Kalbelia folk songs and dances of Rajasthan Read more on the element
© West Zone Cultural Centre, Udaipur, Rajasthan, 2009
© West Zone Cultural Centre, Udaipur, Rajasthan, 2009
The twentieth session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage took place from Monday 8 to Friday 12 December 2025 in New Delhi, India. The session was chaired by H.E. Mr Vishal V. Sharma, Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of India to UNESCO.
Decisions: English|French
Participants:
List of registered participants
Committee Members
Algeria, Angola, Bangladesh, Barbados, Burkina Faso, China, Dominican Republic, Ethiopia, France, Germany, Haiti, India, Malaysia, Mauritania, Nigeria, Paraguay, Slovakia, Spain, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Viet Nam and Zambia
Bureau of the Committee
Composition & meetings
Agenda and documents
| Item of the agenda | Documents | Recordings* | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Opening | LHE/25/20.COM/INF.1: English|French General Information | 2025-12-08 09:30: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 2 | Adoption of the agenda Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/2: English|French Adoption of the agenda LHE/25/20.COM/INF.2.1 Rev.5: English|French Provisional timetable LHE/25/20.COM/INF.2.2 Rev.6: English|French Provisional list of documents | 2025-12-08 10:25: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 3 | Observers Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/3: English|French | 2025-12-08 11:20: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 4 | Adoption of the summary records of the nineteenth session of the Committee Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/4: English|French | 2025-12-08 11:24: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 5 | Report by the Secretariat on its activities (January 2024 to June 2025) Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/5: English|French | 2025-12-08 11:35: English|French|VO(Video) 2025-12-08 14:35: English|French|VO(Video) 2025-12-09 09:30: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 6.a | Examination of the reports by States Parties on the current status of elements inscribed on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding | LHE/25/20.COM/6.a: English|French See the 8 reports | 2025-12-08 16:45: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 6.b | Examination of the reports of the regional cycle of periodic reporting on the implementation of the Convention and on the current status of elements inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by States Parties in Asia and the Pacific Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/6.b: English|French See the 38 reports | 2025-12-09 09:55: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 6.c | Update on the regional cycles of the Convention’s periodic reporting and proposal for related amendments to the Operational Directives Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/6.c: English|French LHE/25/20.COM/INF.6.c: English|French Analytical Report of the first cycle of periodic reporting on the implementation of the Convention and on the current status of elements inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by States Parties in Africa | 2025-12-09 10:30: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 7 | Report of the Evaluation Body on its work in 2025 Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/7: English|French Certificate Ceremony / Ceremonie des Certificats: English/French (Indicative - 11 December 2025 PM) Order of files / Ordre des dossiers: English|French (Indicative - 10 December 2025 PM) | 2025-12-09 11:00: English|French|VO(Video) 2025-12-09 14:30: English|French|VO(Video) 2025-12-11 12:12: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 7.a | Examination of nominations for inscription on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding | LHE/25/20.COM/7.a: English|French See the 11 nominations | 2025-12-09 14:34: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 7.b | Examination of nominations for inscription on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity Decisions:
| LHE/25/20.COM/7.b Add.: English|French See the 54 nominations | 2025-12-09 16:28: English|French|VO(Video) 2025-12-10 09:30: English|French|VO(Video) 2025-12-10 14:30: English|French|VO(Video) 2025-12-11 09:35: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 7.c | Examination of requests for transfer of elements from one list to the other Decisions: | LHE/25/20.COM/7.c: English|French See the 2 requests | 2025-12-11 11:55: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 7.d | Examination of proposals to the Register of Good Safeguarding Practices Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/7.d: English|French See the proposal | 2025-12-11 12:13: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 8 | Treatment of files for the listing mechanisms of the Convention Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/8: English|French | 2025-12-10 17:08: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 9 | Follow-up on elements inscribed on the Lists of the Convention | LHE/25/20.COM/9: English|French | 2025-12-11 15:30: English|French|VO(Video) 2025-12-12 09:30: English|French|VO(Video) 2025-12-12 11:14: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 10 | Report on International Assistance from the Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/10: English|French | 2025-12-11 14:40: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 11 | Broader implementation of Article 18 of the Convention Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/11: English|French | 2025-12-12 09:39: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 12 | Thematic initiatives on living heritage and sustainable development Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/12: English|French | 2025-12-12 10:22: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 13 | Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund: voluntary supplementary contributions and other issues Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/13: English|French LHE/25/20.COM/INF.13.1: English|French Report on Funding Priority 1: Strengthening capacities to safeguard intangible cultural heritage using multi-modal approaches and contribute to sustainable development (2022 – 2025) LHE/25/20.COM/INF.13.2: English|French Report on Funding Priority 2: Safeguarding living heritage in formal and non-formal education (2022 – 2025) | 2025-12-12 11:17: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 14 | Draft plan for the use of the resources of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund in 2026 and 2027 Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/14: English|French LHE/25/20.COM/INF.14: English|French Report on the use of the resources of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund for the period 1 January 2024 to 30 June 2025 | 2025-12-12 11:33: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 15 | Report of the non-governmental organizations forum Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/15: English|French | 2025-12-12 11:53: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 16 | Accreditation of new non-governmental organizations and review of accredited non-governmental organizations Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/16 Rev.: English|French See the 96 accreditation requests and the 89 activity reports for review | 2025-12-12 15:04: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 17 | Establishment of the Evaluation Body for the 2026 cycle Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/17 Rev.2: English|French | 2025-12-12 14:38: English|French|VO(Video) 2025-12-12 15:40: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 18 | Date and place of the twenty-first session of the Committee Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/18: English|French | 2025-12-12 15:14: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 19 | Election of the members of the Bureau of the twenty-first session of the Committee Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/19: English|French | 2025-12-12 15:23: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 20 | Report by the Committee to the General Assembly on its activities (January 2024 to December 2025) Decision: | LHE/25/20.COM/20: English|French | 2025-12-12 15:33: English|French|VO(Video) |
| 21 | Other business | 2025-12-12 15:50: English|French|VO(Video) | |
| 22 | Adoption of the list of decisions | 2025-12-12 16:03: English|French|VO(Video) | |
| 23 | Closure | 2025-12-12 16:30: English|French|VO(Video) |