In 2001, the Global Training Strategy for Cultural and Natural Heritage was presented and approved at the 25th session of the World Heritage Committee (Finland). The strategy had two main levels of implementation. At the international level, the focus was placed on better implementation of the Convention, and improvement in professional skills for management, and conservation. The strategy also called for the development of regional strategies for each of the five regions.

In the nine years in which the strategy has been in operation, it became clear that the situation for training has changed significantly, and there was a need to review and revise the strategy to take into account new realities on the ground. In particular, the framework for training has become much richer. There are three key factors that have contributed to these rapid changes. The first is the entry of many new institutions now offering capacity building within the World Heritage context. Moreover, numerous new learning environments are on offer, much facilitated by new technologies and with the emphasis shifting from ‘knowledge transfer’ to ‘knowledge acquisition’. Finally, several new priority topics for capacity building have emerged in recent years.

The 2001 strategy also foresaw the use of the Periodic Reporting process as an important driver for the development of the regional training strategies. Though limited training components were included in follow-up ‘action plans” in the regions, no full-fledged strategies were ever developed (with the exception of AFRICA 2009 which already existed), leading to the need to provide better guidance at the regional level for the development of effective training strategies.

 World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy 2011

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