Organization of World Heritage Cities

The Organization of World Heritage Cities (OWHC) is an international non-profit, non-governmental organization of 250 cities in which sites of the UNESCO World Heritage list are located. It was founded in 1993 in Fez, Morocco, during the second International Symposium of World Heritage Cities. The headquarters of the OWHC are located in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. Altogether the 250 member cities of the OWHC have a population of more than 130 million.

During the first International Symposium of World Heritage Cities in Québec City in 1991 the participating 41 cities adopted the Québec City Declaration. This declaration states the desire to build a network of World Heritage Cities.

At the second International Symposium of World Heritage Cities in Fez, Morocco, the OWHC was founded in 1993. 56 participating cities decided on the mission, goals and powers of the organisation. At the Founding General Assembly the member cities elected the first Board of Directors and Secretary General.

Since the first General Assembly the member cities have been meeting every two years. Listed below are the years, locations and topics of the previous General Assemblies.

Any city may become a member of the OWHC if it possesses the following two characteristics. Firstly the city has to be the location of a living urban fabric of historic or contemporary interest. Its outstanding universal value has been recognized by the UNESCO and therefore has been registered in the World Heritage List. Secondly the city has to adhere to the values of the OWHC.

The General Assembly is the paramount authority of the OWHC. In it the member cities are represented by their mayor. To be able to take part in the General Assembly and have the right to vote the city has to be a member in good standing (pay the annual membership fee). The General Assembly meets every two years. Special Assemblies may be called by members or the Board of Directors.

At the General Assembly the mayors discuss issues concerning the mission and objectives of the OWHC and formulate relevant recommendations to the Board of Directors. The Assembly guides the activities of the Organization, studies and approves the Organization’s work program and controls the financial policy of the Organization.

The Board of Directors consists of eight mayors of members in good standing. It is elected by the General Assembly for two years. Directors may be elected two more times and therefore be directors for a maximum of six consecutive years. The Board of Directors meets at least once a year.

Among its duties are the implementation of the requests formulated and the resolutions adopted by the General Assembly and the planning of the organizations activities according to set up priorities. Furthermore, the Board of Directors examines the financial reports, authorizes the annual budget plan, prepares budget estimates and proposes their adoption to the general assembly. The Board of Directors also draws up the organization chart, the recruiting criteria and standards for the personnel of the General Secretariat and performs any other duty that could be assigned to it by the General Assembly. It is empowered to take all the measures required for the administration of the Organization and the attainment of its objectives.

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