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Cultural heritage, report: Recommendations from UNESCO fall on deaf ears
2025-04-01 08:02:02 / EKONOMI&SOCIALE
Albania's touristic brilliance at a time when it is increasingly being appreciated as a destination that also arouses cultural interest should have encouraged a more active approach to protecting what is known as cultural heritage.
But it seems that something like this has not made institutions more attentive to the promotion and protection of this part. An audit by the Supreme State Control that has as its object the topic "Protection of the values and wealth of our country at UNESCO" highlights several problems related precisely to the attention to cultural heritage.
One of them is related to the recommendations made by UNESCO missions regarding the sites that are part of the World Heritage List, of which two cities in our country are part.
"The Ministry of Economy, Culture and Innovation does not take any concrete measures to address the implementation of the recommendations made by UNESCO missions for properties included in the World Heritage List (e.g. the Historical Centers of Berat and Gjirokastra, the Cultural and Natural Heritage of Lake Ohrid).
"The recommendations are not addressed for follow-up and implementation by any specific structure in public institutions, the work between responsible institutions is not coordinated, there is no plan of measures for implementation, and there is no information on what each structure does and should do to implement UNESCO's recommendations," the audit states.
Another case where concerns about factors that endanger heritage, this time natural, have not been addressed is that of Lake Ohrid. These institutions, according to the SAI, have continuously ignored the recommendations of the UNESCO Committee which, since 2019 onwards, emphasizes that urgent measures must be taken and all parties and stakeholders must be mobilized to reduce threats and enable the preservation of the Outstanding Universal Values of Lake Ohrid. Also, the Drilon - Tushemisht Water Park project has continued, without taking into account the recommendations of the Committee since 2020 onwards
The same document emphasizes the non-compliance with obligations arising from membership in cultural heritage conventions, which require that the authorities responsible for this field be consulted on infrastructure projects.
"Although Albania is a signatory to the two basic conventions for the protection and preservation of cultural/natural cultural heritage and intangible cultural heritage, it does not have obligations deriving from these Conventions defined in the applicable legal framework, such as, for example, any project carried out on cultural heritage sites must first undergo a "Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA)".
Specifically, the Albanian State has continued the implementation of the Gjirokastra Bypass infrastructure project without conducting its "Heritage Impact Assessment", as well as without considering the recommendations that have been made year after year by the UNESCO Committee, risking the overall integrity of this city and violating this asset of universal value," the audit highlights. / Monitor
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