged as the “maturity Summit”. Since the first session, “African
cities and heritage”, organised by UNESCO in the framework of the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement in 2003, the African local governments took ownership of the issueof heritage. It was found that several nomination proposals on the World Heritage List had
been put forward at the initiative of the governments themselves and inventory or restoration
experiments had been undertaken in many cities.
Furthermore, an evolution was also noticed in the way heritage was considered, being seen
now in a broader sense to also comprise of architectural and urban heritage, places ofmemory, practices and cultural expressions. The presentations demonstrated the political willof elected representatives to be involved in preservation of the heritage and cultural identity.
The presentations also demonstrated that cooperation between local governments, national
heritage management bodies and universities is becoming stronger and more structured. In
this sense, recommendations were adopted and have been communicated in the official
documents of the Summit.
Finally, the project “Patrimoine culturel et enjeux territoriaux en Afrique francophone” (cultural
heritage and local issues in Francophone Africa) ended in December 2012. The results of the
projects have been summarised in a handbook. This book, designed as a decision-making
tool, aims to support the heritage policies adopted by African local governments in a context
where those operating at a local level play a greater role. This publication, aimed primarily atelected representatives and technical staff working in local government, is also relevant toheritage professionals and was published in December 2012.

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(25) Handbook on Cultural Heritage and Local Development for African Local
Governments PublishedThe handbook "Cultural heritage and local development: A Guide for African local
governments", co-edited by the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement and CRATerreENSAG in 2006, was designed as a tool for decision making, but also for sensitising theelected representatives to the challenges of the protection and valorisation of their heritage.
It aims to create a new dynamic and focus on the specificity of the culture and heritage of thelocal African communities as a lever for territorial development.
This guide was written with the support of the World Heritage Centre, the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement team, the School of African Heritage (École du Patrimoine Africain(EPA)), the École Africaine des Métiers de l'Architecture et de l'Urbanisme (EAMAU) and theMunicipal Development Programme (PDM), and launched on 20 September 2006 during thespecial session “Cultural heritage of towns and territories, the aims of the partnership” atSommet Africités 4 (African cities Summit) organised in Nairobi, Kenya.
This publication was developed in response to the request of African mayors formulated
during the special session “Africans towns and heritage”, organised by the World Heritage
Centre and the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement at the Sommet Africités 3 (African
cities Summit) which took place in Yaoundé, Cameroon, in 2003.
The guide aims to raise awareness on the safeguarding and valorisation of cultural heritage,
and more generally, on the relevance of a global cultural project as a component of an
economic and social development policy. It is the result of the vast involvement andparticipation of several African professionals. A call for participation was issued on the
African continent for more than 250 professionals in the field of culture to contribute on anumber of selected topics. After a short methodological section, the guide presents a seriesof case studies in several African countries, which show the variety and richness of African
cultural heritage, and the means of safeguarding it.
It is structured in three parts:• A thoroughly illustrated "definitions" chapter, providing answers to questions dealing withthe definition of heritage, and more particularly, the African heritage• A second chapter is dedicated to the links existing between the heritage resources andthe development of the territory; it tackles the following questions: why should we beinterested in heritage? How can we integrate heritage into regional planning policies?
How can we reconcile heritage and modernity?
• A third part gives indications for the implementation of a development policy which
integrates cultural heritage and provides a series of examples of operations.
This guide which was largely disseminated during Sommet Africités 4 in 2006, and through
UNESCO’s partner networks, was a great success and was reprinted in September 2007.

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(26) Durban Meeting (South Africa) on transboundary properties in Africa
In Africa, natural heritage is often protected and sustained because it belongs to a sharedsystem of belief and culture. Furthermore, many cultural and natural properties aretransnational, and are either they are protected by the same shared beliefs or building
technics in different countries. This is why it is important to consider African properties forboth their natural and cultural components, and in a transnational dimension, as theworkshop entitled "Inter-African Meeting on the designation and the implementation ofmanagement plans for the transboundary natural properties designated or in the course ofbeing designated as World Heritage sites" highlighted.
Organized on the sidelines of the Vth IUCN World Parks Congress in Durban, South Africa,
September 2003, the workshop convened 76 participants (mostly from francophone Africancountries, 16 of whom received technical assistance under the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement to take part in the meeting) who contributed to the definition of future
directions and future development of the conservation and management of protected areas,
and the development of networks for site managers.
This workshop was a milestone for dialogue on the topic of transboundary and serial sites.
The inscription of new serial properties such as the Rainforests of the Atsinanaga
in Madagascar, or the preparation of new transboundary nominations such as the Sangha
Trinational (a forest complex divided between Congo, Cameroon and the Central African
Republic, inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2012) are the product of recommendations
put forward in Durban. Work on these serial properties is not confined only to naturalproperties but extends to complex cultural properties as well.
The results of the Vth IUCN World Parks Congress in Durban, South Africa, September 2003
are published in the World Heritage Reports n°16 (January 2005).

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(27) Meetings in Paris (France) for the Directors of cultural heritage of Francophone
Sub-Saharan countries
Within the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, the French Ministry of
Culture and the Director General of heritage for several African countries organized a weekof meetings for directors of the francophone Sub-Saharan heritage areas in cooperation with
the National Heritage Institute, the Musée du Quai Branly (a museum, research andeducational centre located in Paris, France), the Centre of National Monuments, theUniversité numérique Francophone Mondik (which promotes Francophone distanceeducation and e-learning), the International Council of Museums (ICOM) and the World
Heritage Centre. This activity was held following the Second Cycle of Periodic Reporting in
Africa exercise. Representatives of Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Congo,
Mali, Niger, Democratic Republic of the Congo and the representative of the Economic
Community of West African States participated in this week-long meeting.
The meeting began on 22 October 2012 with a workshop on “The Heritage of African
Kingdoms and Empires: Between Public and Private Heritage” and was followed by four daysof expert exchanges, meetings and debates with African professionals and French heritage
institutes. It examined how modes of traditional management in today’s State governancesystems are taken into account. 25 October was a day of reflection on the challenges andissues of conservation, management and valorisation of World Heritage in development andplanning policies and the implications for local populations. The objective was to identify
projects that could be developed within the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation
Agreement.

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(28) Support for the Second Cycle of the Periodic Reporting for Africa
Once every six years States Parties undertake Periodic Reporting (on a regional basis),regarding the application of the 1972 World Heritage Convention at the national and World
Heritage properties level. This is a system for monitoring the Convention but it is much morethan an administrative report, it is an opportunity to assess the application of the Convention,
to identify challenges, to update information, to develop action plans, and, above all, toanalyse tools and methods to strengthen the effective management and conservation ofWorld Heritage properties. The dual task of analysis and monitoring at the national and local
levels is particularly important. It also allows to collect a very important range of data fromone cycle to the other.
For Africa, the First Cycle of Periodic Reporting was launched in January 2000 and finalisedin 2002. The Second Cycle of Periodic Reporting for Africa was launched in January 2010
and finalised in 2011.
To assist States Parties with the implementation of this exercise, the World Heritage
Centre organised a number of technical meetings which brought together the mainstakeholders involved in the implementation of the Periodic Reporting system, on a subregional basis. Under the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, the French Government
contributed to the funding of the following meetings and participated in the final meeting
below:• launch meeting of the Second Cycle of Periodic Reporting for Africa, hosted by Senegal,in Dakar, from 20 to 22 January 2010, which brought together forty-two West African
States Parties for the purposes of sharing the methodology and strategy tools required
for the preparation of the various Reports;• meeting of the sub-regional Francophone group in Yaoundé, Cameroon;• final meeting at the World Heritage Property of Vredefort Dome, South Africa (inFebruary 2011).
The Periodic Reporting for Africa was presented at the 35th Session of the World Heritage
Committee (Paris, 2011). Recommendations for an action plan were to:
1. Strengthen the legislative and regulatory frameworks applicable to World Heritage
Properties and the surrounding areas in order to restrict infrastructure and development
projects;
2. Increase the involvement of local communities and peoples in decision-making and local
management processes and boost the direct benefits for communities with properties on
the World Heritage List;
3. Increase the World Heritage Committee’s focus on, and support for, World Heritage
Properties in post-conflict zones;
4. Build capacities in restoration and conservation activities (i.e. conservation, risk
management, visitor information and management, consideration of local peoples andcommunities);
5. Identify factors affecting World Heritage Properties in the coming years (the extractive
industries, climate change, the illegal exploitation of biological resources, etc.).
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(29) Support for African local governments in the field of heritage (EU-AIMF project)
In 2009, a programme called “Heritage and Development” was initiated under the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement to respond to the requests expressed during the special
sessions of the Africities Summits on heritage and local development in Africa. The project
aimed to strengthen the capacities of West African local governments.
It was initiated by the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, which provided seedfunding and project design assistance for the purposes of obtaining funding from theEuropean Union. Finally led by the International Association of Francophone Mayors (AIMF),
and financed by the European Union, it was implemented in partnership with the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement and the World Heritage Centre which provided technicalsupport.
The
project
targeted
fivecountries: Senegal, Benin, Mauritania, Cabo
Verde and Mali. As part of the Steering Committee and the education team, the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement took part in the training sessions and was involved incapitalisation work for the project.
These sessions raised participants’ awareness of the value of their heritage and encouraged
them to design and pursue cultural development projects in their local areas. Around 100
projects were developed in the five beneficiary countries in a wide range of fields including
immovable heritage, itineraries and routes, museums, cultural landscapes, sacred places
and spaces and intangible heritage. The projects underlined the maturity of the local
communities’ thinking and the diverse nature of their approaches to heritage. Some of the
projects were subsequently submitted for third-party funding (in particular by the European
Union), which guaranteed continuation in future.
Along with these national technical sessions, a regional exchange seminar was organisedin Grand Bassam, Côte d’Ivoire, from 7 to 9 October 2011on the theme of cooperation
between the State, local governments and traditional custodians in the management of
heritage. Hosted by the community of Grand Bassam, it was the second regional seminar of
the project following the Cabo Verde seminar in April 2011. It enabled dialogue between
heritage directors and mayors, encouraging cooperation between them.
As a conclusion of the project, a handbook entitled “Patrimoine culturel et enjeux territoriaux
en Afrique francophone” (cultural heritage and local issues in Francophone Africa) was
published in December 2012, by the AIMF and in close collaboration with the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement and the World heritage Centre. Designed as a decisionmaking tool, it helps to support the heritage policies adopted by African local governments, ina context where those operating at local level are playing a greater role. This book, which isprimarily aimed at elected representatives and technical staff working in local government, isalso relevant to heritage professionals.

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(30) Support to the School of African Heritage (EPA), Porto Novo, Benin
Over a span of ten years, the PRÉMA (Preventive conservation in museums of Africa)
programme has trained more than 400 African professionals in preventative conservationand exhibition methods. As such, the School of African Heritage (EPA), Porto Novo (Benin),in liaison with the cultural heritage decision makers of 27 African countries involved in the
programme, requested from both UNESCO and other partners, support for a course to train“patrimoniteurs” (heritage professionals). These professionals are essential in the promotionof the educational and tourism components of the collections of African heritage. Under theframework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, technical and pedagogicalassistance was provided to set up a distance learning module. Specifically adapted to thetraining needs of the School of African Heritage, this project involved a distance education
programme carried out in partnership with the French National Centre for Distance Education(CNED) and the University of Provence in order to create a bachelor degree of design andimplementation of Cultural Projects.
Two degree courses were developed for African heritage professionals, both oriented
towards professional training. An applied bachelor of preventative conservation (Museums
and Archives) in partnership with the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, France, anda bachelor of cultural mediation in partnership with the University of Provence.

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(31) Seminar on raising awareness on Global Strategy in the South West islands of the
Indian Ocean and Madagascar
In 1994, the World Heritage Committee launched the Global Strategy for a representative,
balanced and credible World Heritage List. Crucial to the Global Strategy are efforts toencourage the nomination of properties from categories and regions that areunderrepresented on the World Heritage List. Thus, at the initiative of the Malagasy National
Commission for UNESCO, and the Malagasy Ministry of Culture and Heritage, with support
from the World Heritage Centre and the support of the France-UNESCO Cooperation
Agreement, a seminar was organised from 2- 5 October 2001, in Antananarivo(Madagascar), to raise awareness of the Global Strategy for the south-west islands of the
Indian Ocean. The seminar enabled preparation of an inventory of attributes for the naturaland cultural heritage in this region situated in the Indian Ocean.
It has also been the framework for work on the establishment of Tentative Lists,
indispensable for nomination proposals. Sites were identified for nomination, some of which
regroup several islands. The representatives for the different islands expressed the need forcooperation in the field of preparatory assistance for inscription on the World Heritage List,
and the need for capacity building and awareness raising activities for local stakeholders.
The Regional Direction of Cultural Affairs (DRAC) of La Reunion (France) should play abigger role in the development of cooperation in the field of heritage among the various
islands.

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(32) Sub-regional seminar in Mauritius on awareness raising and presentation of
Tentative Lists for the Indian Ocean islands
In October 2001, initiated by UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre, with the support of theFrance-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, a workshop focused on Global Strategy raisingawareness of the heritage of the Islands of the southwest Indian Ocean brought together
representatives of 5 States Parties (Mauritius, Madagascar, Seychelles, Comoros andFrance (Reunion)) in Madagascar. The workshop aimed to promote awareness andknowledge of the 1972 World Heritage Convention to the region, to reinforce its impact andmobilize national and local officials.
Following the 2001 meeting, an international workshop was organized in Mauritius, in April
2003 with the same goal of raising awareness of the 1972 World Heritage Convention. The
rich and passionate debates reflected the difficulty to agree on a definition of the island’s own
heritage. In the beginning of the 21st century, the history of the colonial periods of theprevious three centuries raised a lot of reluctance. The legacy of this long period marked bymany tragic events is sensitively recognized as a component of the national cultural identity.
In parallel with the 2003 workshop, technical support was provided to the State Party toadvise on adapting the heritage legislation to current standards and consider issues ofpluralism and cultural diversity.
The Black River Georges National Park was inscribed on the Tentative Lists in 2006, and Le
Morne Cultural Landscape (Mauritius) was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2008.

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(33) Seminar in Niamey (Niger) on Global Strategy in West Africa
Following the 4th Global Strategy Meeting for West Africa, 16 to 19 September 1998, Porto
Novo, Benin, nine African States Parties to the 1972 World Heritage Convention were invited
to a meeting organised by the World Heritage Centre and the UNESCO Office in Nairobi.
One goal was to identify cultural landscape categories symbolic of African heritage ofoutstanding universal value. Following this, Niger expressed its intention to host andorganise a Global Strategy seminar in West Africa.
Twenty experts representing African, Anglophone and Francophone countries participated at
this meeting (Benin, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Niger, Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda,
and Zimbabwe) as well as representatives of ICOMOS, IUCN, and UNESCO. The
discussions helped to raise awareness of the World Heritage Convention, to disseminate
the Operational Guidelines provided an opportunity to emphasise the specificity of somenotions such as ownership, the definition of boundaries, and, more particularly, thenecessary involvement of local communities at all stages of the inscription process and the
management of the sites.
Finally, a presentation of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement technical support
helped to clarify different types of assistance, ranging from preparatory assistance todecentralised co-operation, including capacity building activities to provide support to States
Parties to implement the Global Strategy.

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Africa(34) South Africa and LesothoTechnical and preparatory assistance for the inscription of iSimangaliso Wetland Parkand Maloti-Drakensberg Park, South Africa and Lesotho
The rationale of this project was to provide technical assistance through an advisory mission
for the development of management mechanisms and tourism management for two recently
inscribed sites, one natural and one mixed site.
Following the presentation of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement at the 24th
session of the World Heritage Committee (Cairns, 2000), the South African authorities, eager
to address management issues on the sites following inscription, requested French expertisefor the establishment of a management plan and sustainable tourism plan for the sitesof iSimangaliso Wetland Park (initially inscribed in 1999 as Greater St Lucia Wetland Park)and Maloti-Drakensberg Park (at the time, listed as Drakensberg Park in 2000), South Africa.
Two French experts (seconded by the French Ministry of Ecology and the French Ministry of
Culture) with complementary skills in the field of management of cultural properties and in
the field of tourism management in protected areas, undertook a mission from 5 to 18 May
2002. The field visit included in-depth analysis combined with on-site meetings with local
managers and partners and debriefing and discussion sessions. The schedule, organized by
the staff of the KwaZulu-Natal Wildlife Conservation Service (KZN), enabled the experts tobe as productive as possible in a short period.
This one time technical assistance mission focused on several key points: evaluation of theimplementation of the St. Lucia World Heritage natural site management plan and possible
modifications, examination of problems arising from adoption of a plan incorporating bothpublic and private properties. The experts provided the authorities with recommendations forsite development based on integrated site management; recommendation for a humanresource management training programme; recommendation for a natural resource
management training programme (with modules on the information for, and involvement of,
the local community, tourist information, site development through organization of events,
etc.)
In 2013, the extension of Maloti-Drakensberg Park was approved, and in 2008 Greater St
Lucia Wetland Park became iSimangaliso Wetland Park.

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(35) Angola
Strategy for the preservation of rock art sites in Angola
Rock art is one of the most interesting types of remains for the study of ancient civilisations.
It is a fragile and vulnerable form of heritage which can become the subject of degradation asa result of mass tourism and malicious acts. The geographical location of Angola places thecountry at the heart of a vast grouping of rock art. The sites, which date from the Lower
Paleolithic Period to the Neolithic Period (involving megalithic constructions), contain works
with an exceptional variety of form, colour and cultural significance.
Between 1999 and 2001 the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement was requested toprovide experts for developing a strategy for protecting the rock art sites of Southern Angola.
A technical assistance mission was organised in 2000 to analyse the condition of the sites
and to draw up a project for their conservation, protection and valorisation. The mission
recommended the sites be inscribed on the World Heritage List and implementation of anational strategy for the management and valorisation of the sites.

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(36) Benin
Preparatory assistance for the Slave Route, Benin
Wishing to submit the Slave Route (running from Djougou in the north of Benin to Ouidah,
and passing through the Royal Palaces of Abomey) for inscription on the World Heritage List,
the Benin authorities submitted a preparatory assistance request to the World Heritage
Centre in 1999. The project objectives were to provide assistance in the assessment andidentification of heritage values, and improve the management capacities of local authorities,
particularly through training programmes for the preservation and enhancement of the site.
Beginning in the year 2000, experts conducted a series of technical and advisory missions towork on the nomination dossier. It was originally submitted in 2002, but was declared
incomplete. In October of the same year, an advisory mission was organised under
the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, in cooperation with the cities of Lyon andMelun (France), which recommended emergency conservation actions and provided
guidance for the nomination.
Subsequently Benin authorities continued the work to identify constitutive elements for a
serial inscription, and the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement was requested toprovide a new preparatory assistance in 2013 implemented with the support of CRATerreENSAG.

