Silk Roads heritage to be considered for the inscription to the UNESCO World Heritage List

Among the 40 objects to be considered during the session, the Silk Roads are represented by the following nominations: "Silk Roads: Initial Section of the Silk Roads, the Routes Network of Tian-Shan Corridor" (China, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan), "Silk Roads: Penjikent-Samarkand-Poykent Corridor" (Tajikistan and Uzbekistan), the Almaty UNESCO Cluster Office said.

Actually, the World Heritage List recognizes 981 properties in 160 States Parties to the 1972 Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage. Central Asia with its unique historical background and numerous cultural and natural heritage sites remains one of the most under-represented regions on the World Heritage List. There are only 13 World Heritage properties located in Central Asian countries.

The World Heritage Committee, responsible for the implementation of the 1972 Convention consists of representatives of 21 countries is elected by the States Parties to the Convention for six years. Since 2013 Republic of Kazakhstan is the only Central Asian country that is the member of the World Heritage Committee.

The World Heritage Committee makes decisions on inscription of the sites to the UNESCO's World Heritage List, attends issues of international assistance, examines reports on the state of conservation of the inscribed sites and, if necessary, asks the Member-States to take appropriate measures for the protection and conservation of the inscribed sites. UNESCO's World Heritage Centre serves as the Secretariat of the World Heritage Convention.

Applications are reviewed by two advisory bodies: Cultural sites by the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) and natural sites by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which inform the Committee of their recommendations. The International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Conservation of Cultural Heritage (ICCROM) provides expert advice on conservation and training in restoration techniques.