10 March

• Action Plan for the Safeguarding of Baul Songs (Bangladesh) Until October 2010
  The Bauls are minstrels who travel from village to village, earning their living by singing. Their music, poetry and way of life have profoundly influenced Bengali culture. Bauls do not identify themselves with any organized religion nor with the caste system. They emphasize the importance of the human body as the place where God resides. While Bauls are scattered all over the country as well as in west Bengal (India), the project concentrates on the Baul community from the Kushtia region where a great Baul Guru of Bengal, Lalon Shah, lived and created a tradition of intergenerational transmission of Baul songs. The project aims at ensuring the proper transmission of Baul songs through a series of workshops bringing together gurus and young Baul apprentices. Gurus, experts and scholars will study and evaluate the transmission process with a view to extend it to other regions with Baul communities. In parallel, a census of Bauls all over the country will be made to establish a register of minstrels and gurus. Meanwhile, documentation will be gathered leading to the publication of notations and recordings of Baul songs. A book on Baul songs for promotional purposes and the organization of Baul Melas (fairs) will raise awareness among the general public of the Baul heritage and of the importance of supporting its bearers.
  More information: http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/index.php?pg=00176&categ=04

• A series of pilot projects in community-based intangible heritage inventorying on a grassroots level in six selected countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. Unitl january 2012
  The project, composed of four phases, is to conduct a series of pilot Intangible Cultural Heritage inventory-making activities on a grassroots level in six Sub-Saharan African countries, namely Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Uganda, Swaziland and Zambia. Six pilot communities (one in each country) will be selected in a demand-driven manner. This initial training workshop in Lesotho (15/20-02-2010 - Maseru), will be followed by similar ones in other countries and subsequently continued through several months of fieldwork in each country separately by the communities and cultural officers to inventory Intangible Cultural Heritage. Follow-up sessions will be organized to evaluate the quality of exercises and improve methodologies.
  More information: http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/index.php?lg=EN&pg=00176

5 March

• Ratification by Azerbaijan of the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (Paris, 20 October 2005)
  On 15 February 2010, Azerbaijan deposited with the Director-General its instrument of ratification of the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions. The instrument contained the following declarations:
  “The Republic of Azerbaijan declares that in accordance with Article 25, paragraph 4 of the Convention, it does not recognize the conciliation procedure set out in Article 25, paragraph 3 of the Convention.”
  “The Republic of Azerbaijan declares that it is unable to guarantee implementation of the provisions of the Convention in its territories occupied by the Republic of Armenia (the Nagorno Karabakh region of the Republic of Azerbaijan and its seven districts surrounding that region), until the liberation of those territories from the occupation and complete elimination of the consequences of that occupation (the schematic map of the occupied territories of the Republic of Azerbaijan is enclosed).
  The occupying power – the Republic of Armenia shall bear all responsibility for destroying cultural expressions in the occupied territories of the Republic of Azerbaijan as from the date of the occupation until the liberation of those territories from the occupation and complete elimination of the consequences of that occupation.” [original : English]
  In accordance with the terms of its Article 29, the aforementioned Convention will enter into force with respect to Azerbaijan three months after the date of the deposit of its instrument, that is to say on 15 May 2010.
  More information: http://portal.unesco.org/en/ev.php-URL_ID=47491&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html

• Accession by Lesotho to the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (Paris, 20 October 2005)
  On 18 February 2010, Lesotho deposited with the Director-General its instrument of accession to the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions. In accordance with the terms of its Article 29, the aforementioned Convention will enter into force with respect to Lesotho three months after the date of the deposit of its instrument, that is to say on 18 May 2010.
  More information: http://portal.unesco.org/en/ev.php-URL_ID=47496&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html

4 March

• Safeguarding of the Ifa Divination system in Nigeria
  Practiced among the Yoruba, Ifa divination relies on a complex system of signs, compiled in a literary corpus, that are interpreted by a diviner to guide important personal or collective decisions. The literary corpus is a treasury of knowledge concerning Yoruba history, philosophy, medicine and mythology. This project aims at ensuring the intergenerational and peer transmission of Ifa through formalizing the transfer of knowledge of Ifa priests through the creation of a school. It intends to collect Ifa verses and medicinal recipes in order to ensure the quality of the training and to upgrade the existing documentation. Awareness-raising activities will be organized among the Yoruba to enhance their pride in their own culture as well as to inform people at large of the importance of Ifa.
  More information: http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/index.php?lg=EN&pg=00176

• Safeguarding traditional foodways of two communities in Kenya
  Traditional foodways involve practices transmitted within a community concerning the preparation and consumption of food, including the provision of ingredients and the roles of all people involved. Traditional foodways, both those related to everyday life as well as those associated with special occasions (such as rituals, social practices and festive events) constitute an important part of the intangible heritage of communities everywhere in the world. In Kenya, as in many other countries, there is an ongoing tendency due to the pressure of modernization and urbanization to abandon traditional foodways and to eat more and more western style food. Many young people are no longer aware of the traditional foodways of their communities. In other words, the diversity of foodways and related knowledge about nature in Kenya is at risk...
  More information: http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/index.php?lg=EN&pg=00176