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(37) Cameroon
Preparatory assistance for the updating of the national inventory of cultural heritageof Cameroon
In order to identify and protect its heritage, Cameroon launched a national inventory ofcultural heritage in 2001. The French Embassy in Cameroon passed on the request fortechnical assistance to the French Ministry of Culture in the Directorate of Architecture andHeritage, who in turn informed UNESCO. Two methodological training missions thenfollowed in 2001, at the request of UNESCO’s Culture Sector (at the time the Division of
Tangible Heritage). Thereafter, a commission for coordination and follow-up was created that
produced a practical manual for field researchers and data collection which was distributed in
the country’s ten provinces. The inventorying was implemented in two pilot regions of thewest and northwest where 200 inventory sheets were created. Mainly they include movable
objects.
In 2002, a follow-up mission was undertaken within the framework of the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement to evaluate the implementation status of Cameroon’s national
inventory of cultural property, to organize a heritage workshop and to consider the creation ofa national museum. The field surveys had started in the two pilot regions of the west andnorthwest following training of the field researchers and work with the local authorities whothemselves sent lists of what they considered to be heritage. The challenges to establish an
inventory of cultural heritage are scientific (data collection and processing), administrative
and technical (equipment shortage, especially cameras, hardware and software) in nature.
Researchers were very competent and had a real interest, which was widely shared amongst
the population, demonstrating an awareness of the value a heritage inventory can have in asociety.

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(38) Comoros
Support for the identification, safeguarding and protection of heritage in Comoros
The Comoros islands possess a rich cultural and material heritage as well as a richintangible heritage. The Comoros ratified the World Heritage Convention in 2000 and
identified 4 sites for inscription on the Tentative List. No site has as yet been inscribed on theWorld Heritage List, but work has started on the ‘Historic Sultanates of the Comoros’.
The Collectif du Patrimoine des Comores (CPC), an NGO, whose aim is to protect and raiseawareness of the cultural heritage and sites in the Comoros, was created on 10 June 2006
by a group from the Comoran diaspora and friends of the Comoros. Its headquarters are in
Paris.
Since 2012, within the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, andthanks to support from the French Ministry of Culture and French Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
the World Heritage Centre has supported the CPC in its attempt to develop, protect and raise
public awareness of Comoran heritage.
Technical aid and assessment missions took place in 2013 to develop a training
plan/programme to protect the monument heritage, and to prepare an inventory andassessment of the state of conservation at the Ujumbé Palace at Anjouan, where arestoration project was initiated by the CPC several years ago. Following this first mission, in
2014, a joint technical mission by the CPC and the national association Chantiers Histoire etArchitecture Médiévales (C.H.A.M), an organisation that employs young volunteers toconserve built heritage, specifically targeted at the Ujumbé Palace carried out an evaluationof both the restoration work and the state of conservation of all the timber and woodcomponents of the Palace, as well as an intervention protocol for theirconservation/restoration.
In 2012 and 2014 support was given to the CPC and to the Ecole Nationale Supérieured’Architecture et de Paysage de Lille (ENASPL) –French National School of Architecture andLandscape Design of Lille -- to carry out fact finding missions, to produce an inventory of the
medina at Mutsamudu and, most importantly, to draw up and publish a “Recueil de relevésdu patrimoine architectural et urbain des Sultanats historiques des Comores” (Inventory of
the architectural and urban heritage of the Historic Sultanates of the Comoros). In order to
get a better understanding of the architectural, urban and landscape heritage and to better
protect it, a collection of photographs, drawings and plans was drawn up. The objective of
pinpointing and identifying locations in this way was to create a document that could be used
as a basis on which to build a collection of graphic documents that would be useful forunderstanding and for conservation projects as well as for the implementation of planningand regional development tools.

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Work on this inventory will have to be expanded by additional research into sources andarchives in order to clarify the historical context. Eventually this documentation will be able tobe used to prepare a proposal for inscription on the World Heritage List and to establish
regional management and urban development tools.
In 2014 the CPC gave technical support for the drawing up of the request for International
Assistance under the World Heritage Funds.

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(39) Congo
Preparatory assistance for inscription of the Royal Domain of Mbé cultural landscape,
Congo

Located 200km from Brazzaville, Congo, the Royal Domain of the Mbé was inscribed on the
Tentative Lists in 2008. The property, which is also of significant historical value, is made up
of a group of areas linked to the culture of the Téké people and spreads across a vastterritory. Villages, sacred forests, places of faith and memory highlight the history of the
kingdom and the interaction of the Téké people with their surroundings. The management of
the land is associated with beliefs and traditions (appointment rites, investiture or funerals,
epics, etc.). Although these traditional practices governed by the Nkouembali code havedeep roots, the universal value of the site has been threatened by the exploitation of natural
resources (slash-and-burn farming, forest exploitation) and the disappearance of the natural
habitat.
The UNESCO Office in Brazzaville assisted in establishing an action plan for the preparationof the nomination dossier. This long-term work was based on complementary research
projects and the establishment of regulations and management mechanisms (especiallyconcerning cultural and forest practices).
With the support of France, and within the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation
Agreement, the World Heritage Centre assisted the Congolese authorities with the inscription
process in 2011-2013. A workshop organized by the Direction Générale du Patrimoine et desArchives (director general of heritage and archives), with the support of the UNESCO office,and run by the University of Congo, encouraged reflection, research and therefore a clearerdelineation on the site’s attributes. Two technical missions took place in order to identify
values and elements for management.

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(40) Côte d’Ivoire
Support for conservation and management of the Historic Town of Grand Bassam,
Côte d’Ivoire
Grand-Bassam is the first capital of the former French colony of Côte d’Ivoire, from 1893 to
1900. The historic city, or “France quarter” as it was called, was built on a stretch of land
between the Ouladine Lake to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the south. The historic city
has changed little since the colonial period having kept, in large part, the same configurationof its buildings although many have deteriorated over time and from inappropriate restoration
techniques. The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement and the World Heritage Centre
provided preparatory assistance to Côte d’Ivoire to elaborate a nomination proposal of theHistoric Town of Grand Bassam on the World Heritage List, and develop the necessary
complementary information during the nomination process. After the inscription, the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement provided support for the management and preservation of
the historic city, as well as technical expertise.
In late 2007 a French expert from AEPAUMED (the European association for architecturaland urban heritage in Mediterranean), along with two architects from the AEPAUMED team,carried out two missions in Grand Bassam in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture andFrancophone Côte d’Ivoire, the national commission of Côte d’Ivoire to UNESCO, and thecity council of Grand Bassam. These missions enabled a first identification of urban heritage
and an opportunity to define a working method with all institutional partners in Côte d’Ivoire.
In order to evaluate the urban heritage according to specific architectural criteria(exceptional, remarkable or ordinary buildings) and to propose a heritage conservation plan
the mission carried out data collection and field surveys which included descriptions of urban
form, the architectural typology of each zone, sketching of architectural elevations ofcharacteristic buildings, as well as photographic documentation and mapping of elements
such as the streets (avenues, streets, plantations).
In January 2008 the nomination was submitted to the World Heritage Centre. Following thesubmission, the World Heritage Centre, in the framework of the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement, requested the AEPAUMED team continue work so as to provide thenecessary complimentary information, and, especially, the implementation of conservation
actions in the Historic Town of Grand Bassam: management mechanisms in the proposedzones for inscription and in the buffer zone, a management plan, capacity building.
Complimentary information was submitted in 2009 by the Ivorian authorities.
The nomination was referred at the 33rd Session of the World Heritage Committee (Sevilla,2009) at the recommendation of ICOMOS who advised adjustment of the property’s
perimeters to include the vernacular area (the original dossier focused solely on the colonial
quarter), and in particular on N’zima, situated on the border of the lake. This African fishingvillage is a significant witness to the history of the city’s occupation.
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An action plan to finalise the nomination was established in Coordination with the directorateof heritage and services of the city during the workshop in Grand Bassam in October 2011
(under the framework of the Cultural heritage and local development project). The technicalsupport of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement had 3 goals: an analysis of theurban form and architecture of N’Zima quarter (in order to adjust the site’s description to the
newly defined larger boundaries), and the reformulation of the criteria and of the comparative
analysis. The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement team also provided technicalassistance to the directorate of heritage in the Côte d’Ivoire to finalise the nomination. The
Historic Town of Grand Bassam was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2012 during the36th Session of the World Heritage Committee (Saint Petersburg, 2012).
Following the inscription, the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement was also requested
to provide technical support to the Heritage House, established by the Ministry of Culture ofCôte d’Ivoire, to monitor, control and manage the site after 2012. A French State
conservation architect (Architecte des Bâtiments de France )was identified by the French
Ministry for Culture and carried out a technical assistance mission in 2013, on monitoringquestions, control mechanism, management and development of the site. Following thismission, the Ivorian authorities developed a complement to the action plan. The FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement subsequently provided assistance for the Heritage Houseand implemented a remote monitoring mechanism, and long term guidance and support.
Furthermore, the Minister of Culture of Côte d’Ivoire and the Municipality of Grand Bassam
decided to initiate the restoration of an iconic building, the former courthouse of Grand
Bassam was chosen for its historical and symbolic value. A restoration project was launchedwith co-financing from the State. The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement was
requested to provide project design and management support for the following: aid inplanning; elaboration of specifications; supervision during the restoration; as well as thedevelopment of a pilot-project for restoration training. The aim is to train craftsmen andarchitects and to develop an African branch of heritage restoration.
In 2014, a mission of a French conservation architect (Architecte en Chef des Monuments
Historiques) enabled to specify the priority steps of the restoration of the building and to
propose a road map associating restauration and training on site. The mission also revealed
innovative and little known construction process, based on artificial “stone”, which advanced
the knowledge about the construction methods and use of cement in the early 20th century
worldwide.

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(41) Côte d’Ivoire
Preparatory assistance for the identification of heritage in Ehotilé Islands National
Park, Côte d’Ivoire
The Ehotilé Islands National Park is a group of six islands situated along the eastern
shoreline of the Côte d’Ivoire that shelters a complex and diverse flora and fauna. It waslisted as a Ramsar Site (see the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands) in October 2005.
The objective of this project was to respond to requests for expert assistance and support theCentre’s mandate to assist States Parties in the identification of heritage and provide
preparatory assistance for a nomination dossier. An important phase is the identification of
the Outstanding Universal Value. At the request of the African Union, under the framework ofan International Assistance request and with the support of the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement, the Centre of Ecological Research supported a technical mission to
the Côte d’Ivoire to study the feasibility of Ehotilé Islands National Park’s request for
preparatory assistance for inscription on the World Heritage List. The expert assessment
report underlined that there was insufficient data to justify the Outstanding Universal Value ofthe property as a natural site. However, the expert mission encouraged the State Party toconsider and include the important cultural heritage on the islands such as the sacred forest
where a local population perform unique practices connected to the wetland environment.
Ehotilé Islands National Park is inscribed on the Tentative Lists since 2006.

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(42) Ethiopia
Technical assistance to update the national inventory of cultural heritage of Ethiopia
Realizing the richness of Ethiopian cultural heritage, the organization in charge of cultural
heritage within the Ministry of Culture, the ARCCH (Authority for Research and Conservationof Cultural Heritage), requested UNESCO to find an international partner to help Ethiopia
plan and implement a national inventory programme. The project consisted ofmethodological and technical assistance in the development of an inventory of the moveable
and immovable cultural properties of Ethiopia.
Two activities were carried out within the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation
Agreement in 2001 and 2002 in order to ensure basic training of personnel from the Authority
for Research and Conservation of Cultural Heritage in methodologies based on international
standards. The first was a technical assistance mission to create a digital inventory databaseof Ethiopian cultural heritage. The second was a 21 day mission, conducted by an expert ininventory methodologies, to supervise two pilot sites in Axoum and Laibela and lead training
courses in the inventorying of immovable heritage.
The results of these missions, in support of creating a national inventory of cultural property
and training courses for continued inventorying, were successful.

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(43) Ethiopia
Preparatory assistance for an extension to the site of Tiya, Ethiopia
Ethiopia has numerous megalithic sites. The most important of them is Tiya, which was
inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1980. It has thirty-six monuments, including thirty-two
stelae inscribed with sometimes recurring patterns (such as swords and mysterious
symbols), which are generally linked to funeral rites. These standing stones some of which
are quite elaborate, can be decorated in a range of ways and reach enormous sizes. They
are the remains of an ancient Ethiopian culture, the age of which has not yet been precisely
determined.
This project was part of the process of extending the boundaries of the site of Tiya. Technicalassistance, as requested by the World Heritage Centre, in cooperation with the CRCCH(Department of Archaeology and Anthropology, Ethiopian Ministry of Information andCulture), analysed the initial results of the field study and prepared a plan to evaluate theinformation required for the preparation of the extension proposal. The expert mission was
carried out in two parts, with the support of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement.
The first part included study of the site inventory prepared by the CRCCH and the tour routes
put in place following that exercise, as well as an evaluation of the impact on the current
general state of Tiya. The second part of the mission involved an evaluation of the generalmanagement plan for the site, including recommendations for maintenance, development,
and actions related to modification of the original boundaries of the designated property. It
was noted that there was a need to extend the boundaries of the World Heritage site andseveral recommendations were published in the hopes of finalising the extension.

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Senegal, Gambia
Preparatory assistance for the inscription of Stone Circles of Senegambia[See Senegal, activity n°52]
South Africa and LesothoTechnical and preparatory assistance for the inscription of iSimangaliso Wetland Parkand Maloti-Drakensberg Park, South Africa and Lesotho[See South Africa activity n°34]

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(44) Madagascar
Preparatory assistance for inscription of the Royal Hill of Ambohimanga
The Royal Hill of Ambohimanga in Madagascar consists of a royal city and burial site, and an
ensemble of sacred places. It is associated with strong feelings of national identity, and has
maintained its spiritual and sacred character both in ritual practice and the popularimagination for the past 500 years. It remains a place of worship to which pilgrims come from
Madagascar and elsewhere.
In 1999, the World Heritage Centre, under the framework of the France-UNESCO
Convention, undertook a preparatory assistance mission for the inscription of the Royal Hillof Ambohimanga on the World Heritage List. A national workshop was organised from 5 to 9
June 2000 to allow stakeholders who had collaborated on the nomination to provide input.
Over the course of eight workshops the seminar provided the opportunity to present the
principle components and project stages to involved parties.
The Royal Hill of Ambohimanga was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2001.

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(45) Madagascar
Preparatory assistance for inscription of the Rainforests of the Atsinanana,
Madagascar
The Rainforests of the Atsinanana are predominantly old-growth forests, and, as such, arecritically important for the maintenance of ecological processes and the survival ofMadagascar’s unique biodiversity. The island’s separation from other land masses 60 million
years ago means the rainforests of Madagascar shelter flora and fauna that have evolved inisolation. Although the rainforests are recognised as an essential safeguard of global
biodiversity, these forests had not yet been inscribed onto the World Heritage List.
Preparatory assistance, in 2004, included support for the preparation of a nomination dossierin the form of management plans for each national park considered for inscription. These
management plans were then implemented in situ, incorporating measures and resources
deemed necessary for proper conservation, monitoring and site development. Financed
under the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, preparatory assistance funding served
as seed money for obtaining more substantial funding. In this regard, it is exemplary of the
support of activities central to the World Heritage Centre’s mandate, and of preparatory
assistance given to States Parties for under-represented categories of properties andgeographic regions.
Work began in 2005, with the objective of updating the management plans for each protectedarea using identical models and then integrating them into a general management plan. The
first step was to conduct data inventory for the nomination, make a record of missing data,and invite public institutions and conservation agencies to supplement this data. The serial
property of the Rainforests of the Atsinanana (comprised of six national parks distributed
along the eastern part of the Island and representing close to 40% of Madagascar’s
protected areas) was submitted in 2006 and inscribed in 2007 at the 31st session of theWorld Heritage Committee (Christchurch, 2007).

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(46) MaliRivers and Heritage: Niger-Loire, Governance and Culture project. Development of
heritage and support for management of land and water resources, Mali
The ‘Niger-Loire: Governance and Culture’ project, coordinated by the World Heritage Centre
within the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, and financed by theEuropean Commission, was launched in Mali in November 2007 as a result of discussions
initiated in 2004 on the development of the Inner Niger Delta and its inscription on the World
Heritage List as a cultural landscape.
The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement initiated the project and provided technicalassistance as well as partial funding. The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement alsoenabled the development of partnerships and put numerous experts at its disposal. The
Niger-Loire project is one of the main projects of the Rivers and Heritage initiative and plays
a part in the ongoing discussions on the role of culture as a driving force behind local
development in Africa (Africities Summits). It was implemented by the World Heritage Centre
and the UNESCO Office in Bamako.
The three year project relied on cooperation between the Niger River in Mali and the Loire
River in France, mobilizing local government engaged in decentralized cooperation,
universities and technical institutions, and the Mission Val de Loire – an organisation thatcoordinates the management, development and promotion of the Loire Valley World Heritagesite. The project represents the most successful experience of ‘river-to-river cooperation’ todate.
This project put forward by UNESCO within the framework of the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement was one of the initiatives selected for the EU’s ‘ACP-EU Water
Facility’ programme and was launched in 2004 with funding from the ninth European
Development Fund. The Water Facility was aimed at the developing countries in African,
Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) regions and was set up to address the need to mobilize
additional resources as well as the need to work directly with those countries worst affectedby a lack of access to drinking water and basic sanitation.
The ‘Niger-Loire: Governance and Culture' project was set up in Mali in 2007. In aninternational context where numerous issues put a strain on the hydrological andenvironmental resources of the Niger River, the project aimed to very specifically target local
government organisations and local communities along the banks of the Niger River in Mali.
The objective was to help them take greater ownership of the responsibilities devolved tothem as a result of decentralization (access to water, sanitation, development of riversidezones), to get a better grasp on the big issues concerning governance of the river, and to geta better understanding of the natural and cultural riches of the river and use them as a leverFrance-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 201591

for local development. This local approach – backed up by decentralization, support for local
initiatives and public awareness campaigns – complements the initiatives for safeguarding
the river right across the Niger River basin and has led to a partnership with the Niger Basin
Authority.
The approach of the project was to link applied research initiatives (designed to improvegeneral understanding of the river in various scientific fields), concrete planning anddevelopment projects in riverside sites (designed to respond to real challenges regarding
development in river-dwelling communities, such as sanitation, access to drinking water, thefight against the pollution of aquatic habitats, management of riverbanks), and training
programmes (based on research work and operational activities). The ambition and themethodological originality of the project was to create a bridge between the world of researchand local communities, combine training and aid in the field, and make academic disciplinesand different professional worlds (hydrology, archaeology, management of cultural heritageetc.) cohabit and cooperate. This approach is consistent with the mandate and expertise of
UNESCO in the field of Culture, Science and Education.
Among the many projects undertaken were investigations into and surveys of cultural
heritage, the construction of an artisanal dye-works in Bamako, and the introduction of
discussions about the river, known as ‘Baro Bada’ in the local Bambara language. These
discussions were organised in Bamako and in each of the towns involved in the pilot project,and provided public forums for river-dwelling communities to express their views. Other
activities included training and education initiatives and the exhibition ‘Niger, un fleuve et deshommes’ (‘Niger, river and men’) mounted at the National Museum of Mali in Bamako. The
exhibition toured in Mali and France and was also shown at the UNESCO headquarters. An
article about the project was published in UNESCO’s annual report, as well as in issue no.59
of World Heritage (April 2011) that was dedicated to the theme of water.
The ‘Niger-Loire: Governance and Culture’ project has helped highlight the subject of theriver as a persuasive means of promoting both knowledge of the territory and development
solutions in Mali. It has supported, created, and brought together numerous educational,
cultural and environmental initiatives put forward by institutions and the local community.
This demonstrates that the plight of the River Niger is a common preoccupation amongst
local people and provides an exceptional opportunity for dialogue between generations.

