site.btaOrganizers of 47th Session of World Heritage Committee and UNESCO Experts Hold First Meeting

The first meeting of the Organizing Committee for the preparation of the 47th session of the World Heritage Committee and experts from UNESCO was held on Monday in Sofia, the Ministry of Culture announced. The meeting was opened by caretaker Minister of Culture Nayden Todorov in the Sredets Gallery of the Ministry of Culture.

While welcoming the guests, Todorov said that the session will be held between July 6 and July 16, 2025. He expressed hope that the UNESCO experts will be pleased with what they see and that this will be the beginning of a very successful joint work.

"We have achieved more in the last six months than in the last few decades", he said. "As you know, there is already a vision and a roadmap for Nessebar (on the Black Sea), as well as a draft Conservation and Management Plan, which happens for the first time in 12 years." Todorov announced that the National Institute for Immovable Cultural Heritage will have a new department - World Heritage. He added that in order for the Ministry of Culture to be able to support the World Heritage monuments themselves, an additional BGN 10 million has been earmarked in the budget of the Republic of Bulgaria for 2025, which will be specifically for World Heritage.

The meeting was attended by three experts from UNESCO, who are on their first preparatory mission to Bulgaria in the period between November 18 and 20, 2024. The experts briefed the representatives of the Organizing Committee on the main parameters and conditions for holding the 47th session of the World Heritage Committee in Sofia, and the Head of the Political Office of the Culture Minister Persa-Anna Nakova presented to the participants in the meeting the Plan for the organization and functioning of the Organizing Committee.

On July 30, 2024, the Council of Ministers decided to be a candidate to host the UNESCO World Heritage Committee session in 2025.