World heritage representatives to gather in Busan for UNESCO committee session

Thousands of global delegates will gather in Busan on Sunday as the UNESCO World Heritage Committee opens its annual session for the first time in the country.

Around 3,000 participants from 196 member states, international organizations and non-governmental entities, are expected to attend the 10-day meeting at the Busan Exhibition and Convention Center in the port city, some 330 kilometers southeast of Seoul.

Key figures scheduled to attend include UNESCO Director-General Khaled El-Enany, Assistant Director-General for Culture Nayef Al-Fayez and Lazare Eloundou Assomo, director of the World Heritage Center.

It marks the first time Korea has hosted the meeting since joining the UNESCO World Heritage Convention in 1988.

UNESCO's key decision-making body for cultural and natural heritage, the committee meets each year to review nominations for inscription, assess the conservation status of listed sites and discuss broader policy issues related to the convention.

The 48th session will be chaired by Lee Byong-hyun, a former Korean ambassador to UNESCO, in line with the customary practice of ...