Conscious of the fact that the right to education is a human right, and that
higher education, which is instrumental in the pursuit and advancement of
knowledge, constitutes an exceptionally rich cultural and scientific asset
for both individuals and society;
Considering that higher education should play a vital role in promoting
peace, mutual understanding and tolerance, and in creating mutual confidence
among peoples and nations;
Considering that the great diversity of education systems in the European
region reflects its cultural, social, political, philosophical, religious
and economic diversity, an exceptional asset which should be fully
respected;
Desiring to enable all people of the region to benefit fully from this rich
asset of diversity by facilitating access by the inhabitants of each State
and by the students of each Party's educational institutions to the
educational resources of the other Parties, more specifically by
facilitating their efforts to continue their education or to complete a
period of studies in higher education institutions in those other Parties;
Considering that the recognition of studies, certificates, diplomas and
degrees obtained in another country of the European region represents an
important measure for promoting academic mobility between the Parties;
Attaching great importance to the principle of institutional autonomy, and
conscious of the need to uphold and protect this principle;
Convinced that a fair recognition of qualifications is a key element of the
right to education and a responsibility of society;
Having regard to the Council of Europe and Unesco Conventions covering
academic recognition in Europe:
European Convention on the
Equivalence of Diplomas leading to Admission to Universities (1953, ETS
No. 15), and its Protocol (1964, ETS No. 49);
European Convention on the
Equivalence of Periods of University Study (1956, ETS No. 21);
European Convention on the
Academic Recognition of University Qualifications (1959, ETS No. 32);
Convention on the
Recognition of Studies, Diplomas and Degrees concerning Higher Education
in the States belonging to the Europe Region (1979);
European Convention on the
General Equivalence of Periods of University Study (1990, ETS No. 138);
Having regard also to the
International Convention on the Recognition of Studies, Diplomas and Degrees
in Higher Education in the Arab and European States bordering on the
Mediterranean (1976), adopted within the framework of Unesco and partially
covering academic recognition in Europe;
Mindful that this Convention should also be considered in the context of the
Unesco conventions and the international recommendation covering other
Regions of the world, and of the need for an improved exchange of
information between these Regions;
Conscious of the wide ranging changes in higher education in the European
region since these conventions were adopted, resulting in considerably
increased diversification within and between national higher education
systems, and of the need to adapt the legal instruments and practice to
reflect these developments;
Conscious of the need to find common solutions to practical recognition
problems in the European region;
Conscious of the need to improve current recognition practice and to make it
more transparent and better adapted to the current situation of higher
education in the European region;
Confident of the positive significance of a convention elaborated and
adopted under the joint auspices of the Council of Europe and Unesco
providing a framework for the further development of recognition practices
in the European region;
Conscious of the importance of providing permanent implementation mechanisms
in order to put the principles and provisions of the current Convention into
practice,
For the purposes of this
Convention, the following terms shall have the following meaning:
Access (to higher education)
The right of qualified
candidates to apply and to be considered for admission to higher education.
Admission (to higher
education institutions and programmes)
The act of, or system for,
allowing qualified applicants to pursue studies in higher education at a
given institution and/or a given programme.
Assessment (of institutions
or programmes)
The process for establishing
the educational quality of a higher education institution or programme.
Assessment (of individual
qualifications)
The written appraisal or
evaluation of an individual's foreign qualifications by a competent body.
Competent recognition
authority
A body officially charged with
making binding decisions on the recognition of foreign qualifications.
Higher education
All types of courses of study,
or sets of courses of study, training or training for research at the post
secondary level which are recognised by the relevant authorities of a Party
as belonging to its higher education system.
Higher education institution
An establishment providing
higher education and recognised by the competent authority of a Party as
belonging to its system of higher education.
Higher education programme
A course of study recognised
by the competent authority of a Party as belonging to its system of higher
education, and the completion of which provides the student with a higher
education qualification.
