Busan to Host UNESCO World Heritage Committee Next Year.. 'First in Korea'

[Financial News] Korea has been selected as the host country for the 48th UNESCO World Heritage Committee to be held next year.
According to the National Heritage Administration on the 16th, the 47th World Heritage Committee held in Paris, France, officially announced the hosting of the next committee in the Republic of Korea on the afternoon of the 15th (local time).
Thus, the 48th committee will be held in Busan next July. Busan was confirmed as the host city after undergoing domestic selection procedures on the 30th of last month.
This is the first time the committee is being held in our country. In East Asia, Japan hosted in 1998, and China hosted in 2004 and 2021.
Previously, the National Heritage Administration submitted a letter of intent to host the 48th committee to UNESCO on the 30th of last month.
Choi Eung-cheon, head of the National Heritage Administration, expressed his thoughts after the announcement of the host country, saying, "I am very honored to host the 48th UNESCO World Heritage Committee in Busan, Republic of Korea, representing the Republic of Korea."
He continued, "Especially this year marks the 30th anniversary of the first inscription of Korea's World Heritage, a meaningful year," emphasizing that "Korea has consistently contributed financially to the UNESCO World Heritage Fund and has strengthened practical support from the international community in heritage protection."
He also stated, "Korea will ensure that the World Heritage Committee held in Busan will remind us of the responsibility for the heritage shared by all humanity and will make every preparation for the successful progress of this meeting."
The chair group of the 48th committee, which decided Korea as the chair country, will confirm the meeting dates, times, and proceedings during the committee period held in Busan next year, and perform chair group duties such as coordinating committee tasks.
The UNESCO World Heritage Committee is a large-scale international conference held annually to decide on important matters related to World Heritage inscription and conservation and protection according to the 'World Heritage Convention'. About 3,000 World Heritage-related personnel, including representatives of 196 World Heritage Convention countries and the UNESCO Secretary-General, attend this meeting.
The 'World Heritage Convention' is the 'UNESCO Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage' started in 1972, and Korea joined in 1988 and is currently serving as the fourth committee member country. The term is from 2023 to 2027.





rsunjun@fnnews.com Yoo Sun-jun Reporter