1. How many Committee members are there?
2. When do the elections take place?
3. Where will the elections take place?
4. How long is the mandate of a Committee member?
5. How many new Committee members are elected at each General Assembly?
6. How many seats are available at the 15th General Assembly in 2005?
7. Can an existing Committee member present a candidature during the year when their mandate is finishing?
8. Is there a geographical distribution of Committee members (i.e. quotas)?
9. What is the deadline by which a State Party should submit its candidature?
10. Is there a special provision for States Parties with no properties on the World Heritage List?
11. How many voting rounds are there? What happens when two States Parties obtain equal votes?
12. Who are the Committee members now?
13. Which members leaved in 2005?
14. Which members will leave in 2007?
15. How can I access the related reference documents of past statutory meetings : Committee Reports; General Assembly Summary Records; Rules of Procedure, etc.?

1. How many Committee members are there?

There are 21 Committee members represented by 21 States Parties to the World Heritage Convention.

2. When do the elections take place?

Elections to replace outgoing Committee members take place during the General Assembly of States Parties, meeting once every two years during the General Conference of UNESCO (Article 8.3 of the Convention).

In 2005 the Secretariat has been requested to schedule the General Assembly prior to the Programme Commissions of the General Conference of UNESCO [see World Heritage Committee Decision 7 EXT.COM 15.3, Annex 1 attached].

3. Where will the elections take place?

In 2005 the Director of the World Heritage Centre has been requested to organize the elections of the members of the Committee in a separate room from the main meeting room, equipped with voting facilities, and with ballots conducted on a pre-scheduled basis agreed by the General Assembly [see World Heritage Committee Decision 7 EXT.COM 15.3 Annex 1]

4. How long is the mandate of a Committee member?

According to the Convention a Committee member's mandate is for six years, but most States Parties choose voluntarily to be Members of the Committee for only four years, in order to give other States Parties an opportunity to be on the Committee. (See the Summary Record of the 14th session of the General Assembly, 2003, doc. ref. WHC-03/14.GA/10 , paras. 10; 178 - 181)

5. How many new Committee members are elected at each General Assembly?

Usually a third of the 21 members need to be newly elected at the General Assembly (i.e. 7 Committee members), but this can change depending on the voluntary reduction of office terms.

6. How many seats are available at the 15th General Assembly in 2005?

In 2005, a total of 12 Committee members will be elected.

7. Can an existing Committee member present a candidature during the year when their mandate is finishing?

Yes, but this is normally discouraged to give election opportunities to other States Parties (see Resolution 12 of the Summary Record of the 7th General Assembly, CC-89/CONF.013/6, the General Assembly of State Parties “invites the States Parties to the World Heritage Convention, whose mandates on the Committee expire, to consider not to stand for re-election during an appropriate period”.)

8. Is there a geographical distribution of Committee members (i.e. quotas)?

No, but the States Parties, as far as possible, should try to comply with Article 8 (2) of the World Heritage Convention, which states that "Election of members of the Committee shall ensure an equitable representation of the different regions and cultures of the world" . (See also Resolution 12 of the Summary Record of the 7th General Assembly, 1989, doc. ref. CC-89/CONF.013/6 referred to above).

9. What is the deadline by which a State Party should submit its candidature?

Candidature should be sent to the Director, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, 7 place de Fontenoy, 75352 Paris 07 SP, France (Tel: +33 (0) 1 45 68 13 15, Fax: +33 (0) 1 45 68 55 70) six weeks before the date of the General Assembly [see Rule 13 of the Rules of Procedure of the General Assembly, Annex II attached].

10. Is there a special provision for States Parties with no properties on the World Heritage List?

Before the general ballot, there is a special ballot for States Parties with no properties on the World Heritage List. The Committee decides, in its ordinary session before the General Assembly, how many seats are reserved for these States Parties. Ever since this mechanism was established, the Committee has allocated one seat for these States Parties. Those States Parties not elected during the first ballot may be candidates for the subsequent general ballot.

11. How many voting rounds are there? What happens when two States Parties obtain equal votes?

Please refer to Rule 14 - Election of the members of the World Heritage Committee of the Rules of Procedure of the General Assembly of States Parties (doc. ref. WHC-03/GA/1 Rev.2).

12. Who are the Committee members now?

Until the 33rd General Conference (2005), the following States Parties are members of the Committee.

13. Which members leaved in 2005?

Argentina, China, Colombia, Egypt, Lebanon, Nigeria, Oman, Portugal, the Russian Federation, Saint Lucia, South Africa, and the United Kingdom.

14. Which members will leave in 2007?

Chile , Benin, India, Japan, Kuwait, Lithuania, New Zealand, the Netherlands and Norway.

15. How can I access the related reference documents of past statutory meetings : Committee Reports; General Assembly Summary Records; Rules of Procedure, etc.?

Please go to : http://whc.unesco.org/en/statutorydoc/ (select the year, the session, the document reference or the title of the document ....)