The 47th session of the World Heritage Committee came to a close in Paris, France, with the inscription of 26 new cultural and natural properties on UNESCO's World Heritage List.
Once again this year, the spotlight was on African heritage, with the inclusion of 4 new sites from the continent and the removal of three others from the List of World Heritage in Danger.
Audrey Azoulay: "With 196 States Parties, the World Heritage Convention is one of the most universally ratified in the world - proof of its influence and popularity in every corner of the globe. For the new sites inscribed this year, this notoriety comes with a great responsibility: that of keeping alive, protecting and promoting this exceptional heritage."
The Committee inscribed 26 new properties on UNESCO's World Heritage List and approved the extension of two existing sites on the List, enabling the creation of transboundary natural parks. These heritage properties now benefit from the highest level of protection in the world.
These inscriptions bring the total number of sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List to 1248, in 170 countries.
This year's session of the Committee was marked by the inscription of sites whose nomination was directly supported by local communities, with the support of national authorities. This is the case, for example, of the four new African sites inscribed this year and the Murujuga Aboriginal lands in Australia.
In addition to international recognition, these inscriptions recognize the central role played by local communities in safeguarding and promoting these sites, while protecting the living and spiritual heritage intrinsically linked to them.
Under the impetus of its Director-General, UNESCO has made considerable and targeted efforts to support its African Member States. From the training of local experts to support for the preparation of candidatures, via the funding of safeguarding projects, more than $34 million has been mobilized by UNESCO since 2020 in favor of African heritage.
"Making Africa a priority is not a symbolic gesture. It's a concrete, day-to-day and long-term commitment, driven by the idea that the continent must be recognized for its historical, cultural and natural importance. With 19 new sites inscribed and six jewels saved from danger since my arrival at UNESCO, I am proud to see this continent take its rightful place among the world's heritage," added Audrey Azoulay.
The start of the Committee was marked by the removal of three African sites - Madagascar, Egypt and Libya - from the List of World Heritage in Danger. Since 2021, three sites in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and Senegal had also left the In-Danger List.
Four new African sites entered the UNESCO World Heritage List, bringing the total number to 112. This year, two African states presented their first nominations - Guinea Bissau and Sierra Leone, reinforcing the universality of the List. By 2027, 7 other African countries not yet on the List are expected to present their first nomination.
The Committee also approved the extension of a site from South Africa to Mozambique, creating a transboundary natural park of almost 4,000 km².
Following the inscription of Auschwitz-Birkenau in 1979, UNESCO's World Heritage List has been enriched since 2023 with new sites of memory linked to recent atrocities. Honoring the memory of the millions of victims of the Khmer Rouge regime, the World Heritage Committee this year inscribed the Cambodian Memorial Sites: From centres of repression to places of peace and reflection (Cambodia).
Today, these sites are places of transmission, commemoration and learning. Their inscription illustrates the essential role of heritage in the work of remembrance, and of UNESCO in peace-building.
Nearly a third of the sites inscribed in 2025 are linked to prehistory, including the Peruaçu River Canyon (Brazil), the Megaliths of Carnac and of the shores of the Morbihan (France) and the Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream (Republic of Korea). Often fragile, this heritage plays a fundamental role in understanding the history of humanity and modern societies.
These inscriptions safeguard the ancestral knowledge that has shaped our relationship with nature and the world, sometimes still practised by local and indigenous communities, as in the Murujuga Cultural Landscape (Australia) or on the Huichol Route (Mexico).
Main Image: Courtesy UNESCO