UNESCO Workshop for Periodic Reporting Bringing Together over 40 Country Focal Points

 - Capacity-Building Workshop for Asia Pacific’s Periodic Reporting Convened

in the Republic of Korea (from February 26 to March 1)

The Cultural Heritage Administration (Administrator Choi, Eung-chon), together with UNESCO (Director-General Audrey Azoulay) and the International Information and Networking Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Asia-Pacific Region(hereinafter referred to as the “ICHCAP”; Director-General Kim, Ji-sung) will host the capacity-building workshop for periodic reporting under the UNESCO Convention* for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (hereinafter referred to as the “Convention”) at the National Intangible Heritage Center in Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do from February 26 to March 1 2024. Approximately 100 government officials and UNESCO representatives from 42 countries in the Asia-Pacific region are expected to attend the five-day workshop.

* The 2003 UNESCO Convention, ratified by 182 countries, is a key agreement in cultural sector of UNESCO to ensure viability and safeguard diverse forms of intangible cultural heritage, which includes oral traditions, performing arts, rituals, knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe and traditional craftsmanship.

UNESCO has recently developed an overall results framework* for periodic reports to assess compliance with the Convention which requires member states to submit every six years from the date of accession. Further, reporting has shifted from individual submissions to collective submissions by continent. As the Asia-Pacific region is due to submit its period reports by June 30 this year, this workshop aims to provide each state party’s officials with the knowledge and skills to effectively navigate the new reporting systems.
* Overall Results Framework (or ORF): The Overall Results Framework consists of eight thematic areas, 26 core indicators and 105 assessment factors, which serves as the foundation to assess states parties’ implementation and all states parties are obliged to submit periodic reports based on the ORF.

Having been elected by the states parties at the UNESCO’s intergovernmental committee for the safeguarding of the intangible cultural heritage, the Republic of Korea (ROK) is now in its third term as a member of the intergovernmental committee. The ROK boasts an advanced cultural heritage protection system and plays an exemplary role in supporting safeguarding activities for intangible cultural heritage globally. Notably, it has supported transition to online reporting templates via trust funds since 2016 and has partnered with ICHCAP to support the implementation of the overall results framework since 2019.

This workshop serves as an opportunity to address the capacity-building needs of Asia-Pacific countries in periodic reporting and foster a strong cooperation network among nations. The event will be held in a closed format but periodic reports will be available for public access online following the intergovernmental committee next year.

The Cultural Heritage Administration reaffirms its commitment to playing a leading role in safeguarding the intangible cultural heritage and contributing to sustainable development in the international community.