Emblem of the 2003 Convention © UNESCO

The Sixth annual meeting of category 2 centers (C2Cs) under the auspices of UNESCO active in the field of the intangible cultural heritage took place on 7 June 2018 in Paris at UNESCO Headquarters. The customary annual meeting witnessed the gathering of the representatives of seven category 2 centres’:

• Regional Centre for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Africa (CRESPIAF - Algeria);

• Regional Centre for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in South-Eastern Europe (Sofia Centre - Bulgaria);

• International Training Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Asia-Pacific Region (CRIHAP – China);

• Regional Research Centre for Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage in West and Central Asia (TICHCT - Islamic Republic of Iran);

 • International Research Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Asia-Pacific Region (IRCI – Japan);

• Regional Centre for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Latin America (CRESPIAL – Peru);

• International Information and Networking Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Asia-Pacific Region (ICHCAP – Republic of Korea).

The Secretariat presented brief updates on the recent developments in the life of the 2003 Convention including the outcomes of the seventh session of the General Assembly of the States Parties and the new funding priorities: the capacity-building programme and the safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage in formal and non-formal education.

Highlights on the UNESCO’s new programme and budget for 2018-2021 (39C/5) including its expected results and corresponding performance indicators as well as the essential role that category 2 centres play in the implementation of the Convention were further discussed. This was followed by general discussions on topics ranging from exploring potential fields of cooperation amongst centers to day-to-day challenges faced by category 2 centres during their work. In conclusion the Regional Centre for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Africa, based in Algeria, offered to host the next annual meeting in 2019.