The Committee,

1. Having examined document LHE/23/18.COM/7.a,
2. Recalling Chapter V of the Operational Directives and its Decisions COM 9.a.7 and 14.COM 9.a.3,
3. Expresses its appreciation to Uganda for submitting, on time, its second report on the status of the element ‘Male-child cleansing ceremony of the Lango of central northern Uganda’, inscribed in 2014 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 raising awareness within communities, pursuing the documentation and inventorying of the element, and enhancing partnerships to secure the preservation and planting of shea butter trees used for the practice;
5. Encourages the State Party to pursue its efforts with regards to awareness-raising and education, with the participation of the bearers and practitioners of the element, to continue dialogue and strengthen partnerships among community members, governmental and non-governmental organizations, and to support the safeguarding of all aspects of the element, including the preservation of shea butter trees, which are used for the ritual;
6. Invites the State Party to build the capacities of community members, including youth, to document the element and continue disseminating information on its practice in the local language, and recalls the importance of obtaining the free, prior and informed consent of practitioners of the element regarding the documentation of the rituals performed and their further dissemination;
7. Further invites the State Party to provide consistent and up-to-date information in all sections of its next report on the status of this element;
8. Requests that the Secretariat inform the State Party at least nine months prior to the next deadline about the required submission of its next report on the status of this element.