Mr. Geanandrea Sandri, the director of the Italian Cooperation Office in Jerusalem and Ms. Louise Hexthausen, the UNESCO representative to the Palestinian Authority attended the ceremony in addition to representatives of the BACMP Project Partner. H.E. Dr. Kholoud Deibis - Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, Mr. Abdul Fattah Hamayel – Bethlehem Governorate, Dr. Victor Batarseh – Mayor of Bethlehem, Eng. Raji Zeidan – Mayor of Beit Jala, Mr. Hani Abdul Maseeh – Mayor of Beit Sahour, Mr. Rashid Awad – representing the Minister of Local Government, and Arch. Issam Juha – director of the Centre for Cultural Heritage Preservation - CCHP.

In his welcoming speech, Dr. Batarseh stressed on the importance of the preservation of the cultural heritage and the historic towns, and pointed out to important role of CCHP in the field. Dr. Deibis added that such projects are the evidence of the Palestinian existence and Identity, and pointed out to the commencement of the preparation of the nomination file for enlisting Bethlehem – Birth Place of Jesus Christ: the Church of the Nativity and the Patriarchate Route - on the World Heritage List (WHL). Emphasizing that Palestine is the Land for the three religions; Christianity, Islam and Judaism, Mr. Hamayel condemned the Israeli attempt to inscribe the religious sites on the Jewish Heritage List.

The director of the Italian Cooperation in Jerusalem commended on such project, and expressed the Italian Government's will to continue supporting the Palestinian people. In addition, the UNESCO representative highlighted that the integrity and authenticity of Bethlehem should be employed as incentives for all partners to work together in preserving this inheritance.
Mayor Zeidan and Mayor Abdul Maseeh expressed their commitment to the BACMP, and pointed out its importance in preserving the cultural heritage and reflecting the Palestinian identity. After which Mr. Juha expressed his gratitude to the representatives of the Italian Government, the UNESCO, and BACMP Project Partners for their continuous efforts and commitment, which aim at the successfulness of the Bethlehem Area Conservation and Management Plan.

At the end of the ceremony, the representatives of the Italian Government and the UNESCO witnessed the Project Partners adopting the Guidelines for the Conservation and Rehabilitation of the Historic Towns in Bethlehem, Beit Jala, and Beit Sahour.