Period of study
Any component of a higher
education programme which has been evaluated and documented and, while not a
complete programme of study in itself, represents a significant acquisition
of knowledge or skill.
Qualification
A. Higher education
qualification
Any degree, diploma or other
certificate issued by a competent authority attesting the successful
completion of a higher education programme.
B. Qualification giving
access to higher education
Any diploma or other
certificate issued by a competent authority attesting the successful
completion of an education programme and giving the holder of the
qualification the right to be considered for admission to higher education (cf.
the definition of access).
Recognition
A formal acknowledgement by a
competent authority of the value of a foreign educational qualification with
a view to access to educational and/or employment activities.
Requirement
A. General requirements
Conditions that must in all
cases be fulfilled for access to higher education, or to a given level
thereof, or for the award of a higher education qualification at a given
level.
B. Specific requirements
Conditions that must be
fulfilled, in addition to the general requirements, in order to gain
admission to a particular higher education programme, or for the award of a
specific higher education qualification in a particular field of study.
Where central authorities of
a Party are competent to make decisions in recognition cases, that Party
shall be immediately bound by the provisions of this Convention and shall
take the necessary measures to ensure the implementation of its provisions
on its territory.
Where the competence to make decisions in recognition matters lies with
components of the Party, the Party shall furnish one of the depositories
with a brief statement of its constitutional situation or structure at the
time of signature or when depositing its instrument of ratification,
acceptance, approval or accession, or any time thereafter. In such cases,
the competent authorities of the components of the Parties so designated
shall take the necessary measures to ensure implementation of the
provisions of this Convention on their territory.
Where the competence to make
decisions in recognition matters lies with individual higher education
institutions or other entities, each Party according to its constitutional
situation or structure shall transmit the text of this Convention to these
institutions or entities and shall take all possible steps to encourage
the favourable consideration and application of its provisions.
The provisions of paragraphs
1 and 2 of this article shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to the
obligations of the Parties under subsequent articles of this Convention.
Article
II.2
At the time of signature or
when depositing its instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or
accession, or at any time thereafter, each State, the Holy See or the
European Community shall inform either depository of the present Convention
of the authorities which are competent to make different categories of
decisions in recognition cases.
Article
II.3
Nothing in this Convention
shall be deemed to derogate from any more favourable provisions concerning
the recognition of qualifications issued in one of the Parties contained in
or stemming from an existing or a future treaty to which a Party to this
Convention may be or may become a party.
Holders of qualifications
issued in one of the Parties shall have adequate access, upon request to
the appropriate body, to an assessment of these qualifications.
No discrimination shall be
made in this respect on any ground such as the applicant's gender, race,
colour, disability, language, religion, political or other opinion,
national, ethnic or social origin, association with a national minority,
property, birth or other status, or on the grounds of any other
circumstance not related to the merits of the qualification for which
recognition is sought. In order to assure this right, each Party
undertakes to make appropriate arrangements for the assessment of an
application for recognition of qualifications solely on the basis of the
knowledge and skills achieved.
Article
III.2
Each Party shall ensure that
the procedures and criteria used in the assessment and recognition of
qualifications are transparent, coherent and reliable.
Article
III.3
Decisions on recognition
shall be made on the basis of appropriate information on the
qualifications for which recognition is sought.
In the first instance, the
responsibility for providing adequate information rests with the
applicant, who shall provide such information in good faith.
Notwithstanding the
responsibility of the applicant, the institutions having issued the
qualifications in question shall have a duty to provide, upon request of
the applicant and within reasonable limits, relevant information to the
holder of the qualification, to the institution, or to the competent
authorities of the country in which recognition is sought.
The Parties shall instruct or
encourage, as appropriate, all education institutions belonging to their
education systems to comply with any reasonable request for information
for the purpose of assessing qualifications earned at the said
institutions.
The responsibility to
demonstrate that an application does not fulfil the relevant requirements
lies with the body undertaking the assessment.
