Management and Protection of UNESCO World Heritage Sites

• The benefits of UNESCO World Heritage status are undoubted, though not measured.
• Management and specific plans relevant to the protection of UNESCO properties have not yet been approved.
• Monitoring does not reveal the state of UNESCO properties.

The protection of UNESCO's Tangible World Heritage properties does not comply with all international requirements, management and specific plans are not developed and implemented, impacts on heritage are not assessed, and there is insufficient communication about the uniqueness and value of the properties. Failure to comply with the requirements for the protection of UNESCO's heritage increases the risk of failing to protect outstanding properties. These are the results of the National Audit Office's assessment "Management and Protection of UNESCO World Heritage Sites".
  
Lithuania acceded to the Convention in 1992 and undertook to ensure the identification, protection, preservation, presentation and transmission to future generations of the cultural and natural heritage in its territory. Between 1994 and 2023, the UNESCO Tangible World Heritage List includes 5 sites in Lithuania: the Historical Centre of Vilnius, the Curonian Spit, the Kernavė Archaeological Site, the Struve Geodesic Arc and Modernist Kaunas: Optimist Architecture, 1919-1939. The protection of the sites is the responsibility of the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Environment.
  
"Without accurate data on UNESCO World Heritage properties, and without monitoring their true state, it is difficult to ensure their proper management and maintenance. This may have a negative impact on the status of the UNESCO properties, their preservation, aesthetic image and attractiveness to visitors", - assures the Auditor General Mindaugas Macijauskas.
  
The benefits of UNESCO World Heritage status for the recognition, image, visibility and increased tourist attraction of the country are undoubted, but the assessment shows that there is no calculation of its economic benefits or added value for the country or for the properties included. There is no data on visitors or tourists to the UNESCO sites or the attractions they contain. The extent to which tourists' decision to visit the country has been influenced by UNESCO sites is not known or analysed. On the other hand, too many tourists may also have a negative impact on the preservation of the Curonian Spit. A management plan for the site, including the management of tourist flows, must be drawn up in order to avoid irreversible changes that could threaten the outstanding universal value.
  
UNESCO properties must be protected according to higher international standards, but not all of them are observed. No World Heritage Impact Assessment is carried out for restoration or new construction works that could affect the property's outstanding universal value. There is also a lack of communication about the uniqueness and value of these properties.
  
Countries are committed to developing management plans for World Heritage sites, but only one of Lithuania's five UNESCO World Heritage Sites, the Kernavė archaeological site, has a management plan in place so far. In the absence of management and specific plans for UNESCO properties, it is difficult for the institutions to deal with issues related to coordination, cooperation and monitoring of protection and actualisation activities.
  
The results of the assessment show that the monitoring does not reveal the state of the outstanding universal value of World Heritage properties. The properties have not been monitored at least once every 5 years. 88% of the properties are assessed as being in a stable physical condition for the period 2021-2024, so it is not known which properties are in a poor or distressed condition and should be addressed.
  
According to the auditors, meeting UNESCO's higher standards for the protection of the Tangible World Heritage and assessing the impact on heritage would help to find the best solutions to meet development needs and ensure that the property's outstanding universal value is preserved for future generations.
  
The aim of the assessment carried out by the National Audit Office is to provide structured information on the management, monitoring and benefits to the country of Lithuania's UNESCO Tangible World Heritage Sites. As this is an assessment and not an audit, no recommendations are made.