The Committee,

1. Having examined document LHE/24/19.COM/6.a,
2. Recalling Chapter V of the Operational Directives and its Decisions 10.COM 10.a.6 and 16.COM 7.a.3,
3. Expresses its appreciation to Portugal for submitting, on time, its second report on the status of the element ‘Manufacture of cowbells’, inscribed in 2015 on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding;
4. Takes note of the efforts undertaken by the State Party to safeguard the element, in particular by promoting it through tourism development, increasing and diversifying the demand for cowbells, and enhancing the economic viability of the element;
5. Notes with concern that the actions planned in the safeguarding plan could not be carried out due to external and internal factors, and notes also the reported change in the transmission of the element from a family to a corporate context;
6. Encourages the State Party to pursue its efforts to support the transmission of the knowledge and skills associated with the element to young generations of practitioners, to promote the element, and to develop and implement a strategy for ensuring that cowbell makers and their communities can mitigate the potential risk of over-commercialization of the element;
7. Further encourages the State Party to continue engaging local authorities in expanding and carrying out educational activities, and ensuring the continuous involvement of cowbell makers and their communities in updating safeguarding measures;
8. Takes note of the strengthened viability of the element and the intention of the State Party to propose the transfer of the element from the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding to the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.