Tajikistan national capacity for the safeguarding of living heritage strengthened

13 May 2014

The two-year project ‘Strengthening national capacities for safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) in Central Asia’ concludes with a training workshop on community-based inventorying of intangible cultural heritage from 11 to 17 May 2014 in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. Since the launching of the programme in 2012, substantial changes can be noted in the Tajikistan State Programme for the Safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) for 2012-2015.

Participants of the final training, representing the Ministry of Culture; leading universities, libraries and museums; NGOs in the field of crafts, traditional music and dance; together with bearers of ICH elements, will learn about inventories under UNESCO’s Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage and will strengthen practical technical skills in identifying ICH and inventory-making.

Field activities during the workshop will concentrate in rural areas close to Dushanbe and will address the traditional handicrafts, music, singing and dance performances, as well as some traditional practices. Experts of the working group established under the National ICH Committee and community members will represent all domains of the 2003 Convention.

The training is co-organized by the Scientific-Research Institute of Culture and Information of the Ministry of Culture of Tajikistan and supported by the National Commission of Tajikistan for UNESCO, with generous financial contribution of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund.