Three Moroccan institutions have jointly organized a study day on “The project of Registering Wad Noun Basin as a World Heritage Site”

Morocco’s Royal Academy, the National Institute Archeology and Heritage Sciences (INSAP) and the Directorate of Heritage (Ministry of Culture) are attempting to register the basin of Noun River as a world heritage. On the sideline of the study they jointly organized for this purpose, Karim Hendili, the Program Specialist for Culture at the UNESCO stated that the properties proposed to be registered as World Heritage are ample in Morocco.

“World Heritage and Morocco have a long story,” said Hendili in a statement, noting that the Kingdom has the most sites as part of the World Heritage in the MENA region and third in Africa.

The official regretted that most of these sites are urban, at the expense of the natural sites.

“There are many exceptional prehistoric sites in Morocco, in addition to urban complexes, oasis systems, geological sites, industrial heritage sites, and a great diversity in terms of heritage from the colonial period,” noted Hendili.

The process of admitting sites into the list of World Heritage is a tricky one, states Hendili, as “the standards of the World Heritage Convention are very high”. However, he adds that it is journey and a chance to rediscover the site and see it from the perspective of the UNESCO.

The official explained that this process appeals to historians, geologists, archaeologists, geographers, town planners, and others.