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(47) Niger
Preparatory assistance and establishment of a management plan for the HistoricCentre of Agadez, Niger
Founded in the ninth century, the Agadez, Niger, occupies a prominent position on the
crossroads of the principal commercial routes of the Sahara, which allowed it to play animportant role in the region until the 19th century.
After a follow-up seminar at the fourth meeting for the Global Strategy, held in Niger in 1999,
a mission from CRAterre-ENSAG was sent to Agadez in December 2000 to evaluate theemergency preservation works carried out there. In 2001, two experts from CRAterreENSAG, under the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, provided
preparatory assistance with aid from the World Heritage Fund, including assistance inestablishing a management plan for the city of Agadez.
The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement provided technical and methodologicalassistance in 2000 and 2001 and thus supported the different up stream process which
gradually led to the inscription if the city of Agadez on the Tentative List of Niger in 2006, andthe inscription of the Historic Centre of Agadez in 2012 on the World Heritage List..

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(48) Central African Republic
Preparatory assistance for the inscription of The forest and the residential
encampments of the Aka Pygmies of the Central African Republic
The Aka Pygmies are considered the very first inhabitants of the Central African Republic.
They live in the Mongoumba Forest, of Lobaye.
A preparatory assistance mission, under the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation
Agreement, was undertaken from 4 to 14 December 2007, at the request of the Central
African Republic, to assist the State Party in the preparation of a nomination. It allowed ananalysis of the property and identified stakeholders that could ensure its management. The
expert identified certain issues requiring further improvement or specification, such as thedescription of the property and justification of the selected criteria.
A workshop was organised on the property’s Outstanding Universal Value, in order torediscuss the criteria initially proposed for nomination. The forest and the residential
encampments of the Aka Pygmies of the Central African Republic were inscribed on the
Tentative List in 2006, but there was no follow up to this activity.

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(49) Democratic Republic of the Congo
Emergency assistance to the Okapi Wildlife Reserve of the Democratic Republic of theCongo
The Okapi Wildlife Reserve has been on the World Heritage List since 1996. It occupies
about one-fifth of the Ituri forest in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo,
near the borders of Sudan and Uganda. Covering an area of 13,726 km2, it covers
approximately one fifth of the whole forest. The Congo River Basin, of which the reserve andforest are a part, is one of the largest drainage systems in Africa. The reserve is home toendangered primates and birds and about 5,000 okapi of the 30,000 living in the wild. It also
boasts spectacular scenery, including waterfalls on the Ituri and Epulu rivers. The reserveand Ituri Forest is also the cultural center of the Mbuti and Efe pygmies.
On 24 June 2012, the research centre of Epulu was violently attacked by armed rebels andpoachers. Six people were killed by the aggressors, the premises of the reserve was looted
and burned, and the Okapis on the site (in confinement or isolation for scientific research)were massacred.
Support was given to the NGO Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) in Democratic Republicof the Congo with funds for technical assistance from the Rapid Response Facility (RRF).
RRF funds were created specifically to respond during situations of crisis and emergency,
they provide resources needed to save natural sites registered on the World Heritage List
rapidly and flexibly. The Rapid Response Facility is a small grants programme jointly
operated by the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, the United Nations Foundation, and Fauna& Flora International. Under the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, complimentary
funding was provided to support the emergency initiative.
The Wildlife Conservation Society, who have been active on the site for a long time, helped
restore the primary functions of the Reserve. The funds have contributed to answer theneeds of the Congolese Institute for the Conservation of Nature, the local authorities forprotected areas. In addition, they have helped revive the essential operating activities of thepark and helped the guards and families affected by the attack of the poachers and rebels.

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(50) Senegal
Support for the establishment of the national inventory of cultural heritage of Senegal
The President of the Republic of Senegal (by Decree 2001-1065 of 20 December 2001)
requested the Ministry of Culture (in particular, the Department of Cultural Heritage) conduct
an inventory of historical sites and monuments for Senegal over the course of five years.
Since Senegal has access to international sovereignty, the country initiated the law 71-12 on
the 25th of January 1971, establishing the system of historical monuments and archeologicalsites, as well as its application decree in 1973.
Even though research work has brought recognition to thousands of sites in Senegal, theSenegalese cultural heritage list only counted 225 registered properties. This is a very small
amount considering that many of these sites were threatened, and 80% of these inscribedsites are located in the Dakar, Thiès and Saint Louis regions.
In 2003, at the request of the Senegalese authorities, the Culture Sector of UNESCO
implemented the first phase of the inventory work, in the framework of the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement, by organizing a workshop on “Inventory Format” in Dakar, Senegal
which aimed to establish a general methodology.
An important bilateral and multilateral assistance was developed in 2004-2006 to implement
the conclusions of the workshop held in Dakar on inventory format, and to use the existing
methodological tools for architectural heritage. This assistance enabled both follow up andfurther development of field surveys, as well as fine-tuning and adapting the database for theinventory of Dakar’s built heritage.
On a bilateral level, the French ministry of Culture ensured the in-depth training of two
representatives of the Senegalese Department of Culture.

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(51) Senegal
Preparatory assistance and technical support for the inscription, conservation andmanagement of the Île de Saint-Louis, Senegal
The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, similar to the technical cooperation provided
to the City of Luang Prabang in the Lao People's Democratic Republic, has provided
technical and financial support to national and local authorities for the inscription, protectionand enhancement and development of the Île de Saint-Louis in Senegal, based on
decentralised collaboration with Lille and Toulouse, France, with the Ecole Nationale
Supérieure d'Architecture et de Paysage de Lille (ENSAPL) and the expertise of French
Ministries, in particular the Ministry of Culture and Communication. Over time, Senegal has
worked with the Agence française de développement (AFD) on an urban development
project focusing on the restoration of urban heritage and tourism.
Founded by French colonists in the 17th century, Saint-Louis was urbanised from the mid19th century, becoming the capital of Senegal from 1872 to 1957. For this reason, it came toplay a predominant cultural and economic role throughout West Africa.
In 1998, the Senegalese government requested preparation support for the inscription of theÎle de Saint-Louis. In 1999, the Senegalese Minister for Culture formulated a request for
support within the framework of the newly created framework of the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement. An expert mission, in coordination with the relevant Senegaleseauthorities, evaluated the nomination for the Île Saint-Louis. The Île Saint-Louis was
inscribed on the World Heritage List in December 2000. Located between two branches of ariver, between sky and earth, the Île Saint-Louis is one of the flagship cities of colonial history
in West Africa. It presents a complete architectural, urban and rural landscape which isremarkable and highly varied.
After support was provided to prepare the nomination, at the request of Senegal, the World
Heritage Centre, within the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement,
embarked on a long process of support for the protection, management and enhancement of
the site, as well as the development of tools and management mechanisms. This assistance
was also received in the form of technical support through decentralised cooperation
between the Town of Saint-Louis, Senegal, and Lille Métropole Communauté urbaine(LMCU), France, with support from the French Ministry of Culture, the French Ministry ofForeign Affairs and the then French Ministry of Infrastructure.
The challenge was not only to develop mechanisms for the management, monitoring andoversight required by exceptional heritage, but also to promote sustainable development of
the town, taking heritage, culture and local projects into account. The actions involved theimplementation of complex tools to improve knowledge of the site (inventory of built heritage
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ENSAPL, protection and management (protection and enhancement plan) and an
institutional management framework (Heritage House). They also addressed the social
concerns of the island's residents, with a pilot microcredit scheme for families, with projects
bringing together economic activity and care for the environment, carried out as part of the
project "Poverty Reduction through Sustainable World Heritage Management". Similarly, in
response to requests, technical support was provided to national as well as municipal
authorities.
In addition, in order to develop a photographic observatory for Saint-Louis in Senegal, aphotographic campaign carried out in June 2007 allowed the development of overview
pictures and a systematic photographic inventory, to make a comparative series on theevolution of change.
Subsequently, the emphasis was placed on the riverine nature of the town, and on largescale environmental issues and urban planning. Given the challenges of providing further
training and ensuring long-term collaboration through effective coordination between the
different participants, and particularly consistency in terms of international aid, the challenge
was to associate a positive conservation status, as part of this broader approach to the area,in 2010, with sustainable support for the restoration of heritage in Saint-Louis, both private
and public. International workshops on the urban project management, the Atelier de Cergy
Saint-Louis 2030, took place in Saint-Louis in Senegal from 10 to 24 April 2010. The
workshops were jointly organised by the City of Saint-Louis, Lille Métropole Communauté
Urbaine, AFD, the French Environment Ministry and the World Heritage Centre, as part of theFrance-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement. The goal of these workshops was to develop afuture vision for elected representatives and project managers with suggested activities.
In continuation of the "Rivers and Heritage" workshop held on 2 November 2009 at the
Senate in Paris, France, the discussion on "Patrimoines fluviaux et territoires” (Heritage ofrivers and heritage rivers and territorial development), from 3 to 5 March 2011, allowedvarious pieces of research on riverine cultures, riverine landscapes and local water-related
expertise to be brought together. It emphasised the importance of the process of cultural
rediscovery of rivers and their place in local development, addressing in particular theexperiences of the River Houses. The discussion also provided information about the work
carried out by the River House in Senegal (research into the intangible heritage of the valleyof the Senegal river) and strengthened south-south cooperation between the Senegal andNiger rivers (7 participants from Mali came and shared their experience). And it was anopportunity to enhance cooperation between the two rivers and the River House.

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Finally, several operations involving support for local development were conducted in theform of highlighting a case study in the Handbook "Cultural Heritage and Local Development:
A Guide for African Local Governments" and also as part of the project "Cultural Heritageand Local Issues in Francophone Africa" produced by the Association Internationale desMaires francophones (AIMF), the International Association of Francophone Mayors.
Actions were also taken as part of this decentralised cooperation to enhance heritage andraise awareness among young people, and presented in the research collected on thesedeveloping cities."Developing historic cities: keys for understanding and action. Case Studies
on the Conservation and Management of Historic Cities".

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(52) Senegal, Gambia
Preparatory assistance for the inscription of Stone Circles of Senegambia
Africa is underrepresented on the World Heritage List, particularly concerning archaeologicalsites. This is why it is important to assist countries in the preparation of nominations.
In a territory approximately 350 km long and 100 km wide, on either side of the borderseparating Gambia and Senegal, there is a series of megalithic sites characterised by four
major types of stone monuments. These monuments are called necropolises. The protectionof these sites within such a complex environment required special technical and sociocultural
efforts to determine the Outstanding Universal Value of the sites and the threats to each.
The World Heritage Centre called on CRAterre-ENSAG (center for the research andapplication of earth architecture - Grenoble National School of Architecture) to assist
authorities from both countries with the coordination of their management plan (i.e.
coordination of the management plan already under way, translation and presentation of
texts, final bilingual document, assistance with production of site maps and readings,
assistance with the final presentation of the nomination proposal). Technical expertise wasprovided to Senegal and Gambia enabling an evaluation of the proposed site’s value, anexamination of elements assembled for inscription (i.e. historical bibliography, texts relating
to protective legislation, site maps) and to develop the main outline for the management planand for protection of the site. The transnational nomination file was inscribed in 2006 on theoccasion of the 30th session of the World Heritage Committee (Vilnius, 2006).
Following the site’s nomination, the World Heritage Centre, under the framework of theFrance-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, provided assistance for research programmes on
the Stone Circles of Senegambia in support of African scientific research in the field ofadvanced archaeology about which too little is known.

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(53) Togo
Preparatory assistance for the inscription of Koutammakou, the Land of the
Batammariba, Togo
The Koutammakou landscape in north-eastern Togo, which extends into neighboring Benin,
is home to the Batammariba people whose remarkable mud tower-houses have become asymbol of Togo. In this landscape, nature is strongly associated with the rituals and beliefs ofthe society. Despite recent transformations and persistent threats linked to foreign
influences, as well as scarcity and absence of building materials (wood and straw), theoriginal layout of the site, as well as management of the territory, expertise, authenticity,
tradition and historical, cultural, religious, aesthetic, technical and economic values havebeen preserved. It is of considerable local, national and international importance.
In January 2002, the World Heritage Centre, working within the framework of the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement, sent an expert from CRAterre-ENSAG (international
centre for earth construction-Grenoble National School of Architecture) to assess theOutstanding Universal Value of Koutammakou, the Land of the Batammariba, the current
state of conservation and management, protection measures and resources expended. The
expert assisted the Togo authorities and the directorate of museums, sites and monumentsin the preparation of a nomination.
The mission assisted in the establishment of a conservation and management plan
appropriate for the natural and cultural heritage revalorization policy oriented to ecotourism
and cultural tourism for sustainable development of the area. The property of Koutammakou,
the Land of the Batammariba was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2004.

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Latin America and Carribean :Regional Project(54)Training workshops on new cultural heritage management techniques for Andean
countries (Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela(Bolivarian Republic of))The UNESCO Chair in Cultural Heritage Management was established in 2000 at the
National University of Colombia (branch of Manizales), at the request of the Columbian
State. To celebrate its inauguration, a series of workshop-courses were organised from 18 to
28 June 2000. The courses concerned cultural management of historic centres within thecontext of integrated heritage and welcomed approximately thirty municipal heritage
authorities from five Andean countries (Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Colombia, Ecuador,
Peru, Venezuela(Bolivarian Republic of)). Participants were introduced to new cultural
management techniques and the new concept of “comprehensive” heritage, including theenhancement of historic centres, monuments, and sites, in parallel with the valorisation of
expressions of intangible heritage like music, oral traditions, and holidays.
Support from the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement focused on inviting andwelcoming participants to the workshops, and on publishing the proceedings under the title:“Memorias Cátedra UNESCO Gestión integral del patrimonio en centros históricos”(UNESCO Chair Memoires – Comprehensive Management of Historic Centres.)At the end of the first session, it was decided to offer the workshop again the following year,
in 2001. Two French university experts were able to attend that series due to support fromthe France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement.

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(55) Support to the International seminar on the Rehabilitation of Historic Centres of
Latin American Cities (SIRCHAL) Programme: workshop on urban conservation andrestoration and creation of a tri-lingual glossary
The SIRCHAL Programme (Network for the Revitalization of Latin American and Caribbean
Historic Centres) has several goals including: the revitalisation of historic centres, thedevelopment of a cooperation dynamic based on building relationships between authoritiesof the Latin American and European projects, and the valorisation of French expertise.
SIRCHAL also aims to create an international, professional, and technical network to
respond to requests from technical and political authorities of Latin American and Caribbean
cities regarding revitalisation issues linked to urban development.
The practical work of seminars and workshops is geared toward joint development of suitableproposals and alternative projects by pooling the experience of each member of the network.
It was established within the Direction de l'Architecture (directorate of architecture), of theFrench Ministry of Culture in partnership with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB),
UNESCO, and the International Union of Architects (UIA). The World Heritage Centre, in theframework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, supported several plansdeveloped by SIRCHAL. This programme was responsible for an agreement signed with theInter-American Development Bank on the revitalisation of historic centres, and a second one
with the International Union of Architects on the valorisation of architectural heritage from the20th century. The SIRCHAL Programme is led by Leo Orellana.
Initially, the focus was the consolidation of a network of partners, members, and individuals
sharing their experiences. Beginning in May of 2000, the programme changed from networkbuilding to defining a workshop methodology. This new focus relied on an assessment
system enabling local counterparts to define real problems – those they confronted on a daily
basis – and the profiles of the international experts who participated in the workshops. An
ongoing exchange stimulated by contacts and fact-finding missions makes it possible toassess, prepare, and define the themes covered in the workshops and seminars.
Three initial seminars took place: in Paris (France) in May 1998, Quito (Ecuador) in
November of the same year, and in Santiago and Valparaiso (Chile) in May 1999. As aresult, an international network for revitalisation of historic centres in Latin America and the
Caribbean was established with the goal of promoting cultural and technical cooperation andfurthering professional exchanges. The fourth international seminar-workshop was organisedfrom May 29 to 2 June 2000 in Salvador de Bahia (Brazil). In 2002, six seminar-workshops
held in the cities of Asunción (Paraguay), Santo-Domingo (Dominican Republic), Cartagena(Columbia), Pelotas (Brazil), Lima (Peru), and Valencia (Spain), enabled the implementationof the programme’s participatory methodology. In 2003, two SIRCHAL workshops took placein Paramaribo (Suriname) and in Ciudad Bolivar (Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of)).
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The Ciudad Bolivar workshop provided an opportunity to reflect upon policy planning for theurban and fluvial environment, as the site had been inscribed on the Tentative List in 2003 as
Cultural Landscape. In 2004, two workshops took place with government and municipal
authorities, with the participation of French experts, in Costa Rica and Mexico. From 21 to 25
July, a first workshop was held in San José (Costa Rica), regarding the improvement ofpublic heritage spaces in the three historic quarters of the Costa Rican capital. Then, from 14
to 19 November 2004, a workshop took place in Xochimilco (Mexico) concerning thedevelopment of a participatory plan for full rehabilitation of the cultural Heritage of
Xochimilco.
In 2005, with continued support provided by the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement to
the SIRCHAL Programme, Leo Orellana participated in a seminar in Havana (Cuba) on the
management of historic centres.
In conjunction with the workshops, SIRCHAL revised and organized online publication of a
specialised four-language glossary of terms related to the revitalisation of historic centres of
Latin American and Caribbean cities. It is based on a dual approach: to reflect theheterogeneity of the processes of heritage and urban development professionals, and todemonstrate the cultural diversity of Europe, Latin America, and the Caribbean in thisdomain. The SIRCHAL glossary is available online.