Article
III.4
Each Party shall ensure, in
order to facilitate the recognition of qualifications, that adequate and
clear information on its education system is provided.
Article
III.5
Decisions on recognition shall
be made within a reasonable time limit specified beforehand by the competent
recognition authority and calculated from the time all necessary information
in the case has been provided. If recognition is withheld, the reasons for
the refusal to grant recognition shall be stated, and information shall be
given concerning possible measures the applicant may take in order to obtain
recognition at a later stage. If recognition is withheld, or if no decision
is taken, the applicant shall be able to make an appeal within a reasonable
time limit.
Each Party shall recognise the
qualifications issued by other Parties meeting the general requirements for
access to higher education in those Parties for the purpose of access to
programmes belonging to its higher education system, unless a substantial
difference can be shown between the general requirements for access in the
Party in which the qualification was obtained and in the Party in which
recognition of the qualification is sought.
Article
IV.2
Alternatively, it shall be
sufficient for a Party to enable the holder of a qualification issued in one
of the other Parties to obtain an assessment of that qualification, upon
request by the holder, and the provisions of Article IV.1 shall apply mutatis
mutandis to such a case.
Article
IV.3
Where a qualification gives
access only to specific types of institutions or programmes of higher
education in the Party in which the qualification was obtained, each other
Party shall grant holders of such qualifications access to similar specific
programmes in institutions belonging to its higher education system, unless
a substantial difference can be demonstrated between the requirements for
access in the Party in which the qualification was obtained and the Party in
which recognition of the qualification is sought.
Article
IV.4
Where admission to particular
higher education programmes is dependent on the fulfilment of specific
requirements in addition to the general requirements for access, the
competent authorities of the Party concerned may impose the additional
requirements equally on holders of qualifications obtained in the other
Parties or assess whether applicants with qualifications obtained in other
Parties fulfil equivalent requirements.
Article
IV.5
Where, in the Party in which
they have been obtained, school leaving certificates give access to higher
education only in combination with additional qualifying examinations as a
prerequisite for access, the other Parties may make access conditional on
these requirements or offer an alternative for satisfying such additional
requirements within their own educational systems. Any State, the Holy See
or the European Community may, at the time of signature or when depositing
its instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, or at any
time thereafter, notify one of the depositories that it avails itself of the
provisions of this Article, specifying the Parties in regard to which it
intends to apply this Article as well as the reasons therefor.
Article
IV.6
Without prejudice to the
provisions of Articles IV.1, IV.2, IV.3, IV.4 and IV.5, admission to a given
higher education institution, or to a given programme within such an
institution, may be restricted or selective. In cases in which admission to
a higher education institution and/or programme is selective, admission
procedures should be designed with a view to ensuring that the assessment of
foreign qualifications is carried out according to the principles of
fairness and non-discrimination described in Section III.
Article
IV.7
Without prejudice to the
provisions of Articles IV.1, IV.2, IV.3, IV.4 and IV.5, admission to a given
higher education institution may be made conditional on demonstration by the
applicant of sufficient competence in the language or languages of
instruction of the institution concerned, or in other specified languages.
Article
IV.8
In the Parties in which access
to higher education may be obtained on the basis of non-traditional
qualifications, similar qualifications obtained in other Parties shall be
assessed in a similar manner as non-traditional qualifications earned in the
Party in which recognition is sought.
Article
IV.9
For the purpose of admission
to programmes of higher education, each Party may make the recognition of
qualifications issued by foreign educational institutions operating in its
territory contingent upon specific requirements of national legislation or
specific agreements concluded with the Party of origin of such institutions.
Each Party shall recognise
periods of study completed within the framework of a higher education
programme in another Party. This recognition shall comprise such periods of
study towards the completion of a higher education programme in the Party in
which recognition is sought, unless substantial differences can be shown
between the periods of study completed in another Party and the part of the
higher education programme which they would replace in the Party in which
recognition is sought.
