UNESCO has expanded Africa's representation on the World Heritage List after inscribing the first-ever cultural site from São Tomé and Príncipe during the 48th session of the World Heritage Committee in Busan, Republic of Korea. The session concluded on July 29 with the inscription of 25 new World Heritage sites. All decisions were adopted by consensus, reflecting the cooperative approach underpinning the 1972 World Heritage Convention.
For São Tomé and Príncipe, the decision marks a historic milestone. The country joined the World Heritage List for the first time with the inscription of The Roças of São Tomé and Príncipe: Colonial Agricultural System and Forced Migration, a network of six historic plantation complexes that illustrate the evolution of the archipelago's agricultural economy during the colonial period.
The inscribed property includes the former plantation estates of Monte Café, Água Izé, Diogo Vaz, São João, Sundy, and Belo Monte. UNESCO recognized the site for documenting the transition from slavery to contract labor following the formal abolition of slavery in the Portuguese colony in 1875, preserving an important chapter in the social and economic history of both the islands and the African continent.
The Busan session also marked the first-ever World Heritage inscriptions for the Comoros and South Sudan, underscoring UNESCO's continuing efforts to make the World Heritage List more balanced and representative by increasing the participation of countries that had previously remained unrepresented.
In addition to the new inscriptions, the Committee placed six properties on the List of World Heritage in Danger, recognizing both their outstanding universal value and the urgent need for enhanced international protection.
The inclusion of São Tomé and Príncipe's first World Heritage property places the island nation alongside more than 160 other countries represented on UNESCO's flagship heritage register and highlights growing international recognition of Africa's diverse historical and cultural legacy.
