The Bureau,
- Recalling Article 23 of the Convention as well as Chapter I.4 of the Operational Directives relating to the eligibility and criteria of International Assistance requests,
- Having examined Document ITH/18/13.COM 1.BUR/3 as well as International Assistance request no. 01444 submitted by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,
- Takes note that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has requested International Assistance for the project entitled Strengthening the capacities of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea for community-based inventorying of intangible cultural heritage and for elaborating nomination files under the mechanisms of the 2003 Convention:
The proposed twelve-month project, to be implemented by the National Authority for the Protection of Cultural Heritage, aims to strengthen the capacities of national stakeholders to inventory intangible cultural heritage and prepare nomination files under the mechanisms of the 2003 Convention. While there is a growing interest in safeguarding living heritage in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the communities concerned have expressed a strong wish to nominate elements of their intangible cultural heritage to the Convention’s Lists and Register, this situation is challenged, in practice, by a lack of expertise and thorough understanding of the 2003 Convention as well as by the absence of adequate documentation equipment. To tackle this situation, the proposed project will involve two main components aimed at fostering a better comprehension of the 2003 Convention: firstly, a training workshop on preparing nomination files under the Convention, in collaboration with the UNESCO Beijing Office and with the direct involvement of two experienced trainers; and secondly, a preliminary recap session on the main concepts of community-based inventorying, in addition to specific sessions on the technical aspects of documentation and inventorying. It is hoped that the project will raise awareness about the importance of safeguarding living heritage among the communities concerned, subsequently leading to improved safeguarding nationwide.
- Further takes note that:
- this assistance is to support a project implemented at the national level, in accordance with Article 20 (c) of the Convention,
- this is one of the first cases, on an experimental basis, in which a State Party has requested International Assistance that will partly take the form of services from the Secretariat to the State, and
- the assistance therefore takes the form of the provision of a grant and of services from UNESCO (the provision of experts, the training of the necessary staff, the elaboration of standard-setting measures and the supply of equipment), pursuant to Article 21 (b), (c), (d), (f) and (g) of the Convention;
- Also takes note that an amount of US$98,000 from the Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund is being requested for the implementation of this project and that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea wishes the UNESCO Beijing Office to coordinate and monitor its implementation;
- Understands that the UNESCO Beijing Office will be responsible for the coordination and monitoring of the project activities, the provision of international expertise and the establishment of the related contracts (44 per cent of the requested amount), while the requesting State will be responsible for the logistical organization of capacity-building activities such as the selection of participants and their participation in workshops, the provision of national experts and the purchase of equipment (56 per cent of the requested amount), as described in the request;
- Decides that, from the information provided in file no. 01444, the request responds as follows to the criteria for granting International Assistance given in paragraphs 10 and 12 of the Operational Directives:
- Approves the International Assistance request from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea for the project entitled Strengthening the capacities of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea for community-based inventorying of intangible cultural heritage and for elaborating nomination files under the mechanisms of the 2003 Convention and grants the amount of US$98,000 for the implementation of the project, according to the modality described in paragraphs 5 and 6;
- Requests that the Secretariat reach an agreement with the requesting State Party on the budget of the activities to be covered by the Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund, so as to ensure that the planned budgetary expenses are detailed and provide sufficient justification of the expenditures;
- Invites the State Party to use Form ICH-04-Report when reporting on the implementation of the project, which shall form the basis of an overall report to be prepared by the UNESCO Beijing Office;
- Encourages the Secretariat, in light of this experience with the provision of services carried out on an experimental basis, to draw lessons from the implementation of this project, particularly with regard to administrative issues.