Article
V.2
Alternatively, it shall be
sufficient for a Party to enable a person who has completed a period of
study within the framework of a higher education programme in another Party
to obtain an assessment of that period of study, upon request by the person
concerned, and the provisions of Article V.1 shall apply mutatis mutandis
to such a case.
Article
V.3
In particular, each Party
shall facilitate recognition of periods of study when:
there has been a previous
agreement between, on the one hand, the higher education institution or
the competent authority responsible for the relevant period of study
and, on the other hand, the higher education institution or the
competent recognition authority responsible for the recognition that is
sought; and
the higher education
institution in which the period of study has been completed has issued a
certificate or transcript of academic records attesting that the student
has successfully completed the stipulated requirements for the said
period of study.
To the extent that a
recognition decision is based on the knowledge and skills certified by the
higher education qualification, each Party shall recognise the higher
education qualifications conferred in another Party, unless a substantial
difference can be shown between the qualification for which recognition is
sought and the corresponding qualification in the Party in which recognition
is sought.
Article
VI.2
Alternatively, it shall be
sufficient for a Party to enable the holder of a higher education
qualification issued in one of the other Parties to obtain an assessment of
that qualification, upon request by the holder, and the provisions of
Article VI.1 shall apply mutatis mutandis to such a case.
Article
VI.3
Recognition in a Party of a
higher education qualification issued in another Party shall have one or
both of the following consequences:
access to further higher
education studies, including relevant examinations, and/or to
preparations for the doctorate, on the same conditions as those
applicable to holders of qualifications of the Party in which
recognition is sought;
the use of an academic
title, subject to the laws and regulations of the Party or a
jurisdiction thereof, in which recognition is sought.
In addition, recognition
may facilitate access to the labour market subject to laws and
regulations of the Party, or a jurisdiction thereof, in which
recognition is sought.
Article
VI.4
An assessment in a Party of a
higher education qualification issued in another Party may take the form of:
advice for general
employment purposes;
advice to an educational
institution for the purpose of admission into its programmes;
advice to any other
competent recognition authority.
Article
VI.5
Each Party may make the
recognition of higher education qualifications issued by foreign educational
institutions operating in its territory contingent upon specific
requirements of national legislation or specific agreements concluded with
the Party of origin of such institutions.
Section VII
– Recognition of qualifications held by refugees, displaced persons and
persons in a refugee-like situation
Article
VII
Each Party shall take all
feasible and reasonable steps within the framework of its education system
and in conformity with its constitutional, legal, and regulatory provisions
to develop procedures designed to assess fairly and expeditiously whether
refugees, displaced persons and persons in a refugee-like situation fulfil
the relevant requirements for access to higher education, to further higher
education programmes or to employment activities, even in cases in which the
qualifications obtained in one of the Parties cannot be proven through
documentary evidence.
Section
VIII – Information on the assessment of higher education institutions and
programmes
Article
VIII.1
Each Party shall provide
adequate information on any institution belonging to its higher education
system, and on any programme operated by these institutions, with a view to
enabling the competent authorities of other Parties to ascertain whether the
quality of the qualifications issued by these institutions justifies
recognition in the Party in which recognition is sought. Such information
shall take the following form:
in the case of Parties
having established a system of formal assessment of higher education
institutions and programmes: information on the methods and results of
this assessment, and of the standards of quality specific to each type
of higher education institution granting, and to programmes leading to,
higher education qualifications;
in the case of Parties
which have not established a system of formal assessment of higher
education institutions and programmes: information on the recognition of
the various qualifications obtained at any higher education institution,
or within any higher education programme, belonging to their higher
education systems.
