Netherlands renews commitment to support UNESCO World Heritage projects

On 14 November 2023, UNESCO and the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science of the Netherlands signed a new four-year (2023-2026) Funds-in-Trust Agreement for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention, for a total amount of 1.5 million Euros.

The Netherlands Funds-in-Trust (NFiT) at the UNESCO World Heritage Centre started in 2001 and is one of the longest and continued FiT cooperations at UNESCO having contributed over USD 10 million and supported over 200 projects in all regions of the World. 

The NFiT’s unique and flexible approaches are appreciated by beneficiaries and stakeholders all over the world. The five Strategic Objectives of the 1972 World Heritage Convention (Credibility, Conservation, Capacity Building, Communication and Communities) together with the Policy for World Heritage and Sustainable Development (2015) and the UN 2030 Agenda will continue to serve as a general framework for the selection of projects and allocation of funding. “Our World Heritage Goals 2012-2022”, UNESCO’s Global Priorities (Africa and Gender Equality) and Priority Groups (Youth and SIDS) will be also taken into account. The flexibility of responding to a variety of needs is considered as a strength of the NFiT, thus further areas of potential cooperation to support World Heritage will emerge in the agreement timeframe.