BUSAN, South Korea - Delegations from around the globe gathered in Busan for the 48th session of UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee from July 19 to 29, 2026, advancing international efforts to modernize global conservation standards and expand cultural representation.
The opening ceremony on July 19 was attended by Lee Jae Myung, President of the Republic of Korea, and Khaled El-Enany, Director-General of UNESCO. The 10-day session concluded with the inscription of 25 new properties onto the UNESCO World Heritage List, bringing the global inventory to 1,273 sites spanning 173 states.
Among the newly designated European landmarks are France’s Capetian Royal Fortresses of Languedoc and the Normandy D-Day Landing Beaches, Italy’s 18th- and 19th-century condominio theater system, and Greece’s Mount Olympus and its surrounding natural environment. Notably, the session marked historic first-time inscriptions for three nations: Comoros, São Tomé and Príncipe, and South Sudan.
The Principality of Monaco was represented by Séverine Dusaintpère, Deputy Permanent Delegate to UNESCO. During the proceedings, Ms. Dusaintpère commended the World Heritage Centre’s initiative to assist unrepresented and underrepresented states on the World Heritage List. She also voiced Monaco’s support for a new reform framework designed to bolster the Centre Secretariat’s strategic leadership, technical expertise, operational efficiency, and digital capacities.
Photo Credit: Prince's Government of Monaco Instagram