Article
VIII.2
Each Party shall make adequate
provisions for the development, maintenance and provision of:
an overview of the
different types of higher education institutions belonging to its higher
education system, with the typical characteristics of each type of
institution;
a list of recognised
institutions (public and private) belonging to its higher education
system, indicating their powers to award different types of
qualifications and the requirements for gaining access to each type of
institution and programme;
a description of higher
education programmes;
a list of educational
institutions located outside its territory which the Party considers as
belonging to its education system.
In order to facilitate the
recognition of qualifications concerning higher education, the Parties
undertake to establish transparent systems for the complete description of
the qualifications obtained.
Article
IX.2
Acknowledging the need for
relevant, accurate and up-to-date information, each Party shall establish
or maintain a national information centre and shall notify one of the
depositories of its establishment, or of any changes affecting it.
In each Party, the national
information centre shall:
facilitate access to
authoritative and accurate information on the higher education system
and qualifications of the country in which it is located;
facilitate access to
information on the higher education systems and qualifications of the
other Parties;
give advice or
information on recognition matters and assessment of qualifications,
in accordance with national laws and regulations.
Every national information
centre shall have at its disposal the necessary means to enable it to
fulfil its functions.
Article
IX.3
The Parties shall promote,
through the national information centres or otherwise, the use of the Unesco/Council
of Europe Diploma Supplement or any other comparable document by the higher
education institutions of the Parties.
The following bodies shall
oversee, promote and facilitate the implementation of the Convention:
the Committee of the
Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher
Education in the European Region;
the European Network of
National Information Centres on academic mobility and recognition (the
ENIC Network), established by decision of the Committee of Ministers of
the Council of Europe on 9 June 1994 and the Unesco Regional Committee
for Europe on 18 June 1994.
Article
X.2
The Committee of the
Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher
Education in the European Region (hereafter referred to as "the
Committee") is hereby established. It shall be composed of one
representative of each Party.
For the purposes of Article
X.2, the term "Party" shall not apply to the European Community.
The States mentioned in
Article XI.1.1 and the Holy See, if they are not Parties to this
Convention, the European Community and the President of the ENIC Network
may participate in the meetings of the Committee as observers.
Representatives of governmental and non-governmental organisations active
in the field of recognition in the Region may also be invited to attend
meetings of the Committee as observers.
The President of the Unesco
Regional Committee for the Application of the Convention on the
Recognition of Studies, Diplomas and Degrees concerning Higher Education
in the States belonging to the Europe Region shall also be invited to
participate in the meetings of the Committee as an observer.
The Committee shall promote
the application of this Convention and shall oversee its implementation.
To this end it may adopt, by a majority of the Parties, recommendations,
declarations, protocols and models of good practice to guide the competent
authorities of the Parties in their implementation of the Convention and
in their consideration of applications for the recognition of higher
education qualifications. While they shall not be bound by such texts, the
Parties shall use their best endeavours to apply them, to bring the texts
to the attention of the competent authorities and to encourage their
application. The Committee shall seek the opinion of the ENIC Network
before making its decisions.
The Committee shall report to
the relevant bodies of the Council of Europe and Unesco.
The Committee shall maintain
links to the Unesco Regional Committees for the Application of Conventions
on the Recognition of Studies, Diplomas and Degrees in Higher Education
adopted under the auspices of Unesco.
A majority of the Parties
shall constitute a quorum.
The Committee shall adopt its
Rules of Procedure. It shall meet in ordinary session at least every three
years. The Committee shall meet for the first time within a year of the
entry into force of this Convention.
The Secretariat of the
Committee shall be entrusted jointly to the Secretary General of the
Council of Europe and to the Director-General of Unesco.
Article
X.3
Each Party shall appoint as a
member of the European Network of National Information Centres on academic
mobility and recognition (the ENIC Network) the national information
centre established or maintained under Article IX.2. In cases in which
more than one national information centre is established or maintained in
a Party under Article IX.2, all these shall be members of the Network, but
the national information centres concerned shall dispose of only one vote.
