Three countries, one lake and a shared ambition to protect it. Greece, Albania and North Macedonia are joining forces to seek UNESCO World Heritage status for Great Prespa, reviving a Greek initiative first launched in 2014.

The three countries’ culture ministers will meet on Friday, October 9, at the Prespes municipal offices in the village of Laimos to discuss the next steps. Greece’s Lina Mendoni, Albania’s Bledi Gonxha and North Macedonia’s Sedat Sulejmani will be joined by Michalis Roca, head of the European Commission’s diplomatic mission to North Macedonia. The EU is supporting the initiative and has agreed to fund the first studies needed for the proposal.

For Roca, the significance extends beyond heritage protection. Speaking to Kathimerini, he highlighted the geopolitical importance of three neighboring countries working together to protect and promote an environmental and cultural asset shared by all three, describing it as something that “brings them closer together.”

The mayor of Prespes, Giorgos Stergiou, is equally enthusiastic about the renewed effort. He noted that the municipality has long cooperated with its neighbors on protecting the lake and implementing joint programs: “We are certainly positive and willing to support the effort wherever and however we can. Our relations with our neighbors are excellent.”

Stergiou also pointed to the planned border crossing between Greece and North Macedonia, which he said will bring the Prespa area closer to the picturesque city of Ohrid, a popular tourist destination, describing its opening as something the municipality is eagerly anticipating.

The idea itself is not new. Greece placed Great Prespa on its Tentative List for UNESCO World Heritage consideration on January 16, 2014. The proposed nomination would recognize the area as a mixed natural and cultural heritage site, encompassing its waters and exceptional biodiversity alongside its Byzantine and post-Byzantine monuments. Among the most distinctive are the small hermitages built into caves and rocky shores around the lake, including the 15th-century chapel of Panagia Eleousa.

Earlier efforts to coordinate protection of the wider Prespa ecosystem included trilateral meetings between the three countries’ prime ministers in 2000 and 2009 and the creation of the Prespa Transboundary Park. The initiatives subsequently lost momentum amid the wider political climate in the region.

Now, the proposal is back on the agenda – this time as a genuinely joint effort.

“The impact goes far beyond the nomination itself,” Albania’s culture minister told the ATA news agency. “It means greater international attention for Prespa, more opportunities to protect and promote its cultural heritage, sustainable development, quality tourism and new prospects for local communities.”

Great Prespa, its smaller neighbor to the south, Little Prespa, and the surrounding wetlands support an exceptional variety of birdlife and other wildlife. The wider region is already protected by three national parks – one in each country – as well as through international and European frameworks including the Ramsar Convention and the Natura 2000 network. UNESCO World Heritage recognition would add another layer of international attention to a landscape where natural and cultural heritage crosses national borders.

With information in Greek from kathimerini.gr.