Korea to host 2026 UNESCO World Heritage Committee session in Busan

The 47th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee at UNESCO headquarters in Paris / Courtesy of Korea Heritage Service

Korea is officially named host of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee's 48th session, planned for July next year. The selection was announced Tuesday (local time) during the committee's 47th session in Paris.

This global gathering dedicated to the inscription and preservation of humanity’s shared heritage worldwide, will take place in 2026, in the southeastern coastal city of Busan.

This is the first time Korea will host the session since the committee’s inception in 1977. Past Asian host cities include Thailand’s Phuket in 1994, Japan’s Kyoto in 1998, China’s Suzhou in 2004 and Cambodia’s Phnom Penh in 2013.

Korea will lead the coordination of the committee’s work during the 2026 session, overseeing the schedule of meetings and managing procedural arrangements that shape the course of the gathering.

Established under the 1972 World Heritage Convention, the World Heritage Committee is an intergovernmental body entrusted with determining whether a cultural, natural or mixed property merits inscription on the World Heritage List. It also reviews reports on the state of conservation of already-listed sites and calls on state parties to take action when these treasures are at risk.

Its annual session brings together around 3,000 delegates, including representatives from all 196 state parties and the UNESCO Director-General, for a week of dialogue and deliberation.

Only the 21 elected committee members are eligible to host the session. Korea, now serving its fourth term as a member, was elected in 2023 and will hold the seat through 2027.

“This year holds special significance, as it marks the 30th anniversary of the inscription of Korea’s first World Heritage Sites,” said Choi Eung-chon, former head of the Korea Heritage Service, in the country’s acceptance speech.

The three sites he referred to — Haein Temple, home to the 13th-century “Tripitaka Koreana” woodblocks; Jongmyo Shrine, where royal ancestral tablets of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) are enshrined; and Seokguram Grotto and Bulguk Temple in Gyeongju, capital of ancient Silla Kingdom (57 BCE-935 CE) — were all listed in 1995.

“The Republic of Korea regards the upcoming session of the World Heritage Committee in Busan as a truly meaningful moment to reaffirm the shared responsibility of all humanity for the protection of our common heritage.”