The ENIC Network shall, in
its composition restricted to national information centres of the Parties
to this Convention, uphold and assist the practical implementation of the
Convention by the competent national authorities. The Network shall meet
at least once a year in plenary session. It shall elect its President and
Bureau in accordance with its terms of reference.
The Secretariat of the ENIC
Network shall be entrusted jointly to the Secretary General of the Council
of Europe and to the Director-General of Unesco.
The Parties shall co-operate,
through the ENIC Network, with the national information centres of other
Parties, especially by enabling them to collect all information of use to
the national information centres in their activities relating to academic
recognition and mobility.
any other signatory,
contracting state or party to the European Cultural Convention of the
Council of Europe and/or to the Unesco Convention on the Recognition
of Studies, Diplomas and Degrees concerning Higher Education in the
States belonging to the Europe Region, which have been invited to
the diplomatic conference entrusted with the adoption of this Convention.
These states and the Holy See
may express their consent to be bound by:
signature without
reservation as to ratification, acceptance or approval; or
signature, subject to
ratification, acceptance or approval, followed by ratification,
acceptance or approval; or
accession.
Signatures shall be made with
one of the depositories. Instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval
or accession shall be deposited with one of the depositories.
Article
XI.2
This Convention shall enter
into force on the first day of the month following the expiration of the
period of one month after five states, including at least three member
states of the Council of Europe and/or the Unesco Europe Region, have
expressed their consent to be bound by the Convention. It shall enter into
force for each other State on the first day of the month following the
expiration of the period of one month after the date of expression of its
consent to be bound by the Convention.
Article
XI.3
After the entry into force of
this Convention, any state other than those falling into one of the
categories listed under Article XI.1 may request accession to this
Convention. Any request to this effect shall be addressed to one of the
depositories, who shall transmit it to the Parties at least three months
before the meeting of the Committee of the Convention on the Recognition
of Qualifications concerning Higher Education in the European Region. The
depository shall also inform the Committee of Ministers of the Council of
Europe and the Executive Board of Unesco.
The decision to invite a
State which so requests to accede to this Convention shall be taken by a
two-thirds majority of the Parties.
After the entry into force of
this Convention the European Community may accede to it following a
request by its member states, which shall be addressed to one of the
depositories. In this case, Article XI.3.2 shall not apply.
In respect of any acceding
states or the European Community, the Convention shall enter into force on
the first day of the month following the expiration of the period of one
month after the deposit of the instrument of accession with one of the
depositories.
Article
XI.4
Parties to this Convention
which are at the same time parties to one or more of the following
conventions:
European Convention on
the Equivalence of Diplomas leading to Admission to Universities
(1953, ETS No. 15), and its Protocol (1964, ETS No. 49);
European Convention on
the Equivalence of Periods of University Study (1956, ETS No. 21);
European Convention on
the Academic Recognition of University Qualifications (1959, ETS No.
32);
International Convention
on the Recognition of Studies, Diplomas and Degrees in Higher
Education in the Arab and European States bordering on the
Mediterranean (1976);
Convention on the
Recognition of Studies, Diplomas and Degrees concerning Higher
Education in the States belonging to the Europe Region (1979);
European Convention on
the General Equivalence of Periods of University Study (1990, ETS No.
138),
shall apply the
provisions of the present Convention in their mutual relations;
shall continue to apply
the above mentioned conventions to which they are a party in their
relations with other States party to those conventions but not to the
present Convention.
The Parties to this
Convention undertake to abstain from becoming a party to any of the
conventions mentioned in paragraph 1, to which they are not already a
party, with the exception of the International Convention on the
Recognition of Studies, Diplomas and Degrees in Higher Education in the
Arab and European States bordering on the Mediterranean.
Article
XI.5
Any State may, at the time of
signature or when depositing its instrument of ratification, acceptance,
approval or accession, specify the territory or territories to which this
Convention shall apply.
