Topping this week's list of Caribbean news is Barbados' recent announcment that it is now home to an official UNESCO site, giving agents another pitch when selling this popular Caribbean island.
Barbadian heritage has been officially acknowledged on the world stage as Historic Bridgetown and its Garrison are now included in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Site list.
The official inscription was granted by the World Heritage Committee during its 35th session at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, which ran from June 19 through June 29.
This now places Bridgetown and its Garrison amongst the ranks of other landmarks including the Pyramids, the Statue of Liberty and the Great Wall of China. Along with Historic Bridgetown and its Garrison, the committee also inducted Hiraizumi – Temples, Gardens and Archaeological Sites Representing the Buddhist Pure Land in Japan; and, the ancient beech forests located at Hessen, Germany.
Historic Bridgetown and its Garrison site was considered for nomination after Barbados became signatory to the UNESCO Convention for the Protection of World Cultural and Natural Heritage Convention in 2002. Barbados submitted the nomination dossier to UNESCO World Heritage Centre on February 1, 2009, and that was among 45 proposals that were examined by the World Heritage Committee in June 2010.
Visit www.unesco.org.