3rd Meeting of National Steering Committee Nomination of Karezes Landscape of Balochistan as UNESCO Cultural Heritage, held in Quetta- Pakistan

Go Back

The 3rd Meeting of National Steering Committee for nomination of Karezes Landscape of Balochistan as UNESCO Cultural Heritage site was held on October 22, 2020 at Quetta- Pakistan. The Meeting was chaired by the Additional Secretary (Culture) Mr Abdul Manan, Government of Balochistan, and attended by UNESCO Country Director for Pakistan Ms Patricia McPhilips; Chairman PCRWR Dr Muhammad Ashraf; President ECOSF Prof. Manzoor Hussain Soomro; Director OFWM (Balochistan) Mr.  Abdul Wahab; Project Director (100 small dams) Irrigation Department of Balochistan, Mr. Shoaib Nadeem Tareen; Head (Geology Department) BUITEMS Dr Abdul Mauntaqim Naji; Assistant Chief (Culture) P&D Department Syed Muhammad Waseem; Deputy Director Department of Archaeology and Museum Islamabad Dr Tahir Saeed and representatives from Forests and Wildlife, Environmental Protection Agency, Balochistan Rural Support Program (BRSP), Consultant from Rogers Kolachi Khan and Associates Dr. Ayesha Rogers.

 The Meeting recognized the importance of Karez Cultural Landscape of Balochistan and extended full support to the on-going nomination process. Experts deliberated on a number of means through which this initiative could achieve meaningful progress. The Balochistan Government officials and Chairman PCRWR shared the updates on the matter and the Country Director elaborated on the process of submission of dossier for UNESCO. The consultant then presented the progress of the process of dossier reparation.

During the meeting, President ECOSF Prof. Soomro also extended his full cooperation to the cause of nomination of KSCL in World Cultural Heritage List of UNESCO. He also suggested for looking into the transboundary aspect of Karezes between Pakistan and Iran as both countries also share such sites and Karezes/Qanats. Prof. Soomro emphasized that the ownership of the project by the Department of Culture, Government of Balochistan is a key step for the success of the initiative.