UNESCO confirms Barbados heritage site

Barbadian heritage has been officially acknowledged on the world stage.

The country's historic Bridgetown and its Garrison is now included in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) World Heritage Site list.

The official inscription was granted by the World Heritage Committee during its 35^th session at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France, which ran from June 19 through June 29.

Stephen Lashley, the Minister of Culture, who traveled to Paris to justify the admission of Historic Bridgetown and its Garrison into the prestigious list, advocated the inclusion of Barbados within the pool of countries with recognized heritage sites.

On the UNESCO’s World Heritage Site, the Barbados profile boasts its latest merit, and Bridgetown and its Garrison are considered ‘an outstanding example of British colonial architecture,’ offering a story ‘which testifies to the spread of Great Britain’s Atlantic colonial empire.’

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 which were examined by the World Heritage Committee in June 2010.