Greece was elected to the UNESCO World Heritage Committee at the 23rd General Assembly of the States Parties to the World Heritage Convention held between 24 to 26 November 2021 at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France.
193 States Parties participated at the World Heritage Convention under the chairmanship of H.E. Mr Tebogo Seokolo, Ambassador Extraordinary and Permanent Delegate of South Africa to UNESCO.
“Greece was elected in the first round as a member of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee for the next four years. This is an exceptional distinction for our country,” said Greek Culture Minister Lina Mendoni, adding that it was a result of “hard work and systematic efforts by delegations from the ministries of foreign affairs and culture.
“Our goal is the active protection of the world’s cultural and natural heritage – which now has to deal with the effects of the climate crisis – as well as the preservation and strengthening of the universal value of monuments in all geographical regions of the world,” said Mendoni.
Meanwhile Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias on Twitter said the government was grateful to the countries that supported Greece’s candidacy.
“Greece has just been elected to the UNESCO World Heritage Committee with 119 votes… Our country is ready to work to promote the protection of the world cultural heritage,” said Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias.
During the session, the General Assembly elected twelve new members to the World Heritage Committee: Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria, Greece, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Qatar, Rwanda, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Zambia.
The current composition of the World Heritage Committee is therefore as follows:
Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria, Egypt, Ethiopia, Greece, India, Italy, Japan, Mali, Mexico, Nigeria, Oman, Qatar, Russian Federation, Rwanda, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Thailand, Zambia
RESOURCE | UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE COMMITTEE
The World Heritage Committee meets once a year, and consists of representatives from 21 of the States Parties to the Convention elected by their General Assembly. At its first session, the Committee adopted its Rules of Procedure of the World Heritage Committee.
The Committee is responsible for the implementation of the World Heritage Convention, defines the use of the World Heritage Fund and allocates financial assistance upon requests from States Parties. It has the final say on whether a property is inscribed on the World Heritage List. It examines reports on the state of conservation of inscribed properties and asks States Parties to take action when properties are not being properly managed. It also decides on the inscription or deletion of properties on the List of World Heritage in Danger.
