Coordination Committee

The International Coordination Committee for the Safeguarding of Afghanistan's Cultural Heritage (ICC) was formed in 2002 to coordinate all international efforts for the safeguarding of cultural heritage in Afghanistan. UNESCO was entrusted with coordinating all such activities by the Afghan government.

The mandate of this Committee as defined in its Statutes as approved by UNESCO's Executive Board at its 165th meeting in October 2002, is to "Advise the Director-General - who will inform the Afghan authorities, Member States and other partners - on measures to improve and reinforce international co-operation for the safeguarding of Afghanistan's cultural heritage". The ICC members, experts appointed in their personal capacity by the Director-General, meet on a regular basis.

The ICC held its first Plenary Session in June 2003.

Issues discussed during its First Plenary Session included :

• Capacity building, archaeological research and conservation activities of various donor countries and organizations;
• Preservation of the Bamiyan Site;
• Kabul National Museum of Afghanistan and Institutional capacity building of Afghan museums;
• Implementation of the World Heritage Convention and the Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property, National Inventories and Documentation;
• Rehabilitation of the Minaret of Jam and Monuments in Herat;
• Intangible cultural heritage and handicrafts of Afghanistan.

The members of the ICC adopted Recommendations for future action