Decision 46 COM 7B.36

Kathmandu Valley (Nepal) (C 121bis)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/24/46.COM/7B,
2. Recalling Decision 45 COM 7B.45 adopted at its extended 45th session (Riyadh, 2023),
3. Welcomes the State Party’s continued efforts towards the recovery of the property following the 2015 Gorkha earthquake and the significant progress that has been made following the establishment of the International Scientific Committee for Kathmandu Valley (ISC-KV), notes with appreciation that much of the required conservation and restoration work to earthquake-damaged monuments within the Protected Monument Zones of the property has been completed, and that a series of sector strategies will be prepared to support the ongoing conservation and management of the property, and requests that draft versions of the sector strategies be reviewed and approved by the ISC-KV before being finalised and implemented;
4. Reiterates its previous call for the international community to continue supporting the State Party’s recovery work through financial, technical or expert assistance, including capacity building and training, support for local communities and their housing and social needs, and the ongoing resources needed to enable the active participation of international experts in the ISC-KV;
5. Noting the development of the ‘Recovery Plan: Remaining Activities Report’, and recalling its previous requests that the Recovery Master Plans (RMP) for each Protective Monument Zone of the property be in line with the implementation of the UNESCO 2011 Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape (HUL Recommendation), requests that the State Party integrate the RMPs for each Protective Monument Zone of the property within the proposed ‘Recovery Plan: Remaining Activities Report’, as part of an overall socio-economic revitalization programme for urban communities;
6. Noting that the 2021 version of the Integrated Management Framework (IMF) was re-submitted without revisions or updates, requests that it be revised in line with the Technical Review by the Advisory Bodies,
7. Regrets that, despite its earlier requests, the new Master Plan for Pashupati Protected Monument Zone was adopted without a prior Technical Review, and reiterates its previous request that the State Party submit the New Master Plan for the Pashupati Protected Monument Zone and the revised IMF to the World Heritage Centre for review by the Advisory Bodies prior to implementation;
8. Welcomes the State Party’s report on progress implementing the recommendations of the 2019 Reactive Monitoring mission and the recommendations of the first meeting of the ISC-KV, and requests the State Party to include reporting on the implementation of the recommendations of the ISC-KV in future reports to the Committee;
9. Notes that the Patan Durbar Square Monument Zone sewer project was implemented without demonstrating how feedback from the ICOMOS Technical Review was incorporated, and requests that a report on this project, including information about archaeological monitoring and discoveries, be submitted to the World Heritage Centre upon completion of the works;
10. Reiterates its previous request to the State Party to ensure that the draft procedures and format for Heritage Impact Assessments (HIAs) in Nepal be reviewed and revised to be consistent with the Guidance and Toolkit for Impact Assessments in a World Heritage Context, before being used in relation to projects that may affect World Heritage properties in Nepal, and requests that the updated draft document be submitted to the World Heritage Centre for review by the Advisory Bodies;
11. Reminds the State Party that details of major projects that may have an impact on the OUV of a World Heritage property should be submitted to the World Heritage Centre for review by the Advisory Bodies, together with any necessary HIAs, before any decision is made that would be difficult to reverse, in line with Paragraphs 118bis and 172 of the Operational Guidelines;
12. Finally requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2025, an updated report on the state of conservation of the property and the implementation of the above, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 48th session.