UN cultural agency decides against placing Lumbini, Buddha’s birthplace in Nepal, on endangered list

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — The United Nations’ cultural agency decided Thursday against putting the Buddhist pilgrimage destination of Lumbini on its list of heritage sites in danger, instead giving authorities in Nepal more time to help restore the famous gardens and temple that are falling into disrepair.

Lumbini is the birthplace of Buddha according to Buddhist tradition, and was made a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1997.

Experts from UNESCO had recommended placing it on the agency’s list of sites in danger, saying that the deterioration of key features to the site shows an “alarming state of conservation.”

Basanta Maharjan, a Nepalese expert on the site and Buddhism, said Nepal has “totally ignored” UNESCO’s past suggestions and warnings.

“Now Nepal has one last chance to make the right amends,” he said after the decision was announced.

“Lumbini is important not just for Nepal or for Buddhists but for the world and there needs to be immediate improvements made to Lumbini by the Nepalese authorities,” he added.

Putting a site on the list, on which there are currently more than 50 properties, is meant to rally international support for conservation efforts rather than as a punishment, but can eventually lead to a site being dropped from UNESCO’s prestigious list of heritage sites.

In deciding at its annual meeting to give Nepal more time, delegates from the countries making up the World Heritage Committee, which maintains the UNESCO list and the conservation of the sites, noted Nepal’s ongoing efforts to preserve the site.

The Committee gave Nepal until Feb. 1, 2025 to submit a new report on the state of conservation and said the matter would be considered again at next year’s annual meeting.

Nepal’s delegation assured