CIS World Heritage Center project to be discussed 12-13 February

A meeting of the group of experts will focus on the finalization of the draft provision on the CIS World Heritage Center which is to be set up at the UNESCO department for town-planning and architectural specimen in Moscow. According to the project, the center will be a not-for-profit organization.

"The center will work out and implement joint programs and projects of the CIS member states in the area of assessment and preservation of world heritage monuments with the application of the latest technologies. The center will also study, summarize and share the CIS experience in securing, preserving, managing and protecting the world heritage objects," the CIS Executive Committee said.

The center also will coordinate the joint work in preparing nomination files for inclusion of certain sites and objects to the UNESCO list, hold international conferences, seminars and symposiums, conduct vocational training and retraining programs, and promote cooperation of the CIS countries with various international organizations.

Previous meeting of experts on the draft regulation on the CIS World Heritage Center was held in October 2012. It was attended by representatives of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Ukraine, and officials of the CIS Executive Committee. The document was basically completed during the meeting. Prior to the meeting, the Russian side presented the draft agreement on the establishment of the CIS World Heritage Center and its Statute. According to the developers, these documents are relevant, because the center is positioned as an international organization, therefore, is created in accordance with the international law.

After the meeting, it was decided to send the materials to the CIS member states with a request to submit their amendments to the draft documents, and voice their positions on the project to set up the center. "All comments and suggestions from the CIS member states will be discussed at the forthcoming meeting of the group of experts," informed the CIS Executive Committee.

Source: BelTA