Mentioning a report by Reuters on December 20 that the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) will send a team of experts to conduct a field survey at Ha Long Bay to bolster conservation efforts, the department said the move is part of the outcomes of discussions between Vietnam, the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) during the 46th session of the World Heritage Committee.
At the session, the committee reviewed the conservation status of 123 world heritage sites, including 56 classified as "in danger." To date, none of Vietnam's World Heritage Sites have been inscribed in the World Heritage in Danger list, the department noted.
Also at the session, UNESCO issued eight key recommendations to enhance conservation of the Ha Long Bay–Cat Ba Archipelago. In the first four recommendations, the organisation affirmed it had reviewed and approved Vietnam's reports on the conservation and management of the Ha Long Bay–Cat Ba Archipelago, including the conservation status and the establishment of an effective coordinating mechanism between Quang Ninh province and Hai Phong City for the site's management.
In the fifth recommendation, the organisation noted that all projects within the heritage protection zone must undergo thorough impact assessments in line with the 1972 World Heritage Convention. Construction projects, in particular, must comply with UNESCO’s guidelines to preserve the site’s Outstanding Universal Value.
In the sixth recommendation, UNESCO appreciated Quang Ninh's concerted measures to address the issue of waste and pollution, but asked for more attention to the control of water pollution.
Seventh, UNESCO required Vietnam to submit detailed zoning maps for the expanded Ha Long Bay–Cat Ba Archipelago site to the World Heritage Council.
In the eighth recommendation, UNESCO suggested organising a monitoring team of UNESCO to assess overall conservation status at the site, with a focus on governance and management effectiveness.
The Department of Cultural Heritage said that during the 46th session, Lazare Eloundou Assomo, director of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, praised Vietnam as a model of cooperation with UNESCO and its advisory bodies. He commended Vietnam’s dedication to researching the cultural significance of Ha Long Bay–Cat Ba Archipelago, which could lead to its designation as a site meeting cultural criteria. UNESCO also reaffirmed its commitment to supporting Vietnam in preserving its heritage sites and advancing new nominations for World Heritage status.