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(56) Global Strategy: Workshop on the identification of archaeological sites in the
Caribbean, and on major risks management
Caribbean archaeological heritage has been the subject of enhancement initiatives at the
beginning of the years 2000, to valorise underrepresented heritage on the World Heritage
List in the region.
An international seminar on Caribbean archaeological sites was held at the Museo desHombre in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, 7 and 8 July 2003. It led to the proposal ofa list of archaeological sites likely to be inscribed on the World Heritage List, and to theidentification of managers and experts in this region.
From 20 to 23 September 2004, UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre organized aninternational meeting in Fort-de-France, Martinique, France, on the theme “Identification ofArchaeological Sites of the Caribbean likely to be nominated for inscription on the World
Heritage List”. The objective of this international and intergovernmental seminar was toencourage an in-depth reflection on Caribbean archaeological cultural heritage and ways torepresent it in all of its diversity on the World Heritage List. The meeting also aimed atstressing the importance of the identification, cartography, protection, conservation andnomination of this vulnerable type of cultural heritage.
Official representatives of 20 Caribbean countries and approximately 42 experts on
Caribbean archaeology were present. The seminar also enabled to formalize severaltransnational nomination projects on the World Heritage List, and highlighted the urgency forprotection and conservation of archaeological heritage in the countries of the Caribbean.
Finally, it emphasized the implications of enhancing archaeological areas, whilst respecting
and strengthening Caribbean cultural identity. The “Declaration of Martinique” (2004) wascollectively drafted during the workshop and set forth the following priorities:• encourage the protection of heritage in the region taking all necessary measures toimplement the World Heritage Convention• reinforce and develop risk prevention policies and management of interventions atregional, national and international levels• take significant measures to protect subaquatic archaeological heritage• adopt effective legislation• strengthen and apply training and public awareness policies• promote and financially support professional development in fields related toarchaeological techniques• strengthen national institutes responsible for the protection of archaeological heritageand carry out inventories of local and national archaeological resources

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Short and long-term action plans were developed at the seminar. The France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement supported this project with expertise and financial backing andparticipated in the publication of the conference proceedings, published in October 2005 in
the World Heritage Papers n˚14 entitled “Caribbean Archaeology and World Heritage
Convention”.
In 2008, in line with the activities developed by the World Heritage Centre in the Caribbeanon the valorisation of Caribbean archaeological heritage, in-depth reflections on heritage andrisk management issues were further developed. This led the World Heritage Centre and theConseil Régional de Martinique (regional local authority of Martinique) to organise a seminaron Major risks management and archaeological heritage in the Caribbean.
The objective of this seminar was to assess the relevance of risk management studies thathave been developed by ICCROM and the World Heritage Centre in the Caribbean region,and to invite the World Heritage site managers to develop a case study. A preliminary
meeting was co-organised by the Conseil Régional de Martinique and the World Heritage
Centre, associated with the Centre régional de conservation-restauration des biens culturels
de Basse-Normandie (regional centre for conservation and restoration of cultural properties
in Basse Normandie), France, on 24 and 25 November 2008.

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Latin America and Caribbean(57) Argentina
Technical assistance for the valorisation of the Villa Ocampo, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Thanks to Victoria Ocampo (1890-1979), one of the most important Argentine cultural figuresof the 20th century, Villa Ocampo (Buenos Aires, Argentina) was the privileged witness of theFrench-Argentine cultural relations in the early 1920s. Several years before her passing,
Victoria Ocampo, on her friend André Malraux’s advice, donated her properties to UNESCO
to promote study, experimentation and development of activities embracing cultural,
literature, art and social communication, in a lively and creative spirit.
In 2000, in the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, a French
expertise mission assisted the Argentine officials to develop a master plan that took into
account the legacy and presentation of the buildings and gardens from a cultural perspective,
in connection with the past.
The restoration project of Villa Ocampo was launched in 2003 as a result of the agreement
signed with UNESCO, the Argentine Government, Sur Foundation, the Villa Ocampo
Association and Victoria Ocampo Foundation at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris, France,
in 2000.

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(58) Bolivia (Plurinational State of)Technical assistance for the creation of a museum on the archaeological and miningsite of the City of Potosí, Bolivia (Plurinational State of)At the request of Bolivian authorities, UNESCO provided technical assistance to advise on amining museum in the City of Potosí, Bolivia (Plurinational State of). Assistance wasprovided as part of a research programme conducted by the French CNRS (medieval
Mediterranean archaeology laboratory) on the site.
The City of Potosí was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1987. Situated at an altitude of
4,000 metres above sea level, in the heart of the Bolivian Andes, Cerro Rico (Rich Mountain)is the largest silver deposit in the world. Discovered in 1545 by the Spaniards, its fabulous
veins transformed the European economy and contributed to the start of the industrial
revolution. Exploitation of the mines also transformed local societies who became subject toforced labor in the Spanish-owned mines. The presence of Potosí on a 15th century Chinese
map is evidence of its influence in international trade and its pioneering role in shaping themodern economy.
In 2001 an expert mission under the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement travelled to
the City of Potosí to identify major themes, periods to be studied, and local partners of anarchaeological research programme on the site’s mining history. At the time it appeared thatno archaeological research had yet been undertaken in Potosí. Several local institutions
including the Plan de Rehabilitación de Áreas Históricas Potosí (PRAHP), the Tomás Frías
Autonomous University (UATF), the Departmental Administrative Offices, and the City ofPotosí, expressed interest in supporting future research through training and awarenessraising for the protection and valorisation of cultural heritage.

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(59) Chile
Preparatory assistance for the inscription of the property and support for the
management of the Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works in Chile
In the 19th century, the riches of Chile aroused the greed of European and American powers,
resulting in the establishment of large industrial plants, including intensive saltpetre mining
companies. The production and exploitation of mining products was a catalyst in Chile’s
economic and social development, of robust urban development in mining regions, of aparticular architecture, and of an intense international cultural life brought about by thepresence of foreign companies. Beginning in 1920, the manufacture of synthetic products byGerman industries led to the decline of the mines. The abandoned mine sites are considered“ghost towns”. In fact, the mining operation buildings, the numerous dwellings seemingly
deserted in haste by their occupants, and the vast desert panorama that provides the setting
for this architecture make these sites particularly striking representations of a bygone era inthis country.
At the request of Chilean authorities, under the framework of the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement, assistance was provided for preparation of a nomination dossierand the establishment of a management plan for the Humberstone and Santa Laura
Saltpeter Works. The property was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2005.

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(60) Colombia
Support to the UNESCO Chair in management of Cultural Heritage, Manizales branch,
National University of Colombia, Colombia
The UNESCO Chair on Cultural Heritage Management was created in 2000 and isestablished at the National University of Columbia, branch located in Manizales. Its main
objectives are to promote an integrated system of research, training, information anddocumentation activities, focusing on cultural heritage management. It should facilitate thecollaboration between high-level researchers and internationally renowned professors fromthe University and from other higher education institutions in Columbia.
In 2001, in response to a technical assistance request, two experts were sent on mission,
with the support from the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, to support a training
programme at the National University of Columbia (branch located in Manizales).

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(61) El Salvador
Technical assistance for the management of the Joya de Cerén Archaeological Site, El
Salvador
Joya de Cerén is the name given to a rural settlement dating back to the period of the Mayan
civilization. The site provides a unique window into the past.
Buried in the 6th century, during a volcanic eruption, vestiges of the city have beenpreserved in a remarkable condition rarely found, highlighting a continuity of lifestyle. From
ceramics to cultivated fields, numerous elements characterising contemporary agriculturalcommunities of Central America have been uncovered, as if frozen in time, at thearchaeological site. The site was inadvertently discovered in 1976, and archaeologicalexcavations were carried out until 1981 under the direction of Dr. Payson Sheets. The
excavation findings were striking. Inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1993, Joya deCerén Archaeological Site is situated in the Zapotitan Valley, in La Libertad, 35 km to thewest of San Salvador, El Salvador.
The CCCAC (culture and cooperation centre for Central America), which coordinates Frenchcooperation in the region, the Dirección de Turismo del Sistema de la Integración
Centroamericana or DITURSICA (tourism department of the Central American integration
system), and the ministry in charge of tourism in France, which identified Central America asa priority area, developed a “Central American World Heritage Route” project. From 2005 to
2007, under the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, two French
experts developed a pilot project on tourism management for Joya de Cerén Archaeological
Site.
This project began during a seminar in Panama (6 and 7 December 2006) withrepresentatives from seven countries and involved the ministries of culture, tourism, andenvironment. Subsequently, the ministries for social integration became involved as it falls
under the Millennium Goals to eradicate extreme poverty.

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(62) Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of)Technical assistance for the preparation and establishment of a management plan forCoro and its Port, Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of)With its earthen constructions unique to the Caribbean, the town of Coro, Venezuela(Bolivarian Republic of), is the only surviving example of a rich fusion of local traditions with
Spanish Mudéjar and Dutch architectural techniques. One of the first colonial towns (foundedin 1527), it has some 602 historic buildings. Coro and its Port were inscribed on the World
Heritage List in 1993.
Due to the unusual rains and subsequent damage to the city of Coro and its Port, La Vela, inlate 2004 and early 2005, the property was inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger
in 2005. An action plan was developed for Coro and its Port, and a national monitoring
committee was established. The national monitoring committee requested an expert
assessment. Under the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement,
technical assistance was provided to the Venezuelan authorities to assist in the preparationof management mechanisms and to set up institutional structures to ensure conservation andmonitoring of the property.

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Asia and the Pacific(63) BangladeshTechnical assistance for the conservation of the Ruins of the Buddhist Vihara at
Paharpur, BangladeshWith support from the World Heritage Fund’s International Assistance and the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement, the Bangladesh authorities wished to develop a long-termarchaeological research policy for the temple of Paharpur and the surrounding area.
The monastic complex of Paharpur, which is also known as Somapura Mahavira, or the“Great Monastery”, was an important intellectual centre from the eighth to the twelfth
centuries. The unique monastery-city influenced Buddhist architecture as far away as
Cambodia. The Ruins of the Buddhist Vihara at Paharpur have been inscribed on the World
Heritage List since 1985. The site consists of a central monument, a temple with a cruciform
layout and a collection of 2,800 terracotta plaques which were originally arranged inornamental friezes on the external walls of the monument.
The project’s objective was to provide technical and methodological assistance forconservation and training. In 2002 the World Heritage Committee noted serious deteriorationof the terracotta plaques and the site structure. It also identified a partial loss of authenticity
as a result of improperly conducted restoration in 1991 which involved the systematic
replacement of ninth-century plaques with new plaques.
Several expert missions were sent and culminated in a seminar in March 2004 on thedevelopment of a policy for the conservation, restoration and management of the site. A
workshop on special techniques including collection, management and conservation,
cataloging and inventory was organised and trained twenty-four participants.
The challenge with an archaeological site was both to manage and preserve: preserve themonument per se the artefacts taken down for conservation purposes with the help of
UNESCO, but also to develop infrastructure, in particular for the management of storm water,
all of which must be compatible with the enhancement of the site.

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(64) Cambodia
Preparatory assistance for the inscription of the Temple of Preah Vihear, Cambodia
The Temple of Preah Vihear, which is dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva, is situated on
Cambodia’s northern border with Thailand. The property consists of a series of sanctuaries
which are linked by a network of paths and stairs. The Temple was built in the first half of the
11th century but its history dates back even earlier, to the 9th century. The site dominates
the cliff-top location, which offers unrestricted views of the plains below. Its layout is inperfect harmony with the surrounding natural topography, which is considered a divine
element of the orientation of the Temple. The misty halo that surrounds the temple adds tothe supernatural aura and is the basis for the local legend that the temple is part of paradise.
France, under the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, supported the nomination of
the Temple of Preah Vihear in 2004 and 2007. In 2004, the association of friends of Angkor(Association des Amis d’Angkor (AAA)) was called upon to assist the Cambodian authorities
in finalising the nomination proposal. A proposal was finalised in January 2005 by Cambodia
with technical assistance from the AAA, and submitted for examination at the 31st session of
the World Heritage Committee (Christchurch, 2007). Although the Outstanding Universal
Value and great international significance of the Sacred Site of the Temple of Preah Vihear
was acknowledged at the 31st session, the property wasn’t inscribed and the State Party of
Cambodia was requested to strengthen conservation and management at the site by making
progress in developing an appropriate management plan. The management plan wasparticularly complex to establish because of the nature of the buffer zone.
In September 2007, under the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, the French
Ministry for Foreign Affairs appointed an expert mission at the request of Cambodia toprepare a report and a summary report. Cambodia prepared a 400-page supplement to thenomination dossier which was submitted on 28 January 2008. This enabled the formal
inscription of the Temple of Preah Vihear on the World Heritage List at the 32nd session of
the World Heritage Committee (Quebec, 2008).

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(65) Cambodia
Commemoration of ten years of international co-operation at Angkor, Cambodia
Situated in the current province of Siem Reap in the northwest of Cambodia, Angkor, theancient capital of the Khmer Kings and the group of monuments constructed between the
ninth and fifteenth centuries, was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1992. This marked
the beginning of a great national and international collaboration to safeguard its heritage.
The second “International Coordinating Committee for the Safeguarding and Development of
the Historic Site of Angkor” (ICC-Angkor) was organised in Paris 14 and 15 November 2003.
The conference reflected on the ten years of co-operation between UNESCO, Japan andFrance, via the ICC for the Safeguarding and Development of the Historic Site of Angkor, todevelop and adopt an action plan that would maintain actions safeguarding Angkor on theparameters set out by the Tokyo Declaration of 1993. An exposition and a documentary film
were presented, and a publication after the meeting, which ended with the reading of theParis Declaration of 2003 on the Safeguarding and Development of Angkor.
The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, with the support of the French Ministry ofForeign Affairs provided some additional co funding.

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(66) China
Preparatory assistance for the inscription and protection of the Kingdom of Wu (TheSix Canal Towns of the Lower Yangtze River) and support for the establishment of a
GIS at the University of Tongi, China
The Kingdom of Wu and Six Canal Towns of the Lower Yangtze River, China, are located tothe south of the Yangtze River, near Lake Tai, approximately 60 km east of Shanghai, in alandscape shaped by crisscrossing waterways. Tourism was rapidly on the rise in thesetowns and the priority of these cities was on developing tourism, except for Xitang whose
priority was the local population. Already, the rise of tourist movements was problematic.
Dialogue on this issue was centred on the quality of the relationship between the six towns,
on the vital links between new neighbourhoods and old centres, as well as on relationshipbetween each town and its surrounding territory.
A programme was developed in 1999 to be implemented in phases over the course of
several years. The first phase included preparatory assistance: verification by World Heritage
Centre experts, within the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement and of
the CNRVH (national centre for research on historic Chinese towns and cities), of therelevance of the choice of towns proposed for inscription on the World Heritage List. During
the second phase, an architectural heritage protection plan was proposed for the town ofTongli (Jiangsu province). It was approved and endorsed by local, regional and national
authorities in 2001. This methodology was then progressively extended to the five othertowns by a team of Chinese experts. Furthermore, a workshop organised in the autumn of2000 resulted in a joint charter, leading the mayors of the six towns to form a network,
modelled on the Association nationale des Villes et Pays d'Art et d'Histoire (AVPAH),
France’s association of cities and places of art and history. In 2001, a city-to-city programme
focusing on preservation and tourism was established which encouraged a concerted
approach to development between each of the towns.
In 1998, a UNESCO Chair on Geographic Information Systems (GIS) was established at the
University of Nanjing. Following the work carried out on the Grand Canal in the town of
Zhenjiang it was suggested to extend use of the GIS for management and protection ofheritage to the Six Canal Towns of the Lower Yangtze River. An agreement was then signedwith Tongji University, which had undertaken research on the project.

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(67) India
Preparatory assistance and feasibility study for the inscription of Varanasi, India
As part of the Indian Heritage Cities Network project, and in link with the “Rivers andheritage” initiative, a seminar was held in February 2007 in Varanasi, India. The objective
was the enhancement of this religious and symbolic city, rich in living urban heritage, with aunique landscape, but with significant heritage management issues including conservation
and respect for human use, notably in regard to management of the river.
The seminar recommended the establishment of a River Centre. A partnership was initiatedwith the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement and Rhône River Centre, France. The
challenge in Varanasi is to develop a strategy for integrated conservation and development
across the city and river territory.

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(68) India
Technical assistance for the management of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railways, theMountain Railways of India
The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR) was the first of three mountain railways of India to
be inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1999. The property was extended in 2005 and2008 to include two other railroads of the 19th century, the Nilgiri and the Kalka Railways andthe property was renamed the Mountain Railways of India.
The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway opened in 1881 and applied bold and ingenious
engineering solutions to the problem of establishing a railway line across a mountainous
terrain and landscapes of great beauty. When the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway was
inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1999, ICOMOS was concerned about the fragility ofthe site and the lack of buffer zones. At the request of Indian authorities, technical assistance
was provided in the form of advice and analysis over several years. The challenge was tofind solutions for managing an extensive territory and linear rail line several kilometres longwith incredibly narrow boundaries, in some stretches only as wide as the tracks themselves,
and to also preserve the industrial heritage (immovable and movable) and integrity of use.
To regulate land management and compensate for the lack of a buffer zone, the design of aregional natural park, inspired by the French model and close to MAB, was proposed as afirst step in the framework of cooperation between the West Darjeeling, India, and theLanguedoc-Roussillon region, France. Following several missions and exchanges, the ideaof a park was retained, but the partnership itself was abandoned due to local institutional
constraints.
Despite this, in 2004, a mission organized under the framework of the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement undertook a comprehensive study of the Darjeeling Himalayan
Railway including, Darjeeling’s socio-economic situation , the environment and wildlife of thesite, the state of the town’s urban structures, networks and infrastructure, and of regional
property. The mission made short and long term recommendations to enhance the use of the
Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, especially as a tool for economic development for the entire
region. The mission’s findings led to the adoption of short and medium term development
strategies for the site, and priority actions were proposed, especially in regard to improving
networks and infrastructures pertaining to economic development and environmental
protection. In 2006, important outreach efforts led to cooperation with various partners.
Subsequently, the UNESCO New Delhi Office provided support for the Mountain Railways ofIndia, specifically for studying and implementing management plans for the three sites.

