The Committee,

1. Having examined document LHE/22/17.COM/5 and its annex,
2. Expresses its full satisfaction with the completion of the global reflection on the listing mechanisms, which has generated impactful results that are important for the credibility of the Convention and the operationalization of its listing mechanisms and commends the Secretariat for having supported the process throughout;
3. Notes with satisfaction the effectiveness of the capacity-building approach developed by the Secretariat for the reformed periodic reporting mechanism, confirmed by the marked improvement in the submission rates of reports from Latin America and the Caribbean and Europe; and invites States Parties to support financially the roll-out of the capacity-building for the regional cycle of periodic reporting in Africa;
4. Takes note of the Secretariat’s increased engagement in initiatives related to the safeguarding of living heritage in emergencies, which confirms the relevance of the ‘Operational principles and modalities for safeguarding intangible cultural heritage in emergencies’ of the Convention, and appreciates in particular the actions taken by the Secretariat to support the safeguarding of Ukrainian intangible cultural heritage;
5. Further takes note of the progress made under each of the three thematic initiatives, including the on-line surveys as part of the preparations for establishing guidance notes and requests that the Secretariat report back to the Committee at its eighteenth session on the progress achieved;
6. Acknowledges the reorientation of the global capacity-building programme, including the move towards a multimodal delivery approach (blended, fully online, in-person), the development of the thematic areas and the expansion of the global network of facilitators, and appeals to States Parties to consider hosting and/or financially supporting training courses to equip the growing number of facilitators with the knowledge and skills required to support States Parties;
7. Also takes note of the increasing demand for projects under the first funding priority, ‘Strengthening capacities to safeguard intangible cultural heritage’, which includes requests to strengthen capacities in the core areas of the Convention, such as the preparation of safeguarding plans, International Assistance requests and nomination files, and calls upon States Parties to provide funding support for the design and implementation of multi-year projects to respond to such requests, notably in Africa and Small Island and Developing States;
8. Further appreciates the steady progress made in the implementation of the second funding priority, ‘Safeguarding and transmission of intangible cultural heritage through formal and non-formal education’, and encourages States Parties to provide support for intersectoral collaboration with the education sector with a view to anchoring the integration of living heritage safeguarding in education policies and systems at the local, national and international levels.