The National Heritage Board (NHB) of Singapore declared on Thursday that the Padang and its surrounding architecture are prospective candidates for Singapore's next UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Padang Civic Ensemble was chosen because it was most likely to meet the UNESCO criterion of being a "outstanding example of a type of building, architectural or technical ensemble or landscape that illustrates significant events in human history."
The Padang Civic Ensemble is an exceptional example of a British colonial civic plaza in the tropics, the NHB stated in a press statement.
"The amalgamation of colonial-era and post-independence civic institutions within a single municipal area attests to the historically pervasive phenomenon of decolonisation and the globally significant transition of long-held British territories to newly independent nations in the decades after World War II."
The Padang is already well preserved, since it was declared a national monument on August 9, 2022, according to NHB.
It was stated that adjacent structures such as the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall, the Former Supreme Court and City Hall (now the National Gallery Singapore), the former Parliament House and Annex Building (now the Arts House), and other national monuments are also of significant historical value.
The Padang Civic Ensemble has been added to Singapore's Tentative List for UNESCO World Heritage Sites as a result of the most recent action.
This is a prerequisite for participation in the preliminary assessment, a new procedure in the UNESCO World Heritage Site evaluation process, according to NHB.
Prior to submitting a full-scale nomination, nations will get assistance from the World Heritage Centre and two international advisory organizations as part of the preliminary review. If the site is nominated and then inscribed, the total duration of this procedure might be between five and six years.
In addition to the preliminary study, NHB stated that it will conduct more research this year to analyze the site's and adjacent projects' possible impacts. This will lead a subsequent decision about whether Singapore would officially pursue the nomination.
This is a significant step, since Singapore will have to evaluate and combine its long-term urban redevelopment demands with the conservation standards of a World Heritage Site.
The UNESCO World Heritage List acknowledges cultural and natural sites of "outstanding universal importance." Sites nominated must meet at least one of ten criteria.
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