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(69) India
Technical assistance for the conservation of the Group of Monuments at Hampi, India
Situated in an exceptionally beautiful landscape and covering a vast area of 42 km2, Hampi,
in India, contains major archaeological remains of what was once the capital of the last great
Hindu kingdom and one of the world’s largest cities in the 16th century. Today, it is a living
site, with 29 villages and widespread agricultural activity. Hampi is an important Hindu placeof pilgrimage. With a growing number of visitors, it has the potential to become one ofsouthern India’s major tourist attractions. The Group of Monuments at Hampi was inscribedon the World Heritage List in 1986. In 1999, the property was added to the World Heritage
List in Danger after construction commenced on two suspension bridges that dominated thenatural environment and threatened the site’s integrity with numerous trucks crossing thedesignated perimeter.
Following the recommendations of the joint World Heritage Centre/ICOMOS mission in
February 2000, the Indian authorities made a considerable effort to restore the state ofconservation of the property and ensure its conservation and management. Certain vitalelements for implementing a management plan were lacking at the time, including
cartographic tools to distinguish between zones in which building is permitted or prohibited, acadastral map, and regulations to monitor and control the construction and restoration workon historic buildings.
It was thus required to develop a long-term technical assistance and partnership. At therequest of the national authorities, and in close collaboration with the UNESCO New Delhi
Office, the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, with the support of the French Ministryof Culture, provided technical expertise and a French conservation architect (Architecte desbâtiments de France) who assisted Indian authorities regularly from 2003 to 2013. These
combined efforts culminated in the removal of the property from the World Heritage List inDanger during the 30th session of the World Heritage Committee (Vilnius, 2006).
This technical assistance was provided whilst the Urban Master Plan was being designed so
as to provide intermediary measures. This technical assistance led to a more conscious
approach to regional planning which allowed for the formulation of the first elements of anurban development plan. The co-operation allowed for technical exchanges with Indian
experts and paved in way for considering architectural and urban morphologies. Likewise,
the existing focus on the monumental and archaeological aspects of heritage was enlarged
to address concerns relevant to local habitat by means of a pilot study conducted in one ofthe villages. Landscape preservation was also explored. A technical unit attached to the local
authorities was able to gradually assume administrative duties related to the oversight ofurban planning permits and provision of architectural advisory services.

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A pilot study specifically oriented towards an architectural urban and landscape approach
was conducted in one of the oldest village.
This cooperation led to fruitful and reciprocal exchanges thanks, in large part, to the close
collaboration with the UNESCO New Delhi Office.
Managing regional strategic planning is a main issue for large sites in general. A holistic
approach at all management and decision-making levels (national, regional and local) and atdifferent scales is necessary in order to allow for compatible, adapted and controlled
development of villages, tourism infrastructure and main infrastructures.

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(70) India
Workshop on urban conservation, Chandigarh, India
The city of Chandigarh was the first planned city in India post-independence in 1947 and isinternationally renowned for its architecture and urban design. The master plan of the city
was developed by Le Corbusier, transformed from an earlier plan by Albert Mayer. Most of
the city’s buildings and housing, however, were designed by Pierre Jeanneret, Jane Drew
and Maxwell Fry. As a union territory and capital that also serves as the capital of twoneighbouring states, the city of Chandigarh, India, was in a transitional phase and undersignificant urban pressure that had to be addressed on a territorial level. The participation of
the city in the Indian Heritage Cities Network (IHCN) was an important milestone to raisingawareness with authorities. The preparation of the serial transnational nomination of theArchitectural Work of Le Corbusier on the World Heritage List and the elaboration of the
Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape (HUL), not yet adopted at the time, was
the impetus for a training workshop on the urban conservation of Chandigarh.
The International Workshop on the “Management of Historic Urban Landscapes of the XXth
Century”, 18-21 December 2007, Chandigarh UT, India, was organised by the Chandigarh
Administration, and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) with the UNESCO World
Heritage Centre and UNESCO Regional Office, New Delhi and the support of the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement backed by the French Ministry of Culture and theNetherlands Funds-in-Trust. Participants from 8 States Parties (Brazil, France, India, Israel,
Italy, Malta, Switzerland, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland) attended
the meeting, together with representatives of ICOMOS, the World Heritage Centre, theFrench Ministry of Culture, the Fondation Le Corbusier and Epures, a Saint-Etienne (France)
urban planning agency as well as the City of Le Havre (France). The meeting followed onfrom previous workshop discussions on Historic Urban Landscapes, which took place inParis (France), Jerusalem (Israel), Saint Petersburg (Russian Federation) and Olinda(Brazil). The Chandigarh workshop also followed a previous meeting hosted the same yearby the City of Le Havre (France) on 20th century modern cities: Brasilia, Chandigarh, Le
Havre and Tel Aviv.
Participants heard a number of key presentations, case studies and in-depth discussions on
managing World Heritage Cities, Historic Urban Landscapes and the safeguarding of India’s
heritage.
In addition, the proposed serial transnational nomination for Le Corbusier’s works waspresented together with the three modern cities inscribed on the World Heritage List - Brasilia(Brazil), Le Havre (France) and Tel Aviv (Israel). The participants also toured the city of
Chandigarh, which gave them the opportunity to visit some of the buildings designed by Le
Corbusier such as the High Court, and architectural works and urban planning projects by
Pierre Jeanneret, Jane Drew and Maxwell Fry. The discussion of the concept of “HistoricFrance-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 2015121

Urban Landscape” (HUL) raised a number of questions, which were approached in terms of
20th century modern urbanism. With regard to Chandigarh in particular, the participants
noted that the concept cast a different light on the idea of heritage, the urban landscape andthe urban territory in a wider sense.
Reviewing the material on Chandigarh and Le Corbusier, the participants emphasised that
HUL required thorough analysis and research with reference to international standards toproperly identify the attributes, values and the protection and inclusion conditions. The
qualities, spirit and “feel” of a city had to come through in its significant attributes, tools thatare essential to justify the values, including intangible values, contained in its specific culturaland natural properties.
Managing change in a Historic Urban Landscape was regarded as an issue requiring further
discussion. It was also stressed that the elaboration of a proposal for inclusion on the World
Heritage List was an opportunity to develop urban management tools on the basis of thecity’s heritage. The HUL approach could provide guidance to develop appropriate urban
conservation and development measures for Chandigarh, which could, in turn, serve as abasis for a World Heritage management plan. As a result of the meeting, Chandigarh
authorities proposed establishing a heritage committee with an advisory role.
Following this workshop, discussions and cooperation were pursued with the UNESCO New
Delhi Office, the Indian cities network (IHCN), the Fondation Le Corbusier and Epures, aSaint-Etienne planning agency, as part of a special bilateral cooperation between
Chandigarh, UT and Saint-Etienne Métropole, France.

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(71) India
Support for the creation of the Indian Heritage Cities Network (IHCN)
From 2006 to 2013, the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, with the support of theFrench Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has been providing support to
the UNESCO Regional Office in New Delhi to promote the emergence of a network ofhistoric cities and to help develop and implement projects. Support for the creation of the
network of Indian historic cities is one of the long term activities of the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement, which helped to develop and structure a network of multilateral andbilateral cooperation between cities, while implementing specific operations on urban
diagnostic and training through the financial support of the ministries member of the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement and through the expertise made available.
In 2006, the UNESCO Regional Office in New Delhi has taken initiatives, in conjunction with
the Indian authorities, for the preservation of historic centers in India. India is experiencing
rapid economic development and profound changes which have had a significant effect onland use: multiplication of road and industrial infrastructures, urban expansion etc. The
conservation of historical centers is therefore an urgent issue. It was against this backgroundthat UNESCO proposed to establish a Heritage Commission and to create a network ofIndian historical cities. The Indian Heritage Cities Network (IHCN) was created in order toraise awareness among professionals and policy makers. Its inception was supported by theFrance-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement and bilateral cooperation, mobilizing French
expertise in terms of urban conservation (Ministry of Culture, Centre des hautes études deChaillot, French historic cities network – l’Association des Villes et Pays d’Art et d’Histoire etdes Villes à Secteur sauvegardé ANVPAH & VSSP) – a French historic cities network -- andon the incentive policy to decentralise cooperation.
In September 2006 a launch seminar took place in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India, after which ten
Indian cities signed a charter committing to create a network of heritage cities and cities ofculture; the Indian Heritage Cities network (IHCN). Other Indian cities were also called upon
to take part in the initiative. The Seminar allowed discussions on the issues of urban
conservation and development based on conservation and enhancement of cultural heritageof historic cities. It was an opportunity to present a series of case studies and to gather adiverse set of stakeholders: representatives of the federal government planning department –Ministry of Urbanism, Indian Ministry of Culture- of the State of Rajasthan, of the city ofJaipur; associations and foundations involved in the protection and enhancement of theheritage (such as the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage - INTACH, theFondation Jaipur Virasat); representatives of Indian cities or World Heritage sites. ANPAH &VSSP and several French cities such as Aix-en Provence, Bordeaux, Chinon, La Rochelle,
Nancy, Rennes et la Région Centre, took part in the seminar. The World Heritage Centre wasalso present, represented by the Secretariat for the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement.

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In 2007 a seminar was held in Chennai, in the Chettinad region of the State of Tamil Nadu,
on the specific questions of training and the preservation of heritage in small towns andvillages where there are houses which have remarkable architectural qualities but which aredeserted and being vandalized or destroyed.
That same year, as part of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, a mission took
place in Rajasthan to provide technical support for the preparation of regulatory
documentation for the cities. A study tour to France was organized in September 2008 for the
representatives of nine Indian cities, including both elected representatives and technicalstaff, who visited Paris, Rennes, the Loire Valley, La Rochelle and Bordeaux. The ultimate
goal of this mission was to provide examples of management and integrated planning where
heritage was treated as an essential component of the urban site. The Indian delegation
expressed its desire to continue these exchanges between networks. A synthesis of thestudy tour is available online.
With regard to strengthening the institutional framework, the Indian Heritage Cities networkorganized meetings every two-years to discuss subjects relating to city management and theinclusion of heritage in the development of these cities. The second biennial meeting of the
Indian Heritage Cities Network took place in Hyderabad from 18 to 20 December 2008, andhelped to formalize a Statute of the IHCN and a governing council, with approximately
thirteen elected members representing cities, states and governments, plus international
experts and international NGOs.
Thereafter, the main objective was to enable the network of Indian cities to growautonomously and to identify priority areas for action. UNESCO continued to play the role offacilitator and support the establishment of long term cooperation arrangements in order toallow access to technical and financial support for project diagnostics and projectengineering. The network became an independent organization and has been a foundation
since 2012.
The first Conference on decentralized Franco-Indian cooperation was organized by the
French Ministry for Foreign and European Affairs, the French Embassy in India and theIndian Government, and took place in New Delhi from 15 to 17 January 2010 as part of theFestival of France in India, “Bonjour India”. The Chief Minister of the State of Rajasthan, who
attended the Conference, pledged funding of 6 million euros in 2010 for the “Virasat Vikas”
programme (on heritage as a source of development).
Mechanisms were put in place to allow technical assistance and French expertise to beprovided to the cities of Madhya Pradesh and partnerships were formed between the cities ofRennes and Bhopal and Chinon and Maheshwar, as well as a cooperative arrangement
between Cochin and Lorient, which benefit from institutional and technical support.

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A capacity-building workshop took place from 21 to 25 November 2011 in Mysore, onplanning tools for urban heritage conservation and the development of Mysore. The
workshop helped raise awareness among participants of planning and heritage issues which
will help the city of Mysore to implement a sustainable approach to urban development in theareas to be protected.
Finally, the “Seminar on Economics of Heritage” (Pune and Bangalore, 10-14 December
2012 was used to study the interaction between the economic and cultural values of tangible
heritage and the impact of development and rehabilitation projects, in terms of both heritage
conservation and consideration of the intrinsic qualities of heritage and its potential as an
economic resource. Since 2012, the theme of Economics of Heritage is one of the main
focus areas for reflection which, up until now, had scarcely been explored even though it is ofparamount importance in India, and thereby allowed for the consideration of heritage
conservation from a sustainability point of view. Interactions with economists were fructuous,and UNESCO and IHCN intend to extend their reflection on the subject.
The 4th biennial Conference meeting of the IHCN was held in Pune, Maharashtra from the20th to the 22nd of November 2013, and was jointly organized by IHCN, Pune Municipal
Corporation and the UNESCO Office in New Delhi, with the support of the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement and the French Embassy. The Conference focused on the thematic“Economics of Living Heritage Cities”, a very important topic in order to change theperception of heritage conservation and fully take into consideration the urban heritage as anengine of development.
ANVPAH and the French local authorities took part in the 4th Conference, as well as the
Secretariat for the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement which made an opening
speech, which was recorded and filmed in Paris, and then broadcasted at the opening of theConference in Pune.
The speech is available online: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVppNHcMzpo
On the occasion of the Pune Conference, several events took place, including:•

The national final of the Student Competition IHCN 2013: this initiative showed theimportance of developing the management of historic cities not as a mere
preservation of the past, but as a way of making the heritage contribute to local
development, for the common good of local population. Participants presented
innovative ideas relating to city management, based on a revitalization plancomposed of 5 schemes and a detailed report. The jury, composed of international
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•

A methodological study assessing the economic impact of heritage in the Indian
context was performed. This study, commissioned by the Indian Institute of Human
Settlement in August 2013, reviews some of the existing methods to assess thesocio-economic impact of heritage sites, and evaluates their relevance and feasibility
in the context of Indian cities. The relevance of a methodology will be put to the testwith data from secondary sources on two cities member of the IHCN. The study isentirely based on research of secondary sources of existing information, interview ofprimary sources and bibliographic study. The examined methodologies come fromICOMOS, World Bank, or Agence Française de Développement (AFD).

•The E-heritage project, was jointly launched by the Digital Empowerment Foundation,
UNESCO and IHCN, with the aim of bringing heritage into the digital space. Pilot sites
for the cities of Delhi, Chanderi, Pune and Shakawati were developed in November
2013 and will serve as an example for the cities, agglomerations, local communities
and municipalities which aim at enhancing their heritage through numerical tools.

A new website was elaborated for the IHCN including more features (such as downloading
and broadcasting of videos, maps, application forms or online submission of dossiers). It also
supports the internal work of the network.
Subsequently the perspective for 2014-2015 was to continue to provide support to the Indian
cities network mainly at a bilateral level. IHCN and UNESCO extended this field of activity byproposing training packages, which allow the cities to develop their own Detailed Project
Report (DPR).
In 2014, UNESCO and IHCN organized awareness raising and training workshops for citymanagers and technicians at the city and state level. The goal was to train future trainers forthe development of an urban study and planning workshop within the framework of the Urban
development program, Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JnNURM).

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(72) Japan
Preparation and publication: “Historic atlas of Kyoto”, Japan
The “Historical Atlas of Kyoto: Spatial Analysis of the Memory Systems of a City, its
Architecture and Urban Landscape” (In French: “Atlas historique de Kyoto: Analyse spatiale
des systèmes de mémoire d’une ville, de son architecture et de son paysage urbain”) was
published under the direction of Nicolas Fiévé, with preface by Jacques Gernet, World
Heritage Collection, UNESCO publishing / Published by Éditions de l’Amateur 2008.
Home of Japanese culture for more than a thousand years, Kyoto was the capital of theJapanese Empire from its founding in the eighth century until the mid-nineteenth century.
Miraculously spared by the bombings of World War II, Kyoto retraces the evolution ofJapanese wooden architecture and the art of Japanese gardens, and testifies to a uniqueform of interaction between man and nature. The property Historic Monuments of Ancient
Kyoto (Kyoto, Uji and Otsu Cities) was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1994.
As part of the “Cities of Asia: Heritage for the Future” programme, the UNESCO World
Heritage Centre, with the support of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement,
supported the research programme on urban transformations of the City of Kyoto, Japan,
conducted by a group of French and Japanese university scholars studying contemporary
phenomenon of the development of Kyoto, which is representative of numerous Asian cities.
This research project, on the transformation of the urban landscape of Kyoto, was developedin a broader framework with the input of several disciplines including history, anthropology,
urban planning and architecture. It resulted in the drafting of the Historical Atlas of Kyoto:
Spatial Analysis of the Memory Systems of a City, its Architecture and Urban Landscape,which examines the economic, social, cultural, political, religious, architectural and urban
history of the city through its spatial evolution. This reference tool for research in human andsocial sciences on the City of Kyoto examines the place and role that cultural heritage canplay in the construction of new urban landscapes within the modernisation process of
traditional areas.
Twenty-one of the researchers contributed to the preparation of the atlas prepared under the
direction of Nicolas Fiévé, Director of Studies at the Ecole pratique des hautes études(institution of higher education and research) and Deputy Director of the centre for researchon Chinese, Japanese and Tibetan civilizations. This atlas, published in 2008, relies onancient and modern epigraphic sources and includes numerous previously unpublishedarchival documents, as well as over 200 original maps.

