At a joint meeting of the standing committees of the National Assembly, during the discussion of the draft 2027 state budget, RA Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport Zhanna Andreasyan, presenting the main achievements and priorities in the culture sector, stressed that after an interval of about 30 years Armenia has resumed the process of including new monuments in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
By 2031 it is planned to include 5 more monuments or groups of monuments in the World Heritage Tentative List.
“Inclusion in UNESCO’s lists is an opportunity not only for international recognition, but also for improving the quality of management, since one of the important conditions is also the existence of a proper management system for monuments,” Zhanna Andreasyan stressed.
Work is currently being carried out on preparing the applications for the historic capital of Artashat and the rock-hewn settlements of Syunik Province. It is also planned to nominate one of the Armenian fortresses. Work to popularize the intangible cultural heritage also continues.
According to the minister, in the coming years it is planned to submit two more elements for inclusion in UNESCO’s relevant lists.
Turning to the results already recorded, Zhanna Andreasyan singled out the application “Areni-1 Cave: Prehistoric Life and Winemaking in the Arpa River Gorge,” as well as the application presented jointly with Iran concerning traditions related to rain and water, which makes it possible to popularize the Armenian tradition of Vardavar on the international stage as well.
Note that this concerns the Tentative List, not UNESCO’s main World Heritage List. Since 1995, no new applications for Armenian monuments had been added to the Tentative List. The process resumed in 2024 with the inclusion of the application “Tirinkatar Vishap Stones and Cultural Landscape.”
