Unesco has added 55 new cultural practices to its Intangible Cultural Heritage List. Among these, twelve elements hail from Africa, contributing to the growing list of over 700 traditions and cultural practices. The 18th session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, held in Botswana, recognized the urgency in safeguarding these practices.
The new inscriptions span various categories: six practices on the Intangible Heritage List of Urgent Safeguarding, 45 on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, and four on the Register of Good Safeguarding Practices. These practices, originating from 145 countries, now constitute Unesco’s living heritage.
Noteworthy is the celebration of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Convention’s 20th Anniversary, ratified by 181 State Parties. The convention has significantly strengthened the global legal framework for protecting culture, with over $12 million invested in more than 140 safeguarding projects across 70 countries.
The latest inscriptions emphasize the role of women as the true custodians of traditions, often serving as a source of empowerment. Unesco Director-General Audrey Azoulay highlighted the broadening definition of cultural heritage, emphasizing that it is not confined to monuments but encompasses living elements such as song, writing, listening, and touch.
This year, the Committee achieved a record by inscribing ten cultural practices from sub-Saharan Africa, with 2023 marking the first time a practice was inscribed as Unesco living heritage by five countries: Angola, The Bahamas, Cameroon, Djibouti, and Grenada.
New African Inscriptions
- Shuwalid Festival (Ethiopia): An annual three-day festival marking the end of Ramadan, celebrated by the Harari people, promoting cultural elements like performing arts and traditional dress.
- Xeedho (Djibouti): A dish given by a mother-in-law to celebrate the first week of her daughter’s marriage, consisting of dried dromedary meat, wrapped and decorated, symbolizing a commitment to honor the bride and her family.
- Hiragasy (Madagascar): A performing art involving storytelling, song, dance, and speech, contributing to national identity and conveying morals, civic values, and history.
- Al-Molid Procession (Sudan): A celebration of the Prophet Mohammed, featuring religious songs, ritual dances, and Sufi prayers during a parade.
- Ingoma Ya Mapiko (Mozambique): The Mapiko dance celebrated by the Makonde people, marking the traditional rite of passage from puberty to adulthood.
- Sona (Angola): A form of expression by the Lunda Cokwe and neighboring peoples, using drawings and geometric figures on sand during initiation rites to promote cultural identity.
Additional African Elements
- Nguon, rituals of governance and associated expressions in the Bamoun community (Cameroon)
- Sango Festival of Oyo (Nigeria)
- Traditional skills of loincloth weaving (Côte d’Ivoire)
- Malhun, a popular poetic and musical art (Morocco)
- Mahadra, a community system for transmission of traditional knowledge and oral expressions (Mauritania)
- Arts, skills, and practices associated with engraving on metals in Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Mauritania, Morocco, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Tunisia, and Yemen.
Uganda, with a rich cultural heritage, already boasts six elements on the Unesco Intangible Cultural Heritage List, including Barkcloth making. The next committee session, chaired by Paraguay, is scheduled for December.
