The Committee,

1. Having examined document ITH/16/11.COM/9.b,
2. Recalling Chapter V of the Operational Directives and its Decision 6.COM 8.12,
3. Expresses its thanks to Mali for submitting its report on the status of the element ‘Secret Society of the Kôrêdugaw, the rite of wisdom in Mali’, inscribed in 2011 on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding;
4. Takes note of the continued efforts undertaken by Mali to revitalize the element, in particular through the establishment of Kôrêdugaw associations throughout the country and the active role they play for community-based safeguarding, as well as educational programmes for young people and field studies in which substantial new information has been collected;
5. Invites the State Party, with the view to ensuring the long-term viability of the element, to continue implementing the safeguarding activities and developing the solid cooperation that now exists between various local actors such as the communities in Koulikoro, Ségou and Sikasso regions, Kôrêdugaw associations, the local and customary authorities, village councils and resource persons;
6. Encourages the State Party to address the lack of financial resources required to implement all planned safeguarding activities by mobilizing funds at the national and local levels, and exploring other funding possibilities through international cooperation mechanisms, including the Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund;
7. Requests the Secretariat to inform the State Party at least nine months prior to the deadline of 15 December 2019 about the required submission of its next report on the status of this element.