The sub-regional Meeting “Developing Management Strategies for the Silk Roads Heritage Corridors in Central Asia”, held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, on 13-14 September 2017, brought together representatives from Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The meeting also invited representatives from the ICOMOS International Conservation Center in Xi’an (IICC Xi’an), which acts as the Secretariat of the Serial Transnational Nomination Coordinating Committee, the  Xi’an Silk Road Culture Tourism Research Association, the  International Institute for Central Asian Studies (IICAS), as well as UNESCO representatives and international resource persons to ensure the discussions on cooperation.

The meeting has been successfully organized in cooperation with the World Heritage Centre, the UNESCO Offices in Tashkent and Almaty and the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Participants expressed their gratitude for the generous financial support of the UNESCO/Japan Funds-in-Trust, via the project “Support for the Silk Roads World Heritage Sites in Central Asia (Phase II)”.

The participants of the meeting:

1.      Noted the beginning of the initiative on the preparation of management systems for the Silk Roads Serial Transnational Nominations in Central Asia.

2.      Noted that China, Kazakhstan and the Kyrgyz Republic continue their efforts for the better management and further archaeological understanding of the already inscribed Silk Roads: Chang’an Tian-shan Corridor, with an emphasis on sustainable tourism.

3.      Encouraged China, Kazakhstan and the Kyrgyz Republic to reinforce international coordination mechanisms for better management of the “Silk Roads: Chang’an Tian-shan Corridor” and invites IICC-Xi’an, as the international Secretariat of the Serial Transnational Nomination Coordinating Committee, to provide any necessary technical support.

4.      Noted the progress accomplished by Tajikistan and Uzbekistan on the Zarafshan corridor (Pendjikent-Samarkand-Poykent corridor).

5.      Noted the progress with the adequate documentation of the serial transnational nomination “Silk Roads: Fergana-Syrdarya Corridor”, to be presented by Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

6.      Noted the need to obtain official approval for the working group on the Fergana-Syrdarya corridor, in line with the Almaty Agreement (adopted at the 4th meeting of the Coordinating Committee of the Silk Roads World Heritage Serial Transnational Nomination, held in Almaty, Kazakhstan, in November 2015), and the Kyzylorda Action plan (adopted in 2016). They recommended organizing the next working meeting at the “Centre for Rapprochement” in Kazakhstan by the end of 2017.

7.      Noted that the year 2017 is the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development. Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan indicated that they welcome further cooperation with the IICC-Xi’an and Xi’an Silk Road Culture Tourism Research Association on the Silk Roads, and welcomed China’s support of this initiative.