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(73) Kyrgyzstan
Preparatory assistance for the inscription of Issyk Kul warm-water lake, Kyrgyzstan
North of the Tian Shan Mountains, 1608 m above sea level, is the Issyk Kul Lake,
Kyrgyzstan, a natural reservoir of warm water contained in a region famous for its natural
resources.
In the Soviet era, the lake was a popular vacation spot for its landscapes and sanatoriums. In
the early 2000s, the Kyrgyz authorities developed a tourism revival policy in the region
through the enhancement of the major cultural and natural resources of the site. It is in thiscontext that the national authorities requested preparatory assistance for the inscription of
the property on the World Heritage List.
In September 2003, a first mission was sent to bring together all the elements necessary forthe completion of the nomination proposal. The mission coordinated the work of the
UNESCO Office in Moscow, the Kyrgyz National Commission and the Issyk Kul Biosphere
Reserve. This support assisted in identification of natural features of Outstanding Universal
Value, to understand the values and uniqueness of the property. However, based on the
conclusions of this mission, as well as the results of a joint ICOMOS-IUCN evaluation, theWorld Heritage Centre, with the support of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement,
recommended the Kyrgyz authorities reformulate the nomination proposal for Issyk Kul as acultural landscape rather than a natural landscape.
The nomination proposal was submitted in 2004, but was subsequently withdrawn by theState Party of Kyrgyzstan.

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(74) Pakistan
Technical assistance for the valorisation of the Fort and Shalamar Gardens in Lahore,
Pakistan
The Fort and Shalamar Gardens in Lahore, Pakistan, have been inscribed on the World
Heritage List since 1981. The inscribed property includes two distinct royal complexes, theLahore Fort and the Shalimar Gardens, both located in the City of Lahore, at a distance of
7 km from each other.
At the beginning of the 21st century, there was concern over the complete loss of two of thethree hydraulic works and the partial demolition of the third hydraulic work. It was recognisedthat the property was threatened by serious and specific danger requiring major operations toensure the protection of these essential components of the historic monumental and garden
complex within the property.
Thus, in November 2000, the Pakistan authorities requested the World Heritage Committee
inscribe the property Fort and Shalamar Gardens in Lahore on the List of World Heritage in
Danger. Through this inscription, the State Party expressed its hope to increase publicawareness both nationally and internationally on the importance of preserving thisexceptional Mughal site which continues to be a living site.
Subsequently, as a corrective measure, public circulation patterns were revised in thegardens, and they were improved as a public green space, in the context of an urban
development project to enhance the value of the surrounding environment.
In 2001 the World Heritage Centre, within the framework of the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement, provided technical assistance and undertook feasibility studies toestablish decentralised cooperation between the City of Nancy, France and Lahore,
Pakistan. This cooperation intended to develop urban planning tools and management
mechanisms as well as to design a project to be submitted to the European Union Asia Urbs
Programme, which aimed at fostering decentralised city to city cooperation between Europe
and Asia.

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(75) Lao People's Democratic Republic
Support for the conservation and management of Vat Phou and Associated Ancient
Settlements within the Champasak Cultural Landscape, Lao People's Democratic
Republic
The property Vat Phou and Associated Ancient Settlements within the Champasak CulturalLandscape, Lao People's Democratic Republic, was inscribed on the World Heritage List in
2001, as a cultural landscape, at the 25th session of the World Heritage Committee (Helsinki,2001). Cultural landscapes were recognised by the World Heritage Committee in 1992,
during the 16th session of the World Heritage Committee (Santa Fé, 2001). Vat Phou is oneof the most important cultural landscapes in Asia.
Located in the south of the Lao People's Democratic Republic, 500 km from Vientiane, thecultural landscape of Vat Phou, Champassak extends over 10 km, with a surface area of
39,000 hectares. Developed between the 5th and 8th centuries, it includes two ancient cities
located in the alluvial plain, agricultural areas, a collection of temples, sanctuaries andhydraulic structures arranged along an axis linking Phou Khao mountain (1,416 m) and thewest bank of the Mekong river.
In 2002, the attention of the World Heritage Committee was drawn to the possibility of a newroad being built across Vat Phou and Associated Ancient Settlements within the Champasak
Cultural Landscape. This concern was noted by the World Heritage Committee at its 27th
session (Paris, 2003) in a decision whereby it requested the State Party to "submit a detailed
topographical survey of the new north-south road in order to limit as much as possible any
negative impact this road may have" (Decision 27 COM 7B.51).
In April 2010, after a long period of inactivity concerning the construction of the road,
UNESCO received information that construction work had begun for road 14A and that its
route would cross the property. The State Party was duly advised by the World Heritage
Centre that the potential damage from the construction was in contravention of current
legislation and the management provisions, and could endanger the Outstanding Universal
Value of the property, therefore leading to its inclusion in the List of World Heritage in
Danger.
Large-scale infrastructure projects that do not respect the surrounding environment are oneof the potential threats that World Heritage sites can face. This is often due to a lack ofsectoral and institutional coordination, a failure in the project design to realise the value ofthe sites, conflicts of power in terms of project management at national, regional and even
local level and investors who are not used to having to consider World Heritage parametersin their specifications. When these issues are addressed in sufficient time, projects can be
modified to respect environmental concerns and protect the values which led to theinscription of the property. It can give rise to remarkable examples of project management
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and development. The challenge is to deal with decisions already taken and projects alreadyunderway. In this case, corrective measures must be found, intervention phases identified
and support provided to prevent operations leading to irreversible damage to the property. In
order to do this, studies are needed at small and large scale, urban or rural, depending oneach case, to identify the physical attributes required to manage change in an acceptable
way.
From 2011 to 2014 the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement allowed the organisation offact finding missions and technical support to the Lao authorities to identify the main axes ofa landscape management strategy, with a view to conserving the values of the property. At
the request of the Lao authorities, the experts involved in the conservation and protection of
the City of Luang Prabang (Lao People's Democratic Republic) and the managers of the Val
de Loire cultural landscape (France) were mobilised by the World Heritage Centre. They
prepared a draft management strategy for the site, based on the restoration of the hydraulicsystem of the plain, consolidation of the management principles of Champassak as a riverinecity and enhancement of the ceremonial axis linking the mountain to the river, as well as
advocating a comprehensive study at the wider landscape level. They also raised thequestion of the management of riverine areas.
While awaiting the result of the reactive monitoring mission jointly conducted by the World
Heritage Centre/ICOMOS/ICCROM in February 2012, an initial fact finding mission was
carried out from 10 to 12 November 2011 for a preliminary needs assessment on research to
improve the conservation of the site’s Outstanding Universal Value.
A second enquiry mission was conducted from 4 to 8 April 2013 at the request of the Laotian
authorities. With the support of previous analyses and observations, the mission's goal wasto complete the proposal for a strategic management study, to develop a wider scale plan for
positive handling of the development pressure being applied to the site of Vat Phou. The
Head of Cultural Landscape for the Val de Loire participated in the mission to provide her
experience of managing a property on the World Heritage List. The specifications for the
study were developed with the Laotian authorities. The specifications proposed conductingsite studies at both small and large scale, developing a project for the strategic managementof the territory at a scale extending to the city of Paksé and producing detailed urban
development plans for the districts of Champassak, Soukhouma, Moulapamo, Phontong andPathoumphone.
This preliminary study, similar in purpose to that carried out at Luang Prabang under thename of “Schéma de Cohérence Territoriale » ("Territorial Consistency Scheme") was
intended to set the management parameters for the next 20 years.

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A third mission was conducted from 9 to 16 March 2014, in order to meet the new Vice Prime
Minister at the time, and to raise his awareness of the risks to the site from the construction
project of the road running through it.
The conservation status of the site Vat Phou and Associated Ancient Settlements within theChampasak Cultural Landscape was reviewed several times by the World Heritage
Committee, which emphasised the need to manage the planned road, even to suspend
operations at times and to define a management scheme and detailed plans to ensure theimplementation of the management plan, as well as a clear definition of the attributes that
communicate the exceptional universal value of the property.

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(76) Lao People's Democratic RepublicTechnical cooperation for the enhancement, development and protection of the Town
of Luang Prabang, Lao People's Democratic Republic
The technical cooperation for the protection, enhancement and development of the Town ofLuang Prabang, Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a remarkable example of tripartite
cooperation between the Lao People's Democratic Republic, France and the UNESCO World
Heritage Centre. It is the flagship pilot project of the France-UNESCO Cooperation
Agreement, which served as a launch pad for the development of the Framework
Cooperation Agreement between France and UNESCO. It was an exemplary operation,
which allowed to test operational methods, forms of partnership and innovative cooperation.
This cooperation took a city to city approach, based on sharing resources and coordination
between bilateral and multilateral aid.
The Town of Luang Prabang was inscribed on the World Heritage List in December 1995.
Located in the mountainous north of Laos, at the confluence of the river Mekong and theriver Khan, Luang Prabang is the former royal capital of one of the kingdoms of Laos. The
Outstanding Universal Value of the property is due to the close link between the built andnatural environment, as well as the juxtaposition of a Laotian urban framework - vernaculararchitecture in wood - and a grid plan typical of the urbanism of the colonial era.
20 years after its inscription, the enhancement, protection and development of the Town ofLuang Prabang can be considered as a remarkable example of integrated planning, basedon local development support by cultural and heritage values. At a time when the debates of
the international community are considering how to use culture as a lever for development,
for the climate or even for housing, it is interesting to highlight the experience of 20 years ofcooperation, and learn lessons from it, both for theory and practice.
A programme to protect and develop the site was established in 1996, with the support of theCity of Chinon and the Région Centre (France), as part of a decentralised cooperation
framework. Supported by several partners (leading partners include the French Ministry of
Culture, the then French Ministry of Infrastructure and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as partof the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, as well as the Agence française dedéveloppement (AFD) and the European Union), this programme to conserve and protect
monumental, urban, architectural and landscape heritage enabled the creation of an entity to
manage the world heritage site, the Heritage House, the training of an operational Laotian
team for monitoring and conservation and actions for urban renovation and restoration(roads, planning, building restoration, both monumental and vernacular, sanitation, andrestoration of wetlands) as well as the implementation of a plan for the protection andenhancement of the historic town.

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The development of tourism in the city since its inscription, as well as strong economic anddemographic growth, has encouraged work on a wider scale than the site itself, addressing
social, economic and environmental issues as well as the wider landscape, in order tosupport development. In order to relieve pressure on the historic heart of the site and tosupport balanced development of the site and the surrounding region, two additional steps
were taken. First of all, measures for urban development planning and landscaping of thelocation at suburban level, taking both the riverine and agricultural landscape into account:defining a planning document inspired by the French provision, the Schéma de Cohérence
Territoriale (Territorial Consistency Scheme - SCOT), considering the uses and roles of thecity; secondly, measures to preserve the natural environment and human habitat and tosupport the development of rural areas (at the scale of the wider landscape and the Nam
Khan catchment): the Nam Khan eco-valley project.
The support for the conservation and development of the Town of Luang Prabang, assistedby the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement from the outset, and created specifically tomobilise different types of expertise and cooperation, provides a reference point in terms of
methodology (urban renovation of a historic city inscribed on the World Heritage List) and thecooperation model (multilateral and bilateral cooperation bringing together UNESCO, several
French Ministries, local authorities and funders, universities and schools).
The unique nature of the technical cooperation carried out at Luang Prabang and its successwere due to the requirement for excellence called upon by the 1972 World Heritage
Convention, and its success in establishing three virtuous features from the start: aregulatory framework covering every level, from the wider scale to the local landscape andthe small plot, with governance at local, regional and national level; the long-term in situ
training of an operational team; and the implementation of wide-reaching operations for the
restoration of monuments, the built environment, the infrastructure and the enhancement of
the landscape. It is also worth noting the importance of implementing detailed planning tools,
carried out on the ground with local teams, which allowed both to save time and resources by
avoiding having to go through international consultancy firms with very little knowledge ofheritage issues, and to adjust the recommendations for protection and enhancement on the
ground. The regulatory framework and the skills implemented also allowed the creation offavourable ground for developing the project design, as well as mobilising aid anddevelopment funding sources, which at that time were rarely focused on the enhancement of
heritage, such as for example the Asia Urbs programme of the European Union.
The task of conservation and enhancement of the Town of Luang Prabang was part of aprocess of management of change based on spatial planning and territorial development toenhance the cultural, environmental and social resources of the site as much as possible.
The Town of Luang Prabang project took place before the approach to historical urban
landscape was highlighted in the UNESCO Recommendation approved in 2011 and can beconsidered as an upstream experience. The Town of Luang Prabang has undergone
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profound changes since its inscription. Well beyond the work of restoration, a new city has
been created around a shared notion of the features that make it valuable: its use value andheritage value are unavoidably linked. The challenge is to preserve the Outstanding
Universal Value and the authenticity and integrity of the attributes that carry the value andavoid falling into the trap of inventing a historical reference considered to be the pseudo
original state. The city has developed through a series of exchanges between cultures andcommunities. The work of urban restoration undertaken is part of that process of change.
The value of the framework defined by the authorities and proposed by the experts can only
be understood in the way the current inhabitants make it their own and share its principals. It
is in this sense that the conservation, enhancement and management of the Town of Luang
Prabang can be considered to be a success.

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(77) Democratic People's Republic of Korea
Support for the conservation of the Complex of Koguryo Tombs in the Democratic
People's Republic of Korea
The Koguryo Kingdom covered the majority of Democratic People's Republic of Korea andnorth-eastern China, from 227 BCE until 668 CE. Some of the most significant tangible
remains of this civilisation include fortresses, ruined palaces and Buddhist temples, and tombstelae, some of which are decorated with magnificent painted murals representing theluxurious after-life awaiting the deceased. It is believed that these decorated tombs wereintended for kings, royal family members and nobility. The paintings provide unique evidenceof life during this period.
In 1998, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea ratified the World Heritage Convention,and in 2000 it sought preparatory assistance from the World Heritage Centre, under theaegis of the Global Strategy, to prepare the nomination proposal for the Complex of Koguryo
Tombs.
Three technical assistance missions took place under the framework of the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement between 1999 and 2001 and the nomination dossier was submitted
in January 2002. The property Complex of Koguryo Tombs was inscribed in 2004, at thesame time as the Capital Cities and Tombs of the Ancient Koguryo Kingdom situated on theother side of the border, in China. This was the first property to be inscribed on the World
Heritage List for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

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(78) Thailand“Humanize Bangkok” project, Thailand
Bangkok, in Thailand, is one of the most populated cities in the world, a symbol of
uncontrolled urban growth, marked by heavy pollution and huge traffic problems. In 1998, aproject entitled "Humanise Bangkok" was jointly implemented by the Bangkok Metropolitan
Administration (BMA), the World Heritage Centre of UNESCO and the Embassy of France in
Bangkok.
The objective was to show how the historical centre could generate the urban identity of thewhole metropolis, how it could be the heart of Bangkok and the pillar of social cohesion, andhow it could boost contemporary cultural creativity.
At the time the innovative aspect of this project was its rational and process to build a city by
involving local communities and increase quality of life for the inhabitants of Bangkok throughmini projects for the improvement of public spaces and the revitalization of the historic
centre. In this context, two French architects conducted preparatory work for theenhancement of five public spaces in the historic district of Bangkok, Rattanakosin under theframework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement in 1999.

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(79) Viet Nam
Restauration and revitalization of the Complex of Hué Monuments and historical town,
Viet Nam
Hué, Viet Nam, is one of the last large fortified citadel cities of south-east Asia which was theimperial capital until 1945. The Complex of Hué Monuments has exceptional architecturaland landscape heritage which led to its inscription on the World Heritage List in 1993. This
inscription contributed to reviving its cultural influence. Hué, with a population of 300,000 at
the time of the mission and still growing today, serves as a bridge between Viet Nam’s northand south regions.
The objective of the restoration and revitalisation project was to assist the national and local
authorities in setting up management and conservation tools for an urban site and its
surrounding landscape.
In 2006, a technical assistance mission consisting of a heritage architect and a Frenchhydrology engineer was sent to Hué to establish a proposal for zoning guidelines for thecitadel’s enclosure wall and surroundings. The mission also established principles
concerning, in particular, the construction of road infrastructures for the preservation of thezone of the imperial tombs and the zone of the temple of the sky. To assist the local
authorities in responding to the World Heritage Committee’s recommendations, incooperation with the UNESCO Office Ha Noi, technical expertise was provided to assist theauthorities in setting guidelines and identifying potential properties in Hué’s surroundings.
At the request of the UNESCO Office in Ha Noi, two French experts carried out a mission
within the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement in Hué, from 13 to 26
September 2008. The mission experts assisted the Vietnamese authorities with theestablishment of measures to reinforce the conservation of the Complex of Hué Monuments,and organise preventative measures for the long-term layout of the site. The idea was topropose a global analysis of the site and its surroundings. The expert missions provided
technical assistance for setting up a Heritage House, working out a safeguarding plan as a
ZPPAUP (Architectural, Urban and Landscape Heritage Protection Zones), setting up
technical assistance for inhabitants and financial incentive for building improvement work.
And, finally, to launch five pilot projects whose objective was to carry out exemplary actions
for the inhabitants and the public community, with the broader goal of retaining the urban
morphology and the traditional residential sectors with the spatial organization of theirgardens, and to ensure that widening the roads would not destroy traditional residential
zones.

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Arab States : Regional projects(80) Seminar on the cultural heritage inventories of Maghreb
Within the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement support was provided
for the preparation of cultural heritage inventories for several African countries. A similar
request was made to UNESCO by professionals of the Maghreb region, where theestablishment of this tool, which is fundamental for any action related to heritage, isnecessary. French experience in the domain of cultural heritage inventorying was requested
through the participation of three experts who had already worked on inventories in Africa
during the 2003 seminar in Dakar, Senegal. The workshop, which was to be held from 11 to
16 December 2007, was postponed by Algerian authorities for security reasons.
In this context the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement was requested to cooperate in
the implementation of an initiative under the framework of the European Union Euromed
Heritage programme, whose methodology and objectives overlapped with those of theinitially scheduled meeting.
The workshop, which was held from 10 to 12 December 2008, at UNESCO, was restructured
to become accessible to all Mediterranean partner countries of the European Union (9countries: Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Egypt, Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Lebanon and Syrian
Arab Republic), as well as to Libya and Mauritania, thirty participants, representing thedirectorates of heritage of these countries were present. The moderators at the workshop
were Dr. Khairieh Amr, assistant director of the national Jordan Museum and Dr. Frank
Braemer, research director at the National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) –University of Nice, France.
Analyses of the local situations and of the recent institutional evolutions in terms of
inventories, enabled participants to describe the national situations on the production of data,
the layout of the inventory and strategic direction of the inventory tool. Following thediscussions, a series of recommendations, notably on training, the legislation andinternational cooperation was elaborated collectively.
Following this three day workshop, a special session on 13 December 2008, was dedicatedmore specifically to the work of UNESCO, in order to set the foundation for future actions andimplementation of the recommendations in these five countries.

