Monaco takes part in 19th session of UNESCO Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage

19ème session du Comité intergouvernemental de sauvegarde du patrimoine culturel immatériel de l’UNESCO © UNESCO

Ms Séverine Dusaintpère, Deputy Permanent Representative to UNESCO, represented the Principality of Monaco at the 19^th session of the UNESCO Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage, held in Asunción, in the Republic of Paraguay, from 2 to 7 December 2024.

The opening ceremony was attended by Mr Santiago Peña Palacios, President of the Republic of Paraguay, and Ms Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO.

The session resulted in 63 new cultural elements being inscribed, bringing the total number of cultural practices, which form the core of UNESCO’s living heritage, to 788.

The new inscriptions include the skills of Parisian zinc roofers and ornamentalists, for France, and funfair culture, for Belgium and France, highlighting the values of sharing, cultural diversity and social cohesion inherent in living heritage, and the need to protect it.

A number of multinational elements, showcasing traditions that are kept alive by communities and transcend borders, were also inscribed, including “henna: rituals, aesthetic and social practices”, by the United Arab Emirates and 15 other countries.

The inscription of some elements in conflict situations offered a perspective on safeguarding intangible cultural heritage based around resilience and reconstruction. These include “pysanka”, the Ukrainian art of decorating eggs, and the “tradition of Nabulsi soap making” in Palestine.

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Intangible cultural heritage, or “living heritage”, includes traditions or living expressions inherited from our ancestors and passed on to our descendants, such as oral traditions, performing arts, social practices, rituals and festive events, knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe, and the knowledge and skills to produce traditional crafts.

A total of 183 states, including the Principality, are party to the Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage, adopted on 17 October 2003. Monaco contributes to the Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund.

For more information, see: https://www.unesco.org/en/intangible-cultural-heritage/committee-2024?hub=413

19ème session UNESCO 2 © DR