Dominican Republic sets off on the path of implementing the 2003 Convention

8 March 2013

Representatives of governmental and non-governmental institutions, universities and civil society, drawn from a wide range of Dominican stakeholders involved in safeguarding intangible cultural heritage, come together in Santo Domingo from 11 to 15 March for an intensive five-day capacity-building workshop on the effective implementation of the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. The meeting inaugurates the Dominican Republic’s participation in a regional project for strengthening capacities for safeguarding intangible cultural heritage in the Caribbean that will be implemented throughout 2013 by UNESCO’s Regional Office for Culture for Latin America and the Caribbean, thanks to the generous contribution of Norway to the Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund.

Part of UNESCO’s global capacity-building strategy, the project builds upon the Dominican Republic’s longstanding commitment to supporting its intangible cultural heritage bearers, including in particular Cocolo drama troupes and Congos of Villa Mella – both communities closely linked to the two elements from the Dominican Republic that are inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Conducted by two members of the UNESCO-certified experts network, Mr Edis Sánchez (Dominican Republic) and Ms Adriana Molano (Colombia), and organized with the collaboration of the Dominican National Commission for UNESCO, these sessions will lay the foundations of a sustainable framework for the effective and long-term implementation of the 2003 Convention.

• Dominican Republic,