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Arab States(81) Algeria
Workshop for heritage in Tlemcen, Algeria
This project aimed to ensure the training of local skilled staff in restoration and rehabilitation,
through organization of education programmes in partnership with the “Friends of Tlemcen”
NGO.
Tlemcen, Algeria, was the political capital of Central Maghreb under the reign of the
Zianides, despite a very turbulent history which saw two sieges and two periods ofoccupation in the 14th century. This prosperous period spans across three centuries, from1235 to 1555. Princes, arts benefactors and enlightened patrons of the arts attracted
scientists, intellectuals and artists to the city. In the second half of the 14th century theMedersa Yakoubia was built. This site comprised, among others, the Sidi Braham mosque,built by Sultan Abou Hammoumoussa Tani in 1364.
In 1993, two central pillars of the prayer hall collapsed and knocked down a third, leading toa partial collapse of the roof. In 2001, UNESCO’s (then) Cultural Heritage Department
dispatched an inspector general of historic monuments of the French Ministry of Culture,under the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, to provide technicalsupport for the restoration of the Tlemcen monuments.
The 2001 expert mission exposed the alarming state of deterioration. The site required
urgent, organized intervention. Further intervention was required to reinforce previous
interventions and ensure better conservation techniques. Efforts were subsequently
reinforced and a better quality of conservation interventions required which was addressed
through training and improving the technical skills of on-site workers.
The workshop allowed local capacity building and was implemented through a series ofworkshops in Tlemcen.

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(82) Algeria
Conservation and enhancement of the historic city of Bejaïa, Algeria
Carried out under the aegis of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, this project
aimed to strengthen local capacity and sustain actions undertaken at the local level.
Surrounded by the huge Djurdjura, the Bibans and the Babors massifs, Béjaïa is among theoldest cities in Algeria, founded in 26 or 27 BCE by Emperor Augustus with the nameSaldae. In the Middle Ages, the city became one of the most prosperous in the
Mediterranean and a center of great learning. The Citadel, the most important historicmonument of the city, with a surface area of 20,000 m2, is the result of exchanges between
numerous cultures including: Roman, Hammadid, Spanish, Turkish, French and ArabMuslim. It symbolizes an extinct cultural tradition and exhibits important periods in history.
The site has been listed as an Algerian national heritage site since 1968. Due to difficulties in
the management of heritage, the Algerian government requested UNESCO to provide
technical support to the Ministry of Culture and Communication and the national agency forarcheology and protection of historic sites and monuments (Agence nationale d’archéologie
et de protection des sites et monuments historiques) in the framework of a restoration
project. In fact, despite efforts to undertake serious and effective work, these two bodies
were faced with numerous difficulties such as a lack of trained staff, necessary budget,materials and cultural policy.
The site, which covers a surface area of 109 hectares, was in an alarming state of decay withsome buildings, such as the Mosque, threatening to collapse. The site suffered fromovergrowth of vegetation, humidity issues, and problems resulting from the successive
transformations of structures which were readjusted without respect for coherence and withinappropriate methods.
The first technical assistance mission in 2003 conducted a feasibility study on the restorationof the Medina. Based on these results a preparatory phase to establish a safeguarding plan
was conducted in early 2004, which was well received by local authorities.
.

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(83) Algeria
Conservation and preservation of the city of Constantine, Algeria
The project in Constantine is part of the cross-sector project “Poverty Reduction throughSustainable World Heritage Management”, launched in 2002, on the theme of eliminating
poverty and extreme poverty through the enhancement and management of cultural
resources.
Constantine is one of the world’s oldest cities. Founded by the Phoenicians, it became thecapital of the Numidian Kingdom under the name Cirta. Completely destroyed by Maxence in
311CE, it was rebuilt shortly afterwards by Emperor Constantine who named it after himself.
Constantine has preserved the historic relics of three millennia of Numidian, Roman, Muslim,
Ottoman and colonial occupation. The ancient city has been listed as an Algerian national
heritage site since December 2004.
The cities of Constantine, Algeria, and Grenoble, France, have been partnered since 1999.
From 2002, they have been involved in decentralised co-operation and technical actions
which have expanded over the years to include five components: institutional co-operation,
economic development, civil society, youth and health. In 2003a technical mission
highlighted the need to add an additional “heritage” component to the decentralised
cooperation between Grenoble and Constantine, and to focus actions on the ancient city ofConstantine, an outstanding heritage site under threat.
In January 2005, another mission enabled the identification of suitable partners to steer thepilot project “Heritage and Poverty Alleviation” in Constantine. Apart from the Ministry ofForeign Affairs involved in elaborating the project, the Président de l’Assemblée populairecommunale de Constantine (president of the people’s communal assembly of Constantine)
and the City of Grenoble expressed their interest. The University of Rome III established anurban conservation plan in collaboration with the rehabilitation unit of the ancient city. The
Italian team carried out an inventory of the developed part of the ancient historic centre andproposed a safeguarding perimetre. Finally, the mission emphasised the need to implementa tool similar to the French planning tool SCOT, (Coherent Territorial Planning Scheme) for
territorial planning in Constantine so new constructions would not destroy the landscapevalue of this spectacular site, and also to improve contact between Constantine and thesurrounding cities.
Finally, following the exchanges and the previous missions, in January 2006, a technicalmission was carried out jointly by the City of Grenoble and the World Heritage Centre, in theframework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, to assess the progress ofongoing components carried out in the framework of decentralised cooperation. Regarding
the heritage component, the municipal authorities forwarded the conservation plan preparedby the University of Rome III to the city of Grenoble.
This activity allowed to sensibilise authorities at different levels to acknowledge theimportance of heritage and include it in activities formally focusing on the socio-economic
and institutional environment.

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(84) Algeria
Safeguarding and development of the M'Zab Valley and its five fortified ksour (ElAtteuf, Bou Noura, Beni Isguen, Melika and Ghardaïa), Algeria
This project’s objective was to provide technical assistance to set up management andconservation plans on several sites distributed across a vast territory.
600 km south of Algiers, Algeria, the small M'Zab Valley is home to a unique collection ofsites inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1982. Very old traces of dwellings are seen on
the plateaus and rocky escarpments bordering this valley which were hit by the uncommonand devastating Oued floods. The site was regularly occupied as far back as the early part ofthe 11th century. Since then, the people inhabiting this site developed a unique architecture
based on strict religious, social and moral ideals and adapted to the semi-desert conditions.
The five ksour are built on rocky spurs and house a sedentary urban population. Each ksour
is dominated by a mosque designed like a fortress. In the 1990s, pressure from spontaneous
urbanization led to the degradation of the natural environment, and the transformation of
traditional urban fabric threatened the ksour. In September 2001, at Algeria’s request, theWorld Heritage Centre dispatched an expert specializing in the restoration of built heritage. In
2003, a safeguarding and development project was proposed under the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement as part of the thematic project: “Historic Cities”.
The experts established a boundary for the safeguarded area which was adopted by decree
in 2005. An action programme was implemented to rehabilitate the traditional hydraulicsystem. It also recommended the development of a safeguarding and preservation plan
which was initiated by the Algerian government in 2007. Steps towards cooperation between
the City of Arles (France) and the City of Ghardaïa (Algeria), were taken in the year 2004
between representatives of the Algerian authorities, the French Ministry of Culture, the Cityof Arles, the World Heritage Centre and the DELTA programme - Euromed Heritage II (theDELTA programme focused on integrated regional planning of heritage conservation andmanagement).

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(85) Morocco
Preparatory assistance for the inscription of the Southern Oasis of Morocco
At the initiative of the Permanent Delegation of Morocco and the “Agence pour la promotion
et le développement économique culturel et social des provinces du Sud du Royaume du
Maroc” (agency for the economic, cultural and social promotion and development of thesouthern provinces of the Kingdom of Morocco), UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre wasinvited to take part in a field mission in the Southern Oasis region. The mission provided
technical assistance for evaluation and guidance on the possibility of inscribing a series ofoases, or Ksour, on the World Heritage List, possibly as cultural landscape, and to create an
ecological and cultural tourism strategy.
This mission was expected to identify potential projects to contribute to the enhancement,
and cultural and tourism development, of the oases of southern Morocco. More particularly,
conducting an assessment of heritage values and resources to help determine the potential
for developing a nomination proposal on the World Heritage List and conducting a diagnosisof the tourism development plan based on field observations and meetings with Moroccan
experts and local authorities.
This mission demonstrated the importance attributed to the safeguarding and enhancementof the rich cultural heritage of the southern oases by Moroccan officials and authorities. The
joint mission between the Grahal Company and UNESCO was co-funded by the Agence duSud and the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement, which also contributed to identify theexperts.
The rich heritage of the douar (Icht, Igred, Ou Zrou, Agadir Ouzrou, Akka municipality) isinteresting if one considers both the urban typology (inextricably linked to palm groves and to
the theme of water and its collective management), the landscape diversity, as well as thedensity of built vernacular heritage (adobe domestic architecture). The two historic minaretsof Akka testify to the architectural quality of the monumental heritage. Several rock-carvingsites (Foum Al Hisn or Akka territories), portraying antelopes, elephants and bovids, provide
evidence of the transition from a society of hunters to a pastoral culture by 3,000 BC. The
collective barns, associated with the theme of food and its collective management, carry
heritage value. They both testify to the ways people adapted to an isolated environment andalso have sacred value.
Intangible heritage linked to the nomadic culture is also present. It is recognised especiallythrough the inscription in 2008 of the Tan Tan Moussem on the Representative List of theIntangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (2003 Convention). The mission underlined how
stakeholders were supportive of the initiative as well as the dynamism of the institutional, or
community, network behind the Agence du Sud, the project leader.
Apart from the international recognition of heritage, this nomination initiative is part of a wider
strategy for local development which is handled in all its economic, social and cultural
aspects by the programme for safeguarding and development of the southern oases of the
kingdom. (“Programme de Sauvegarde et de Développement des Oasis du Sud duRoyaume”).
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(86) Morocco
Technical Assistance for the protection and development of Ksar of Ait-Ben-Haddou,
MoroccoKsar of Ait-Ben-Haddou, in Morocco, is a fortified village of adobe buildings and is aninteresting example of earthen architecture in North Africa. It contains barns and dwellings
within its defensive walls, which are reinforced by corner towers. Ksar of Ait-Ben-Haddou in
the Ouarazate province of Morocco was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1987.
The CERKAS (centre for conservation and rehabilitation of the architectural heritage of theatlas and sub-atlas zones) and the Moroccan authorities requested the World Heritage
Centre’s support in the implementation of a management plan. Funded under the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement, a team from CRAterre-ENSAG was sent in June 2008.
Mission activities included analysis of the condition of the property, establishingrecommendations, defining plans of action, as well as technical recommendations for thefortification wall built on the upper side of the rock and the building constructed at the summitof the rock (popularly known as “Ighrem n iqddarn”, or community barn).
Implementation of a management plan enabled significant achievements: an Arabictranslation of the management plan was widely distributed and stakeholders met regularly toadjust and decide on activities to undertake. Since it was distributed and discussed during
meetings, the management plan became a reference document for decisions concerning
activities to be carried out on the ksar. Furthermore, special budgets were allocated by thegovernment (Ministry of Culture of Morocco) and several of the plan’s actions were launched
and received funding.

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(87) Mauritania
Technical assistance for urban management and rehabilitation of the Ancient Ksour of
Ouadane, Chinguetti, Tichitt and Oualata, Mauritania
The Ancient Ksour of Ouadane, Chinguetti, Tichitt and Oualata (Mauritania) were founded in
the 11th and 12th centuries to serve the caravans crossing the Sahara, these trading andreligious centres became rich and brilliant centres of Islamic culture. The urban fabric thatevolved between the 12th and 16th centuries was preserved with its typical houses with
patios crowded along narrow streets around a mosque with a square minaret. They illustratea traditional way of life centred on the nomadic culture of the people of the western Sahara.
In May 2000 the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA) lent 5 million US
dollars to the Mauritanian government for the Safeguarding and Valorisation of Mauritanian
Cultural Heritage Project (PSVPCM).
This project aimed to define and implement a coherent strategy for the conservation and useof Mauritanian cultural heritage. It included an “ancient cities” component on conservationand management of historic centres. A protocol concerning the implementation of activities
aiming to safeguard Mauritanian cultural heritage, which was signed in June 2000 between
UNESCO, the World Bank and the Mauritanian government, allowed to supervise the project.
Between 2001 and 2002, a series missions were carried out by World Heritage Centre
specialists and by experts, some of which were provided in the framework of the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement, in order to define firstly a strategy for safeguarding thefour Ancient Ksour of Ouadane, Chinguetti, Tichitt and Oualata inscribed on the World
Heritage List since 1996, and secondly, following the request of the Mauritian government,
and with technical and financial support from the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement,
to design a project-draft for the elaboration of master plans for the four ksour, which received
the support of an architecte des bâtiments de France. Two design consultancy firms, one
French and one Mauritian, where chosen to carry out the work which started in July 2003
and was completed in March 2005. During the Pilot-project activities, municipal technicians
were trained for the follow-up of rehabilitation and construction work inside historic centres,
the use of traditional building techniques and for the implementation of the recommendations
contained in the master plans. In order to guarantee the follow-up of the actions and thetransmission of know-how, municipal advice and counselling antennas were installed in thebuildings restored during the on-site training.
The exemplary nature of this Pilot-project was enhanced by the organisation of the MauritianWorld Heritage Cities days, from 11 to 15 April 2005 at UNESCO’s headquarters in Paris,
France. This initiative, inaugurated in the presence of the President of the Islamic Republic of
Mauritania, welcomed an international conference, a round table of partners, the screening ofa documentary film, and an itinerant exhibition. This event was also the opportunity tointroduce the Cities of Memory photographic collection, ancient ksour of Mauritania, which
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presents the works carried out within the framework of the Pilot-project. The organisation of
the Conference and the publication of this work also benefitted from the support of theFrance-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement.

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(88) Syrian Arab Republic
Support for research into ancient mosaics of the Museum of Ma'arat an-Noman, Syrian
Arab Republic
In 2014, given the impossibility since 2011 of implementing activities in Syria and continuing
support activities for the management of the Ancient Villages of Northern Syria, inscribed on
the World Heritage List, the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement, offered to provide financial support for research into the mosaics ofNorthern Syria.
Given the need to document and consolidate knowledge of Syrian cultural heritage,
particularly vulnerable in the context of war, it was important to support research and thesharing of knowledge on the ancient mosaics conserved in the Museum of Ma'arat anNoman (Syria), which mostly originate from the Ancient Villages of Northern Syria, inscribedon the World Heritage List in 2011.
More specifically, the project consisted of following up on work carried out as part of a
doctoral dissertation on a corpus of 80 mosaics from the Byzantine era, prized for theirfineness, the detail of the drawings and the remarkable execution, by updating thebibliography, to allow more in-depth study of the context of archaeological discovery,
enriching the epigraphical features and providing an up-to-date transcription.
This project was developed in close collaboration with the Institut français du Proche-Orient
and the École normale supérieure, in partnership with Centre national de la recherche
scientifique (CNRS), the Laboratoire Orient et Méditerranée (Centre of Byzantine history andcivilisation) and Archéologie et Sciences de l'Antiquité (Greek and Roman Archeology of the
Middle East) and is supported by the Direction de la recherche et des échanges
scientifiques, the Pôle du patrimoine mondial, Mission des échanges culturels et del'audiovisuel, the Direction de la coopération culturelle, universitaire et de la recherche, andthe Direction générale de la mondialisation, du développement et des partenariats of theFrench Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
This work was conducted at the Laboratoire Archéologies et Philologie d'Orient et d'Occident,
which provided scientific guidance for the researcher at the École normale supérieure, inliaison with the specialist members of the other laboratories mentioned above, with the aim ofproviding the basis for a descriptive catalogue that will be published in the Bibliothèquearchéologique et historique collection of the Institut français du Proche-Orient.

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(89) Syrian Arab Republic
Preparatory assistance for the inscription of the Ancient Villages of Northern Syria,
Syrian Arab Republic
The Ancient Villages of Northern Syria constitute one of the most extraordinary archeologicalensembles in the world. There are more than 700 sites from the Roman and Byzantine eras
located in a vast region. They are located on a series of limestone plateaus known as theLimestone Massif.
There is interest in these sites, not only because of their number, but also because they are
in an exceptional state of preservation. The abandonment of these 8th century villages on
the Limestone Massif, and the solidity of buildings made from that limestone haveguaranteed their preservation. The “dead cities” or ancient villages are of exceptional interest
because the nearly 2,000 km2 area provides a precise image of the state of rural life at theend of Antiquity, whereas, for this era, most conserved vestiges belong to cities.
However, rapid changes took place in the past years, as well as the growth of tourism which
threatens the integrity of this landscape and its historic vestiges.
The Syrian authorities asked for UNESCO’s assistance to protect and inscribe this landscapeon the World Heritage List. A number of studies were then conducted by the DirectorateGeneral of Antiquities and Museums (DGAM). The results were presented in the form of an
exhibit in Damascus, Syrian Arab Republic, and were the subject of international meetings
beginning in 2001. Preparatory assistance was provided under the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement in 2005. The major difficulty in this case resided in understanding
this territory in its entirety; recognizing not only its archeological value but also its landscapevalue. Since the concept of cultural landscape does not exist in Syrian law for antiquities norules existed that allowed for consideration of a heritage ensemble on a territorial level. In
this context, the project involved defining the boundaries of eight “parks” which, in their
quality and variety, constitute a sampling of the richness of the Limestone Massif. Next, aplan for protection and management was created to ensure safeguarding of the property inaccordance with the requirements of economic and tourist development in the country, thisincluded the establishment of laws of protection specific to the eight parks, as well as
consideration, at the regional level, of territorial development and its challenges. It also
included reinforcing the capacities of the DGAM and supported the creation of a local
management body, as well as establishing a management plan and an action plan for theproperty.
Technical assistance continued in 2010, in particular for the preparation of the “Action Plan”
that completed the nomination proposal in January 2011. This nomination proposal was thendelivered to the World Heritage Centre in January 2010. This supplementary document
reported on the progress, in terms of management tools and coordination implemented at theFrance-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement – Synthesis of the activities implemented between 1999 and 2015

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national level since January 2010. It also showed the implementation of an ambitious
management plan for the territory.
The Ancient Villages of Northern Syria were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2011,
and subsequently listed on the World Heritage in Danger List in 2013.

