32 sites in race for World Heritage status this year

The World Heritage Committee will consider inscribing new sites on Unesco's World Heritage List when states' parties meet from July 25 - Aug 3 in Brazil, the Paris-based UN organisation said in a statement on Tuesday.

The 34th session of the World Heritage Committee will see presentation of properties by 35 states parties to the World Heritage Convention, the media reported.

Details of 32 new properties were submitted for inscription on the World Heritage List this year.

To date, the list recognizes 890 properties of "outstanding universal value" in 148 countries.

The World Heritage Committee, a UN body responsible for the implementation of the 1972 Convention, comprises representatives of 21 countries, elected by the states parties for up to six years.

Each year, the committee adds new sites to the list and examines the state of conservation of inscribed properties. It also supervises the disbursement of over $4 million annually from the World Heritage Fund.
source: agency