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The World Heritage Committee decision now referred to as the "Cairns Decision" was a suite of decisions adopted by the 24th session of the Committee (Cairns, Australia, 27 November - 2 December 2000) aimed at improving the representativity of the World Heritage List and managing the workload of the Committee, Advisory Bodies, and the World Heritage Centre.

The "Cairns Decision" limited the number of new nominations to be examined each year by the Committee. Furthermore, the number of nominations to be submitted by each State Party was limited to one, except for those States Parties that had no properties on the World Heritage List who would have the opportunity to propose two or three nominations.

Finally, the Committee requested that this Decision be reviewed after two years of operation. At its 27th session (Paris, 30 June - 5 July 2003), the World Heritage Committee requested all States Parties to send comments and proposals on the Cairns Decision to the World Heritage Centre by 31 December 2003.

• Full text of the "Cairns Decision", from the Report of the 24th session of the World Heritage Committee (Cairns, 27 November - 2 December 2000)
• Full text of the decision of the 27th session of the World Heritage Committee (Paris, 30 June - 5 July 2003)
• Decision 27 COM 14 Comments and Proposals by States Parties on the Cairns Decision in the original language, Translation into English

Background Documents

• Final Report of the Working Group on the Representativity of the World Heritage List, (2000), WHC-2000/CONF.202/10
• Background documents used by and produced by the Working Group on Representativity (web site of the working group)
• Draft reports by IUCN and ICOMOS on the analysis of the List, presented to the 26th session of the Committee (Budapest, 2002) (WHC-02/CONF.202/9)
• Circular Letter no. 4 (28 June 2001) on Representivity of the World Heritage List - follow-up to the Resolution adopted by the Twelfth General Assembly of States Parties (1999)
• Responses of States Parties to Circular Letter No. 4
• Evaluation of the Cairns Decision (Paris, 2003) (WHC-03/27.COM/14)
• Progress report on the implementation of the Global Strategy for a credible, representative and balanced World Heritage List (14th General Assembly, 14-15 October 2003, WHC-03/14.GA/8)
• Summary Record of the 27th Session concerning the Cairns Decision

Statistical Information

• Number of nominations proposed and inscribed by category (1978 - 1999) (WHC-99/CONF.206/INF.6 I)
• Distribution of World Heritage Properties in States Parties (1978-1999) (WHC-99/CONF.206/INF.6 II).
• ICOMOS's initial numerical Category analysis, presented to the Committee in 2000 as Annex III of the Report of the Working Group on the Representativity of the World Heritage List (WHC.2000/CONF.204/INF.8)

Statistical information on World Heritage properties

• Distribution of World Heritage properties in States Parties (WHC-03/14.GA/INF.9A)