Benefitting country(ies): Mauritius

Overview:

Through this project, the Aapravasi Ghat Trust Fund (AGTF) aimed at setting up an inventory of elements of intangible heritage related to the history of indentureship in line with its mission and objectives contained in the Management Plan of the Aapravasi Ghat World Heritage Property.
Over 60 elements of intangible cultural heritage were identified under four main themes relating to the legacy of indentureship: superstitions and blind beliefs, rites of passage, food and health, and skills and labour. This was achieved through the constitution of four research groups, each including two or three full-time field guides and one part-time anthropologist. Specific criteria were devised to guide the selection of elements to be inventoried and guidelines were prepared for interviewing and the elaboration of questionnaires.
Fieldwork research was undertaken in specific regions related to indentured labourers or to the sugarcane industry in Mauritius. The local community served as active participants and informants in the process. AGTF will continue documenting intangible cultural heritage elements and work towards an integrated research methodology to be shared with other institutions in order to enhance the appreciation of Mauritius’ intangible cultural heritage.
The project was implemented according to schedule and closed in June 2011.

01/09/2008 - 01/05/2011 – Sub-regional capacity-building workshops in Central America and South America on safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage31/01/2010 - 28/02/2011 – Documentation and inventory of intangible cultural heritage in the Republic of Mauritius