Singapore's Botanic Gardens named World Heritage Site

(Reuters) — Singapore's Botanic Gardens was named as a cultural site on the World Heritage List on Saturday (July 4), with residents and tourists in the city state welcoming the news. The UNESCO World Heritage Committee meeting in Bonn, Germany, approved the inscription of six new cultural sites in China, Iran, Mongolia and Singapore. Singapore's Botanic Gardens were the first tropical botanic gardens on the heritage site list and the first in Asia, the gardens' website said. Popular with tourists and residents, the gardens were busy on Sunday (July 5) with people walking through the grounds and photographing wildlife. Fifty-eight year old Singapore resident, Stan Lee was proud of the new status. "Very proud of Singapore a small dot in the world has such a beautiful UNESCO site and all Singaporeans share this same passion as me. This botanic garden is one of the best in the world, there's so much of the green, lush, beautiful landscape," he said. Singaporean wildlife photographer Jay Shah said the recognition was deserved. "How often I come depends on the birds, so right now there are some owls here, the eagles so it's not because of the change in status, but its the birds that attract us but I think it's a well deserved recognition," he said. Sitting outside the Botanic Gardens Orchid Centre, one Australian tourist said people around the World should visit the gardens. "I think it's fantastic, it's a credit to Singapore, it's absolutely beautiful, so many flowers, a beautiful range, it's such a special place, that I think everyone on earth should come and visit," said Catherine Lanigan who was visiting the country for the first time. Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong took to Facebook to welcome the announcement saying: "A great Jubilee year gift to Singaporeans." The nation will celebrate its 50th anniversary of independence in August this year. Singapore's Botanic Gardens was founded in 1859 at its present location and is managed by the National Parks Board. UNESCO said the gardens included a variety of plants and buildings showing its development over the years. It also acknowledged the research and conservation efforts at the gardens. The UNESCO World Heritage Committee's 2015 session opened on Sunday (June 28) in Bonn and will finish on July 8.