The Committee

1. Takes note that the Plurinational State of Bolivia, Chile and Peru have requested international assistance for the project entitled Safeguarding the intangible cultural heritage of Aymara communities in Bolivia, Chile and Peru, described as follows:

This project intends to contribute to safeguarding the intangible cultural heritage of Aymara communities in Bolivia, Chile and Peru through the identification, promotion and recognition of their music and oral traditions. The project is to be realized in twenty-seven communities from the Altiplano plateau and areas around Lake Titicaca. The Regional Centre for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in Latin America (CRESPIAL) is responsible for its implementation, with the support of national technical teams in each country. The project aims to train representatives and bearers of Aymara communities in Bolivia, Chile and Peru in compiling and recording Aymara music and oral traditions. Local authorities and the communities concerned are to participate in the identification of musical genres at risk and the compilation of oral traditions. The project also plans to work with primary school teachers to encourage children to continue to practise and transmit Aymara intangible cultural heritage. The project’s publications (on CD and in print) will be widely disseminated to public schools throughout the region. This project is an outgrowth of multinational collaboration involving dialogue and cooperation between the three countries, and was recognized by the Committee in 2009 for its potential contributions to safeguarding.

2. Decides that, from the information provided in File 00550, Safeguarding the intangible cultural heritage of Aymara communities in Bolivia, Chile and Peru responds as follows to the criteria for international assistance in Paragraph 12 of the Operational Directives and to the additional considerations in Paragraph 10:

A.1    While the sub-regional cooperation between the three countries and their combined and concerted effort in formulating a programme of safeguarding are commendable, the active participation by the Aymara community in the preparation of the request and their future involvement in its implementation have not been elaborated in sufficient detail;

A.2    The budget is well conceived and clearly structured with an overview of individual activities and shares of costs; the amount of assistance appears to be appropriate;

A.3    The proposed activities are well conceived, methodical and feasible, presented in a logical step-by-step procedure, and there is consistency between the activities planned, the timetable and the budget; monitoring and evaluation of the program are built in; nonetheless it is necessary to bear in mind that its aim should not only be documentation but should include as well the transmission and viability of Aymara music and oral traditions;

A.4    Sustainability of the project can potentially be secured in many ways, by thorough documentation followed by dissemination which can serve for promotion and educational activities on State and private levels; for this to be effective, however, it is fundamental to mobilize community participation, transfer know-how and revitalize intergenerational transmission as key prerequisites for sustainability;

A.5    The support requested from the Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund is less than one-third of the total, with the remaining costs to be borne by the Regional Centre for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in Latin America (CRESPIAL) and the respective State Parties;

A.6    Financial assistance is to be used to reinforce the skills for identifying, documenting and disseminating music and oral traditions, and the participants are to become trained multipliers and experts; nevertheless, capacity building of the Aymara communities is not sufficiently explained; except for schoolteachers, no bearers or other members of the communities will be trained in the skills necessary to contribute to the transmission of their own heritage, and although schoolchildren are mentioned they are not visible in the activities, budget or timetable;

A.7    The States Parties received financial assistance from the Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund for the elaboration of a proposal for the Register of Best Safeguarding Practices concerning the project ‘Aymara Cultural Universe’ in 2009; the work stipulated by the terms of reference of the contract was successfully carried out and, following UNESCO’s regulations, the contract was duly completed;

10(a) The project is to involve cooperation on the sub-regional level; State institutions as well as regional organizations including educational institutions will participate and CRESPIAL will share the costs;

10(b) Assistance can produce a multiplier effect by attracting other partners and possibly private sources to the project as has already been the case for the association Aymara Without Borders that is a partner of the program.

3. Commends the three States Parties for their joint efforts to prepare and implement a project aiming to benefit a transboundary community and to safeguard components of its intangible cultural heritage, and for its well conceived and methodical plan and budget;
4. Strongly recommends that the States fully involve the Aymara communities in the implementation of the project by emphasizing their empowerment and the reinforcement of their capacities in order to encourage the revitalization and traditional transmission of their music and oral traditions and to promote a solid and sustainable future-oriented development;
5. Recalls that, in line with the Convention, the aim of recording and documentation should be to ensure the viability of the intangible cultural heritage concerned and they must therefore be complemented by other appropriate safeguarding measures;
6. Decides not to approve international assistance in the amount of US$98,000 for the project Safeguarding the intangible cultural heritage of Aymara communities in Bolivia, Chile and Peru at this time;
7. Invites the States Parties to submit a revised request, including its timetable and budget, preferably by the end of February 2012;
8. Requests the Secretariat to work with the submitting States Parties in their revision of the request;
9. Delegates to the Bureau of the Committee the authority to approve a revised request for international assistance in an amount not to exceed US$98,000, on condition that the States Parties submit a revised request responding to the concerns laid out above.