Regional Office in collaboration with the Ministry of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs, Government of Sri Lanka, conducted a three-day National Capacity-Building Workshop on the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, from 24-26 October 2023, in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
The workshop offered a training of trainers to gain deeper insights in to the 2003 Convention and its key concepts such as identification, safeguarding, and transmission of intangible cultural heritage.

The workshop also encompassed an exclusive session on Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) and Sustainable Development, highlighting the extensive decade long collaboration between the traditional weavers of the Dumbara community and a prominent handloom design brand in South Asia as a prime example of sustainable commercialization.

Additionally, a field trip was organized to Biyagama, a pottery village near Colombo, Sri Lanka, for a hands-on practical session focused on inventorying and documenting the craft. A wide range of stakeholders including government representatives, ICH Researchers, Individual experts, practitioners, and civil society organisations participated in the workshop.

“Sri Lanka showcases a rich array of living heritage, much of its living heritage is also highly prone to risks of being abandoned and is gradually disappearing over time. And therefore, their safeguarding is an essential need to ensure that the knowledge and skills are retained and transmitted across generations. It is also important that efforts to protect and promote the living ICH traditions avoid freezing them.” Said Ms. Junhi Han in her opening address.

UNESCO New Delhi Regional office has consistently assisted and continues to support the Ministry of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs, in its efforts to safeguard intangible cultural heritage through various capacity-building programmes.

This workshop has paved a solid ground to further build systems of safeguarding Sri Lanka’s intangible cultural heritage and reinforce their individual and institutional capacities.