Switzerland elected to UNESCO World Heritage Committee

There is no Swiss representation in this place. For consular services, the responsible agency is in Beirut (Lebanon). The corresponding contact can be found under the Services category.

Services and visa

The Embassy of Switzerland in Lebanon provides visa support and consular services such as registration/deregistration, issuing of passports, identity cards and civil status changes.

Contact information can be found on the corresponding pages.

Services

Visa & entry to Switzerland

Services

Contact the responsible Swiss representation or consulate when you want to register or unregister as a resident, when you need a new passport, have moved or wish to apply for citizenship. The entire selection of services offered can be found in the dropdown menu to the right. The contact details of the responsible Swiss representation are shown on the corresponding page.

Swiss citizens who get into difficulties abroad, also can ask for advice and help from the Swiss representative.

The magazine for the Swiss Abroad appears six times a year and provides information about what is happening at home and the activities of Swiss associations abroad. It also answers administrative questions.

Online desk FDFA

Using the FDFA’s online consular services while abroad.

The relevant Swiss representation abroad can answer any questions concerning the FDFA’s online desk.

The World Heritage Committee is responsible for implementing the 1972 Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, which Switzerland ratified in 1975. This flagship UNESCO convention governs the preservation of natural and cultural heritage sites of outstanding universal value for future generations.

The Committee's 21 member states are elected from among the 196 states parties to the Convention for a four-year term. They are tasked with adding new natural or cultural sites to the World Heritage List – currently standing at 1,248, including 13 in Switzerland – as well as appraising the state of conservation of the existing listed sites and providing support for an effective and qualitative implementation of the Convention.

Switzerland, which enjoys global recognition for the quality of its management of both natural and cultural heritage, has sat on the Committee twice before: first in 1978-85 and most recently in 2009-13.

During its current seat, Switzerland, which will be represented by experts from the FDFA, the Federal Office of Culture (FOC) and the Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN), will aim in particular to optimise experience and knowledge sharing in terms of heritage site protection and management, to help ensure the long-term conservation of cultural and natural heritage, to back the Convention as a catalyst for preserving cultural expressions, landscapes and biodiversity worldwide, and to promote cultural and natural heritage as a vital resource benefiting individuals and communities alike.