The World Heritage Committee meets every year. The General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention elects 21 representatives of governments to take part in the meeting. The 48th session of the World Heritage Committee will take place in Busan, South Korea from 19 to 29 July 2026.
One of the decisions to be made during this year’s meeting involves the Ngorongoro Conservation Area in Tanzania, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Maasai who live in Ngorongoro are facing mass evictions — in the name of conservation.
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Before the World Heritage Committee meeting, Survival International set up an email action demanding that the Committee take this seriously. More than 6,400 people have sent the email to members of the Bureau of the World Heritage Committee.
“UNESCO confirmed that following this, it raised concerns directly with the Tanzanian government,” Survival International writes.
On the World Heritage Convention website, UNESCO states that,
UNESCO has consistently stressed that forced evictions are unacceptable and incompatible with international human rights law and related international obligations.
But Survival International argues that the evictions are taking place with UNESCO’s support:
For years, UNESCO's reports and World Heritage Committee decisions have framed Maasai as the main threat to the environment in the area, providing legitimacy and arguments to the evictions. The Tanzanian government has explicitly cited UNESCO reports and World Heritage status in official justifications for the evictions.
Survival International’s response to World Heritage Commission’s draft decision on Ngorongoro is that it is “still way too weak”. Survival International states that the decision:
doesn’t oppose the evictions: It only “notes” that the Tanzanian government decided to rely on “voluntary relocation” in Ngorongoro.
talks about “consultation” – not consent: As Indigenous peoples, the Maasai have the right to say no to decisions about their land. The draft never asks for that.
ignores the actual threats to Ngorongoro: Tourism development threatens the environment and pushes the Maasai off their land.
To the attention of the Members of the World Heritage Site
Re: Draft Decision on Ngorongoro World Heritage Site
An important decision is about to be made by the World Heritage Committee (WHC) on the status of Ngorongoro. This decision will shape not only the future of Ngorongoro but our future as Maasai Indigenous Peoples, our culture, and our very survival.
We, the Maasai of Ngorongoro, of other parts of Maasai land and our international allies, are writing to express our deep concerns about the current content of the draft Decision 48 COM 7B. 67 on Ngorongoro World Heritage Site, to be adopted at WHC meeting in Busan, Korea. We urge you to take all necessary steps to strengthen it and ensure it is aligned both with the stated wishes of our people and with international human rights law. Our six main concerns relate to:
The Multiple Land Use Model (MLUM): We contest the State party position that co-existence between Maasai pastoralists and wildlife is no longer possible. We reaffirm that protecting the rights of Indigenous communities is a founding objective of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA), which must remain a priority and cannot be subordinated to tourism development. In line with Decision WHC/25/47.COM/ para. 5 which stated that the WHC “Reiterates its view that the continued implementation of a MLUM, developed in consultation with all stakeholders and rightsholders, and which ensures a clear human rights-based approach, is appropriate in principle”, we call on the WHC to explicitly support the continuation fo the MLUM in its decision.
Relocation as a principal response: We reject all forms of relocation and reaffirm our determination to stay on the land. Despite serious human rights abuses, suffering, suffocation of social services, harassment and violence in the last five years, the large majority people of Ngorongoro have decided to remain on the land. Any form of relocation is contrary to the will of our people. We call on the WHC to explicitly reject any form of relocation, be it “voluntary” or human-rights based, in its decision on Ngorongoro.
Free, Prior and Informed Consent: We reject the formulation of paragraph 3 of the draft decision which insists on the importance of “full and effective consultation with all stakeholders and rightsholders, including those who oppose relocation” before making any changes to the MLUM. This formulation is weak and undermines our right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC). We call on the WHC to acknowledge and assert our right to FPIC, as Indigenous Peoples under international law. This includes the right to full and effective consultation but goes beyond it. It entails the right of all community groups to be involved and the right to say no. Any investment, decision or discussion on the future of Ngorongoro should seek and respect our FPIC.
The Presidential Commissions of Inquiry: We appreciate the request that the State Party should submit to the World Heritage Centre the full reports of the commissions of inquiry. However, we draw your attention to the fact that the Maasai community has repeatedly contested the terms of reference and recommendations of the Presidential Commissions and denounced a process that was conducted without reflecting the views of the community but only to justify already made decisions to force our people out. We call on the WHC not to recognize the reports of the Presidential Commissions as a legitimate and valid basis to determine the future of Ngorongoro.
Tourism carrying capacity: We denounce the fact that the draft decision is completely silent on the issue of over-tourism, despite earlier decisions clearly calling on the Tanzania government to pause further developments in absence of environmental impact assessments and a new General Management Plan (GMP). The growing influx of tourists and pressure by tourism investors is threatening the very existence of Ngorongoro. Government plans to massively expand tourism in the area are the main cause and driving force behind the ongoing forced relocation. We call the WHC to reinsert concerns about over-tourism in the decision including a moratorium on new developments until proper participatory assessments are conducted.
General Management Plan: We are highly concerned about the fact that Ngorongoro has been managed for the last 10 years without a General Management Plan (the last one expired in 2016) and has not engaged the people in a participatory process towards the development of a new one. We call on the WHC to insist that a new GMP be urgently developed in a participatory manner, with full involvement and consent of the people.
Any decision adopted by the WHC which ignores our concerns will be in clear violation of our fundamental rights and threaten our livelihoods and future, contravening both the principles of the WHC and international standards.
UNESCO and the World Heritage Committee’s structural failure to ensure the respect of human rights enshrined in international law raises fundamental questions on whether the NCA satisfies the ethical and governance standards expected of World Heritage Sites.
We urge you to take our concerns seriously and amend the draft decision to ensure it is aligned with international human rights standards and respects our demands as Peoples. We have been engaging with UNESCO and IUCN over the last four years and are deeply dissatisfied to see that the draft decision completely fails to acknowledge our priorities. Your failure to do so would make you complicit in the human rights violations that would inevitably ensue.
The future of Ngorongoro cannot be determined without the Maasai people. Conservation without rights is not conservation. Heritage without justice is not heritage.
