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World Heritage Convention Act, 1999 (Act No. 49 of 1999)

Notices

Amended Format and Procedure for Nomination of World Heritage Sites in the Republic of South Africa

4. Part 2: Tentative Listing

 

A Tentative List is an inventory of those properties situated on its territory which each State Party considers suitable for inscription on the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage List (WHL). The Operational Guidelines for the implementation of the World Heritage Convention states the following in relation to the sites listed on the Tentative List

 

Paragraph 63: Nominations to the WHL are not considered unless the nominated property has already been included on the State Party's Tentative List.

 

Paragraph 65: States Parties shall submit Tentative Lists to the Secretariat, at least one year prior to the submission of any nomination.

 

The Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention (paragraphs 62 to 76) further require State Parties to prepare, maintain and submit to the World Heritage Centre a Tentative List of properties they intend to nominate to the World Heritage List.

 

(a) In developing a Tentative List, the following basic requirements should be fulfilled:
i. The Format (Annexure 2) of the Operational Guidelines should be used;
ii. Natural Heritage properties should be designated as any type of protected area, as outlined in section 9 of NEMPAA
iii. Cultural Heritage properties should have any formal protection provided for in terms of NHRA
iv. Mixed properties and where appropriate cultural landscapes should fulfil (ii) and/or (iii) mentioned above;
v. In nominating transboundary properties, the portion of the property that falls outside the Republic of South Africa should enjoy formal protection in accordance with legislation in that particular State Party;
vi. Transboundary properties should comply with the above and have full support of both State Parties;
vii. Formal structures or Management Authorities (MA) for overseeing the management of the proposed serial properties should enter into a formal agreement; and
viii. Clear indication on whether the proposed property overlaps with any sites declared in terms of other International culture and nature Conventions, for example, Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), Man and Biosphere, Ramsar, etc.

 

(b) In addition to fulfilling basic requirement listed above, nominations to the Tentative List should also address the following management and administrative issues:
i. Proposed boundary (identify possible core and buffer zone and or "buffering mechanisms"). Where no proposed buffer zone is indicated, a statement on how the OUV is proposed to be protected from outside pressures should be provided. See paragraph 103 - 106 of the Operational Guidelines including the UNESCO Resource Manual known as "Preparing World Heritage Nominations, second edition, 2011" for further elaboration;
ii. Land ownership (information to reflect the ownership as recorded in the Deeds Office including the contact details of the registered landowner/s);
iii. Land tenure system (land claims/ land use activities, communal land use), where applicable;
iv. Town and regional planning systems (including spatial development frameworks, zoning schemes, integrated development plans)
v. Stakeholder consultation plan and report - (Government structures, landowners, communities, relevant NGO's, Private Sector, etc.); the Plan should detail ways in which the stakeholders would be engaged, how often and when, the details of the stakeholders to be consulted. The Stakeholders should be informed of the implications of being inside a WHS. The Stakeholder Report should outline, the outcomes of the stakeholder engagement meetings, concerns raised, expectations from the Stakeholders. The report should be accompanied by the Attendance Registers and Minutes.
vi. Current management system and proposed management structure, Endorsement from the Management Authority confirming the assumption of the Management role of the site when the property is inscribed as a WHS;
vii. State of conservation and current conservation management plans (List all strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats);
viii. Knowledge management system and/or preliminary bibliography {i.e. maps, GIS system, inventories, IKS);
ix. How this proposed nomination addresses the gaps in the World Heritage list as identified in the Gap Analysis Study of the Centre and UNESCO Advisory Bodies; and
x. Natural Heritage properties to include a statement on how the proposed nomination will address the priorities of government as far as the National Protected Areas Expansion Strategy is concerned.

 

c. The SAWHCC will assess Tentative List nominations submitted for the purpose of making recommendations to the Minister of those sites which meet the criteria for inclusion on the Tentative List.

 

d. The SAWHCC will review the Tentative List when it is necessary as determined in the Operational Guidelines for the implementation of the Convention and make recommendations to the Minister.

 

e. Proponents will be required to make presentations on their proposal to the SAWHCC at any given time as determined by the Department.