Pongsan Mask Dance © National Authority for the Protection of Cultural Heritage

The Training Workshop on Community-Based Inventorying of Intangible Cultural Heritage and Elaborating Nomination Files under the Mechanisms of the 2003 UNESCO Convention, organized by the UNESCO Beijing Office, will be held from 26 September to 3 October 2018 in Pyongyang, The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). The workshop is aimed at strengthening the capacities of participants in preparing nomination files for the Convention’s Lists as well as refreshing their knowledge on ICH inventorying methodologies and techniques. Hosted by the National Authority for the Protection of Cultural Heritage, this workshop is the first of its kind in the framework of an International Assistance project jointly implemented by a Member State and a UNESCO Field Office with the financial support from the Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund.

Since the ratification of the UNESCO 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, DPRK has been striving to safeguard and promote its living heritage as a pillar and testimony of its identity. The aim of this capacity-building approach is to provide integrated and sustainable support to DPRK to allow authorities and communities to enact and transmit their heritage over time. Under this approach, UNESCO Beijing Office has been supporting DPRK’s endeavour to safeguard its intangible cultural heritage through a cycle of capacity-building activities, including a National Safeguarding Awareness-Raising in 2011, a training workshop on the Implementation of the 2003 Convention in 2013 and a training workshop on community-based inventorying of intangible cultural heritage in 2016.

The training this year will be a continuation of the previous capacity building efforts. It will further reinforce participants’ knowledge of the requirements and criteria of nominations, and cover more specialized topics such as joint nominations with other countries, how to apply for international financial assistance, and the importance of integrating sustainable development and inclusive approaches in nominations. The 32 participants of the workshop will practice what they will learn by applying them on several ICH elements from DPRK, including some dance forms as well as the traditional painting and celadon.