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(90) Syrian Arab Republic
Workshop on urban development, sustainable development and tourism investment in
the North district of Damascus, Syrian Arab Republic
In 2001, the Syrian Arab Republic’s General Directorate of Antiquities and Museums (DGAM)
requested technical assistance. Within the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation
Agreement, a seminar was organised in the Syrian Arab Republic to discuss the importanceof, and need for, safeguarding of the Sarouja district.
The Ancient City of Damascus was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1979. The
property, characterised by a unique history and civilisation has a particularly rich cultural
heritage. Founded in the 3rd millennium B.C., Damascus is one of the oldest cities in the
Middle East. The city has some 125 monuments from different periods of its history, one of
the most spectacular is the 8th century Great Mosque of the Umayyads, built on the site ofan Assyrian sanctuary.
The Sarouja district is located at the North-West of the World Heritage property Ancient Cityof Damascus. It is a historic area of great interest which has conserved its ancient urban
fabric and many old vernacular buildings.
The rehabilitation of the Sarouja district aims at its cultural, social and economic
reinvigoration by means of the preservation of its architectural heritage urban fabric. This
workshop on the management and urban development of Sarouja took place on 8 and 9
June 2004 and aimed at preparing a methodology of intervention suitable for theenhancement and revitalisation of the district. A round table facilitated a detailed discussion
on physical conservation, its social and economic aspects, cultural tourism and the legislative
aspects of the matter. A management plan was established together with the proposition of aseries of actions designed for its implementation.

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Europe : Regional Projects(91) Support for the restoration of the Christ the Saviour Church in Prizren, Kosovo(References to Kosovo shall be understood to be in the context of Security Council
resolution 1244 (1999))
Following the international donors conference for the Rehabilitation of the Cultural Heritagein Kosovo* (13 May 2005), organised by UNESCO in collaboration with the United Nations
Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), the Council of Europe, and the European
Commission, and following the first session of the international expert committee of UNESCO
for heritage in Kosovo* (9 December 2005), an ensemble of Christian monuments (Serbian
Orthodox) and Islamic (Ottoman), as well as some traditional vernacular buildings, that were
either damaged during the war or that required urgent work were selected for restoration andsafeguarding measures.
Under the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement additional support was granted tomatch the international aid provided by several European countries, including France andGermany for the conservation of the Christ the Saviour Church, in the framework of the“Safeguard the cultural heritage in Kosovo*” project.
The Christ the Saviour Church is located in the North of Prizren. Built in 1330, it is an
important testament to the Byzantine art of medieval Serbia. The building is remarkable forits mural paintings. It has a narthex, a single nave, and a choir covered by a dome. The
church is next to an incomplete large annex which, today, forms an enclosure of which only
the walls remain, and next to a more recent campanile, added in the 19th century.
The interior decor of the church was completed in two phases, and dates entirely from the14th century. The paintings from the second phase, situated in the nave and in the narthex(depicting the Theotokos Paraklesis and the Christ Antiphonetes, etc) are of particularly
remarkable quality and were restored under the framework of this project.
The French NGO Patrimoine Sans Frontières (PSF) provided support for the implementationof restoration work. Besides the restoration of heritage, the project enabled development oftraining activities and a working synergy between the clergy, the international and national
experts and the local community.
*References to Kosovo shall be understood to be in the context of Security Council resolution
1244 (1999)

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(92) Regional: Eastern Europe
Private property management in historic city centres of European countries intransition
The transfer of responsibility from private ownership to local and territorial governments
poses new management problems in the centres of European countries in transition. France,
which has a long tradition in this area, could provide effective support for the strengthening ofpolicies and procedures for safeguarding and enhancement of built heritage.
The project was an opportunity to encourage Member States to implement the 1972 World
Heritage Convention and the recommendations of the action plan of the Intergovernmental
Conference on Cultural Policies for Development (held at Stockholm, Sweden, in 1998).
In 1999, in anticipation of a European seminar, a questionnaire was developed that was
based on survey carried out in ten Eastern European countries. The seminar on private
property management of the historic centres (“La gestion de la propriété privée des centres
historiques”) took place in Bucharest, Romania, from 20 to 25 April 2001. It helped assess
legislative and administrative issues concerning the protection of private real estate andurban development in the countries concerned. From 6 to 9 November a seminar was held in
Pécs, Hungary, this one concerning institutional, administrative and financial mechanismsthat enable countries to restore a historic centre by preserving the social fabric, through four
examples: Edinburgh (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland), Ljubljana(Slovenia), the German cooperation in Sibiu (Romania) and the National Agency of habitat(ANAH) in France. This new step was embodied in a project developed for the protection,
management and development of the city of Riga, Latvia, between 2003 and 2008. The
France UNESCO-Cooperation Agreement provided technical assistance in preparation forboth seminars.

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Europe(93) Albania
Technical assistance for the management of the Historic Centres of Berat andGjirokastra, Albania
With a strategic geographic position on one of the few passageways between the Adriatic
Sea and the Balkan Peninsula, and on the banks of the Osum River, Berat, Albania became
a rich commercial and cultural center from the 6th century BCE. This long history is well
represented by its cultural heritage: two forts, numerous Islamic and Greek Orthodox
religious buildings, as well as several hundred traditional houses that represent a rarecollection of the architectural heritage of the Balkan region.
During the Communist era, the Albanian government promoted legislation to conserve 550
traditional houses, several monuments and the castle in the Historic Centre. Unfortunately,
nearly half of the mosques and churches were destroyed after the declaration of atheism in
1967. After the fall of the regime in 1990, the new government ceased all measures in favorof heritage, which led to rapid deterioration of the old city. Unemployment reached significant
proportions and caused a number of secondary effects including massive urbanization.
Aware of the need for action and technical assistance in these areas, the Albanian
government appealed to the international community.
The objective of this project, carried out within the framework of the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement in 1999, was to offer training and employment opportunities throughrestoration of traditional houses in the Historic Centres of Berat and Gjirokastra, inscribed on
the World Heritage List in 2005, and their infrastructure, in order to establish a model ofsustainable development of historic cities. The hope is to replicate this approach in otherurban centers in Albania and the region.

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(94) Armenia
Technical assistance to the Shirak Museum, Armenia
The regional Shirak Museum, Armenia, was established in 1930. During the 1970s, tens of
thousands of pieces representing the material and spiritual culture of the historical provinceof Shirak were collected by the museum. Several of the pieces are unique and of exceptional
scientific and cultural value.
This project of UNESCO’s former Division of Cultural Heritage took place within the existing
cooperation between the Shirak Museum, and the French Ministry of Culture. The project
benefitted from the support of the Musée Dobrée (museum of art, archeology and history) in
Nantes, France, whose commitment (which began in 1990) enabled the Shirak Museum torestore several archaeological objects and organize two large exhibitions in France: Nantes
in 1996 and Lyon in 1998. A catalogue of the museum’s collection was completed in
December 2003 and may be consulted on the Shirak Museum Website.
The Shirak Museum, which lost its main building after a strong earthquake in 1988,
destroyed 60% of the town of Gumri, benefited from the support of the France–UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement, which assisted in the provision of equipment and accessories(computers, modems, scanners, digital cameras, etc.). The museum was thus able toestablish an on-line presence, to create a website, establish numerical archives of its
collections and offer English and French versions of its collections.
Finally, two French experts, identified in consultation with the national authorities, undertooka mission, in 2002, to prepare an action plan for the museum and support urgent measures
to preserve several artefacts of exceptional value.

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(95) Russian Federation
Technical assistance for the restoration of Saint Basil's Basilica, Moscow, RussianFederation
The construction of the Basilica Saint. Basil the Blessed, Moscow, Russian Federation, took
place between 1552 and 1561 after the capture of Kazan by Tsar Ivan IV, also known as
Ivan the Terrible, to commemorate his victory against the Tatars. He called upon thearchitect Postnik Yakovlev who proposed a basilica whose golden domes took the form of
military helmets. In 1583, following a fire, the domes were replaced by onion domes.
However, it was not until 1670, that they were given the colored aspect we know today.
Located on Moscow’s Red Square, it has become the symbol of the city, but also of thewhole country. It is situated in the middle of the Kremlin and Red Square, Moscow, aproperty inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1990.
Within the framework of the cooperation between UNESCO and the industrial group RhônePoulenc for the protection of World Heritage, the UNESCO Chair in Urban and Architectural
Conservation of Moscow and the Russian Committee of ICOMOS proposed the use of newtechnology and materials developed by Rhône-Poulenc to restore the basilica. Prior to any
restoration work, it was necessary to undertake a preliminary study to identify the type andsteps of work to be undertaken. Within the framework of the France-UNESCO Cooperation
Agreement, the chief architect for French historical monuments carried out an assessment
mission in 1999, and provided recommendations for the restoration of the building.

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(96) Latvia
Technical assistance for the safeguarding, management and development of theHistoric Centre of Riga, Latvia
The Historic Centre of Riga, Latvia, was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1997 for its
urban and architectural values. The city’s urban morphology is a fine example of thedevelopment and evolution phases of a northern European city. The urban fabric of its
medieval centre reflects the prosperity of the city between the thirteenth and fifteenth
centuries when it was an important centre of the Hanseatic League, the powerful associationof northern European merchant towns. Riga’s centre also includes a large number of Art
Nouveau/Jugendstil buildings and both the city centre and outskirts are characterised byremarkable wood structures. This heritage of wood edifices, however, is very fragile andprotecting it and raising awareness on heritage values became essential.
Latvian authorities established new legislation to ensure the protection and management of
the site. The main challenges lay in the follow-up and enforcement of legislation, and insetting up an advisory process with private investors. Including heritage culture among city
development issues was the major challenge.
Latvia requested technical assistance for urban site conservation and the conservation of
their wood structure heritage, which led, between 2002 and 2007, as part of the FranceUNESCO Cooperation Agreement, to several technical monitoring and cooperation missions
between the national heritage services and services of the City of Riga, together withexchanges based on the ongoing decentralised cooperation between Latvia and France.
This technical assistance was supported by both the French Ministry of Culture and theFrench Ministry of Public Works at the time.
In 2002, a French inspection expert of the Heritage Branch of the Ministry of Culture
participated in a one-day seminar (20 December, 2002) organised by the City of Riga topresent the safeguarding plan for the city inscribed on the World Heritage List
"Preservation and Development Plan of the Historic Centre of Riga".
In April 2003, a mission of technical expertise was organized by the UNESCO World
Heritage Centre in response to a request from Latvian authorities to send experts to evaluate
and assess the Preservation and Development Plan of the Historic Centre of Riga. Thismission was entrusted to a city architect for heritage sites, specialist of safeguarded areas
and an inspection expert of the Heritage Branch of the French Ministry of Culture and was
carried out within the framework of the France-UNESCO Convention. At the request of theCity of Riga, the experts were able to examine the proposed safeguarding and development
plan project developed by the city. Discussions with the city allowed them to examine various
aspects of the plan, heritage identification and location, land laws and use, regulations andmonitoring and control mechanisms, together with the interaction between the various
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institutions and stakeholders without neglecting resources and skills. Discussions also
underscored the importance of harmonising existing tools.
This mission was followed by two others in 2004 (from 21 to 25 April) and 2005 (from 13 to
16 April), conducted at the request of the City of Riga to continue accompanying the
Preservation and Development Plan of the Historic Centre of Riga and consider the possible
establishment of a centre for wooden architectural heritage. In addition, the missions soughtto:• assess the results of the work carried out,
• answer the questions of the city both in terms of method and possible considerations fordevelopment,• assist city services to provide answers that were as precise as possible to questions on
specific, physicallyisolated problems,• list additional issues that merited inclusion in the preservation and development plan of thehistoric centre and its outskirts.
In 2005, an urban conservation architect and planner and an expert on wood structures
together with a World Heritage Site representative further examined the draft safeguard anddevelopment plan and provided a set of specific recommendations in response to questions
submitted by the Latvian authorities.
Then in 2007, on 15-17 April, Latvian authorities organised a technical workshop entitled“Preservation and development of city historic centres” focussing on the historic city anddevelopment projects in the historic centre and the left bank of the Daugava River in thebuffer zone.
In addition, the City of Riga and the City of Lyon (the Historic Site of Lyon (France) also
inscribed on the World Heritage List since 1998) have developed cultural and economic
exchanges. As part of these exchanges, the cities expressed the wish to set up decentralised
cooperation focusing on the management and conservation of urban heritage. In 2008, a
joint mission between the World Heritage Centre, the City of Bordeaux and City of Lyon was
conducted in Riga, allowing the three cities to sign a cooperation agreement. A trip back to
Lyon enabled the State representative and the city to study several examples of intervention
with regards to inventory, old district rehabilitation and urban planning.

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(97)Turkey
Technical assistance for the management of the Archaeological Site of Zeugma and its
surroundings, Gaziantep, Turkey
Zeugma is an ancient city situated on the Euphrates south of Turkey. It is composed of twocities on either side of the Euphrates: Seleucia and Apamea. The construction of a new damon the Euphrates in Turkey resulted in the destruction of twenty major historic sites in thevalley. Emergency excavations by Franco-Turkish teams were undertaken on the three mostimportant sites in the area: Seleucia-Zeugma and Apamea.
In 2004, at the request of Turkey, UNESCO, under the France-UNESCO Cooperation
Agreement, provided expertise and technical advice on the location of the Mosaic Museum
and its museography and also for managing the shore’s landscape along the Euphrates.
Once the dam had been filled up, and parts of the buried archaeological treasures salvaged,
it was necessary to develop a protection and enhancement strategy for the site considering
these new components. The challenge was to manage change in the landscape, process thedata of the rescue archeology findings and to develop a territory and landscape whoseenvironment and ecosystem has been entirely changed by the flooding of the dam.
Concerning the Mosaic Museum, the aim was to design an area to display the mosaics
discovered on the Archeological Site of Zeugma, inscribed on the Tentative Lists since 2012,and make a selection based on a smaller number of items but of high quality rather than aselection based on a large number of items. Furthermore, the selection should stayaccessible to researchers and not be burdened by a too obtrusive museum design.
For the site of the new lake, beside Zeugma whose acropolis holds a 360° view of thelandscape, the whole site contains exceptional vestiges such as the fortress and the village
of Rumkale submerged in Halfeti. The challenge for authorities was to preserve these
isolated remains by controlling the lakeshore. Thus, aside from locations of reconstructedvillages, the local community has undertaken conservation measures by controlling access toall spaces in a strip 300 meters from the lakeshore, and by managing both sides of thelakeshore, to ensure the sustainable development of these areas and to identify actions to betaken as a priority to address the adverse effects caused by this new environment, or tomaintain the positive effects observed.

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(98) Turkey
Technical support for the management, enhancement and development of the Historic
Areas of Istanbul, Turkey
The Historic Areas of Istanbul, Turkey, were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1985,
and as a strategic point in the Bosphorus peninsula between the Balkans and Anatolia, theBlack Sea and the Mediterranean, the City of Istanbul has been associated with great
political, religious and artistic events for over 2000 years. Its masterpieces include the
Hippodrome of Constantinople, the Saint Sophia Basilica dating from the 6th century and theSuleymaniye Mosque dating from the 16th century; they are currently threatened byovercrowding, industrial pollution and uncontrolled urbanisation.
The France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement has provided technical and financial support
for the development of urban studies and management mechanisms, and implemented pilot
operations in Fatih, Zeyrek, Sulemanye and Yenikapi between 1999 and 2004.
The urban restoration project began in 1999 with the creation of the Fatih Heritage House, acoordinating centre for the restoration operations. Since it was created, the Heritage House
has benefited from technical and administrative support from the France-UNESCO
Cooperation Agreement.
The Fatih District includes in particular the areas of Balat, Fener, Zeyrek and Yenikapi. The
project focused on these four areas, specifically on Zeyrek and Yenikapi. Zeyrek is mainlycomprised of traditional wooden Ottoman houses, which at the time were in a worrying
condition. The residents of these areas lived in particularly precarious circumstances.
After the Habitat II conference in 1996, the UNESCO World Heritage Centre carried out afeasibility study for the renovation and revitalisation of the Fatih District, with European Union
funding and the support of Yves Dauge and the Institut Français d'Études anatoliennesd'Istanbul (IFEA). Due to its aims, this study went considerably beyond the geographical area
which it covered. It intended to demonstrate that the future of ancient districts was not limited
to restoration for tourism purposes, that it was possible to maintain working class areas andprotect heritage while improving the living conditions of the residents. With this in mind,
UNESCO proposed a development project based on heritage regeneration research andlegal research into urban regulations. This development project allowed 7 million euros of aid
to be granted to Turkey by the European Union, to implement projects uniting cultural
heritage and sustainable development.
UNESCO co-funded the establishment of the Fatih Heritage House (Balat area) in 1999, andconducted research in Zeyrek, Sulemanye and Yenikapi (2001-2003). The Heritage Housewas established in 1999 in the area of Balat, as part of the support provided by UNESCO.

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This structure meant residents could be informed and advised about heritage restoration
projects and public spaces, allowing heritage to be enhanced.
Additional technical support was provided for the Heritage House and the Turkish national
body for social housing (TOKI) for the implementation of social housing operations in theareas of Balat and Fener, particularly for listed buildings. This support mobilised theexpertise of French aid organisations for the restoration of housing such as Agence
Nationale de l’Habitat and the PACT ARIM association.
The European Union project was implemented from February 2003 and concerned
exclusively the areas of Balat and Fener (also part of Fatih). UNESCO conducted operations
based on the dynamic created by the European Union project undertaken in Balat and Fener,
extending it to Zeyrek and Yenikapi under the responsibility of the municipality of Fatih.
Several urban studies were conducted to implement projects for the development andprotection of heritage in the areas of Zeyrek et Yenikapi, as well as to evaluate the priority
restorations to be carried out, particularly doing feasibility studies for partial rehabilitation(focusing on roofs and facades) to implement a rehabilitation programme for around ten
houses.
In addition, the municipality of Istanbul had programmed the implementation of an interregional transport network to irrigate the Golden Horn over more than 70 km. The
establishment of this network included the restoration of the train station and the surroundingarea, which was subject to major urban transformation. Several technical research missions
were undertaken to develop measurements and projects to protect the wooden Ottomanbuildings of Yenikapi and to advise local actors to help them protect the area of Yenikapi, aspart of the huge development around the train station.

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Annexe

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