Host country for the meeting to be announced on July 15 at the 47th UNESCO World Heritage Committee meeting in Paris
South Korea's southeastern port city of Busan has been chosen as the country's official candidate to host the annual UNESCO meeting on world heritage next year, the Korea Heritage Service said Monday.
The decision comes after the KHS, a state-run agency overseeing the preservation and maintenance of national heritage, began looking for a city to host the 48th UNESCO World Heritage Committee meeting on May 15. Four cities -- Busan, Jeju, Seoul and Gyeongju -- an iconic tourist destination in the southeast of Korea -- threw their hats into the ring.
A dedicated task force made up of experts in world heritage, tourism and diplomacy was formed to select the host city through a detailed review process. After evaluating several candidates, Busan was selected for Korea's bid to host the 48th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, based on the city's strong practical and cultural advantages, including accessibility and proximity to nearby heritage sites, according to officials.
The UNESCO World Heritage Center asked countries to submit letters of intent by the end of June. According to the KHS, it is currently unclear which countries have done so.
The host country for the meeting will be announced on July 15 at the 47th committee meeting scheduled to be held in Paris.
The KHS explained that convening a meeting of the 21-member World Heritage Committee to discuss global strategies for artifact management would elevate Korea's international standing, as the country has never hosted one of the annual meetings that began in 1977.
The meetings, which are the largest annual international event on the cultural heritage calendar, bring together government representatives who decide which places to add to the World Heritage List and how to protect the ones already on it. South Korea was elected as a member of the committee in November 2023.
Previously, the meeting has been held in several Asian countries, including Thailand's Phuket in 1994, Japan's Kyoto in 1998, China's Suzhou in 2004 and Phnom Penh and Siem Reap in Cambodia in 2013.
junheee@heraldcorp.com