Any State may, at any later
date, by a declaration addressed to one of the depositories, extend the
application of this Convention to any other territory specified in the
declaration. In respect of such territory the Convention shall enter into
force on the first day of the month following the expiration of a period
of one month after the date of receipt of such declaration by the
depository.
Any declaration made under
the two preceding paragraphs may, in respect of any territory specified in
such declaration, be withdrawn by a notification addressed to one of the
depositories. The withdrawal shall become effective on the first day of
the month following the expiration of a period of one month after the date
of receipt of such notification by the depository.
Article
XI.6
Any Party may, at any time,
denounce this Convention by means of a notification addressed to one of
the depositories.
Such denunciation shall
become effective on the first day of the month following the expiration of
a period of twelve months after the date of receipt of the notification by
the depository. However, such denunciation shall not affect recognition
decisions taken previously under the provisions of this Convention.
Termination or suspension of
the operation of this Convention as a consequence of a violation by a
Party of a provision essential to the accomplishment of the object or
purpose of this Convention shall be addressed in accordance with
international law.
Article
XI.7
Any State, the Holy See or
the European Community may, at the time of signature or when depositing
its instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, declare
that it reserves the right not to apply, in whole or in part, one or more
of the following Articles of this Convention:
Article IV.8,
Article V.3,
Article VI.3,
Article VIII.2,
Article IX.3.
No other reservation may be made.
Any Party which has made a
reservation under the preceding paragraph may wholly or partly withdraw it
by means of a notification addressed to one of the depositories. The
withdrawal shall take effect on the date of receipt of such notification
by the depository.
A Party which has made a
reservation in respect of a provision of this Convention may not claim the
application of that provision by any other Party; it may, however, if its
reservation is partial or conditional, claim the application of that
provision in so far as it has itself accepted it.
Article
XI.8
Draft amendments to this
Convention may be adopted by the Committee of the Convention on the
Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher Education in the European
Region by a two-thirds majority of the Parties. Any draft amendment so
adopted shall be incorporated into a Protocol to this Convention. The
Protocol shall specify the modalities for its entry into force which, in
any event, shall require the expression of consent by the Parties to be
bound by it.
No amendment may be made to
Section III of this Convention under the procedure of paragraph 1 above.
Any proposal for amendments
shall be communicated to one of the depositaries, who shall transmit it to
the Parties at least three months before the meeting of the Committee. The
depository shall also inform the Committee of Ministers of the Council of
Europe and the Executive Board of Unesco.
Article
XI.9
The Secretary General of the
Council of Europe and the Director- General of the United Nations
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation shall be the
depositories of this Convention.
The depository with whom an
act, notification or communication has been deposited shall notify the
Parties to this Convention, as well as the other member States of the
Council of Europe and/or of the Unesco Europe Region of:
any signature;
the deposit of any
instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession;
any date of entry into
force of this Convention in accordance with the provisions of Articles
XI.2 and XI.3.4;
any reservation made in
pursuance of the provisions of Article XI.7 and the withdrawal of any
reservations made in pursuance of the provisions of Article XI.7;
any denunciation of this
Convention in pursuance of Article XI.6;
any declarations made in
accordance with the provisions of Article II.1, or of Article II.2;
any declarations made in
accordance with the provisions of Article IV.5;
any request for accession
made in accordance with the provisions of Article XI.3;
any proposal made in
accordance with the provisions of Article XI.8;
any other act,
notification or communication relating to this Convention.
The depository receiving a
communication or making a notification in pursuance of the provisions of
this Convention shall immediately inform the other depository thereof.
In witness thereof the undersigned representatives, being duly authorised,
have signed this Convention.
Done at Lisbon on 11 April 1997, in the English, French, Russian and
Spanish languages, the four texts being equally authoritative, in two
copies, one of which shall be deposited in the archives of the Council of
Europe and the other in the archives of the United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organisation. A certified copy shall be sent to
all the States referred to in Article XI.1, to the Holy See and to the
European Community and to the Secretariat of the United Nations.
