South Africa is one of the 194 State Parties that have ratified the UNESCO 1972 Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage (the Convention), in order to protect the incredible natural resources, biodiversity and cultural heritage within our boundaries.

In South Africa, the Convention has resulted in many notable achievements including the promulgation of the World Heritage Convention Act, 1999 (Act No. 49 of 1999) (the WHCA), the listing of ten (10) world heritage sites on the UNESCO World Heritage List due to their Outstanding Universal Value, and South Africa has recently been elected to the twenty-one (21) members World Heritage Committee (WHC).

Though these sites were successfully inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, it remains the duty of South Africa to ensure that future Nomination Dossier developed meet the international standards and are of good quality. In this regard, the Format and Procedure for Nomination of World Heritage Sites (WHS) in the Republic of South Africa (Format and Procedure) has been developed in terms of section 6(1) and (4) of the WHCA.

The main objectives of the Format and Procedure is to provide guidance for anyone who intends to propose sites for Tentative Listing and World Heritage Status to UNESCO through the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (the Department). It further provides guidance on: format and procedure for the entire UNESCO nomination process, provide guidance on the necessary studies that will ensure communities benefit from the world heritage sites in their neighbourhood and that they contribute to their livelihoods. The Format and Procedure complements the Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the Convention.

The Department started the process of reviewing and amending the Format and Procedure in 2020 due to implementation challenges experienced since the gazetting of the document in 2015. The rational for the review and amendment of the Format and Procedure is to close a number of identified gaps and limiting provisions which required further clarity and standardization. The draft amended Format and Procedure was gazetted for public comment on 29 June 2021 for the period of 30 days. It was taken through the intergovernmental consultative processes including the Working Groups, Mintech and Minmec for consultation and approval. All the comments received were considered. This final version of the amended Format and Procedure is a product of the consultative processes and has been approved by the intergovernmental consultative processes for implementation.

The amended Format and Procedure will continue to be periodically reviewed to reflect new concepts and to align with the Operational Guidelines for the implementation of the Convention. The South African World Heritage Convention Committee (SAWHCC) established in terms of section 6(2) of the WHCA will ensure that the amended Format and Procedure is adequately implemented .

Barbara Dallas Creecy

Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment