Lasha Shartava, the main architect-restaurator of the National Agency, was elected as a member of the ICCROM Board on behalf of Georgia at the 33rd session of the General Assembly of the International Center for Protection and Restoration of Cultural Values. It was held in Rome on November 2-3 for a four-year term (2024-2027) on behalf of Georgia.
Georgia has been a member of ICCROM since 2001, but it has not been a member of the ICCROM council. Architect-restaurator Lasha Shartava is the first Georgian elected to the board by the organization’s members, who consist of 137 states.
Candidates from 23 countries took part in the elections for 14 vacant seats of the Council. In the first round, 12 out of 14 seats were filled, eight candidates were eliminated from the election, and the candidates of Georgia, USA and Jordan received equal – 48 votes, because of which, the second round was appointed to fill two vacant seats.
In the second round, the Georgian representative received the most – 57 votes, and he was elected as a member of the Council. The Jordanian candidate received 52 votes, and the US representative received 43 votes. Therefore, members of the Council became representatives of Georgia and Jordan.
For the success achieved in the election process, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth of Georgia thanks the staff of the National Agency for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of Georgia, as well as Lasha Shartava, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ambassador of Georgia Emergency and Plenipotentiary in Italy, Konstantine Surguladze.
Lasha Shartava studied in 2000-2006 at the Faculty of Architecture at the Tbilisi Academy of Art and in 2013-2014 – at the Czech Technical University. Prague and Padova University (Italy) had a master’s program on structural analysis of monuments and historical rubles.
From 2007 to 2022, he was an architect-restaurator of the National Committee of Georgia (ICOMOS-Georgia) of the International Council of Monuments and Landmarks. Until now, he has participated in several international and local projects.
The international intergovernmental organization ICCROM is an advisory body to the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, which was founded in 1956. Its head office is in Rome. The organization’s organizational functions are to conduct research, documentation, technical assistance, training and inform the community.
ICCROM’s specific role in the UNESCO World Heritage Convention includes the following:
- Key partnerships in cultural heritage training.
- Monitoring the conservation of the world’s cultural heritage monuments.
- Considering the request for international assistance by convention member states.
- Contributing to skills development programs.
The ICCROM Board, acting under the jurisdiction of the General Assembly, monitors the implementation of the organization’s work programme and works closely with the Director General of ICCROM. He leads the organ organization rafting the work program and budget, prepares reports on its activities for the General Assembly session to discuss, and makes recommendations.
