Commission VII Pushes to Fast-Track Semarang Old Town’s UNESCO World Heritage Status

PARLEMENTARIA, Semarang - Commission VII of the Indonesian House of Representatives is pushing to fast-track Semarang Old Town’s upgrade from the UNESCO Tentative List (tentative list) to UNESCO World Heritage status (UNESCO World Heritage). The historic district has been on UNESCO’s Tentative List since 2015, but the process has yet to advance to designation.

Commission VII Chair Evita Nursanty said fast-tracking the process would require cooperation between relevant ministries, the Semarang City Government and the Central Java Provincial Government, particularly to meet the various requirements set by UNESCO. She made the remarks during a specific working visit by Commission VII to Semarang, Central Java, on Friday (13/11/2026).

“It has been on the Tentative List for quite a long time, since we submitted the nomination in 2015. So we hope the process can be accelerated. We are asking the relevant ministries to work with the Semarang City Government and the Central Java Provincial Government to find a way to upgrade this status,” Evita said.

She said the issues of flooding and land subsidence, which had previously drawn attention during the nomination process, needed to be reassessed. Efforts to address them through the construction of a seawall and retention ponds could form part of the supporting case in refining Semarang Old Town’s nomination documents.

Evita said Old Town had great potential to be developed as an international historical tourism destination. She cited Dubrovnik, Croatia, as an example of a place known as a global tourist destination for its rich history and World Heritage status.

“Old Town is a tourism icon. In other countries, they make a big selling point of the potential of their old towns. This is an opportunity for us to make Old Town a destination that people will want to see when they visit Semarang, or even Indonesia,” she explained.

Meanwhile, Semarang Mayor Agustina Wilujeng Pramestuti said the city government had been working to complete the required documents in pursuit of UNESCO recognition. However, the process requires support from various parties because some aspects cannot be handled by the local government alone.

“We are grateful for this specific visit, as it will spur us to renew our efforts to secure recognition from UNESCO. We hope the presence of several relevant ministries will also help us complete the documentation process soon and prepare the areas that need further work,” Agustina said.

Through the visit, Commission VII hopes to strengthen coordination among the central government, the Central Java Provincial Government and the Semarang City Government. Cross-sector collaboration is needed to meet the various requirements and improve Semarang Old Town’s chances of being designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. (est/um)