New Delhi, Dec 7: The Union government will host the 20th session of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in New Delhi from 8 to 13 December 2025.
The historic Red Fort complex, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has been chosen as the venue, symbolising the convergence of India’s tangible and intangible heritage under one roof.
This will be the first time that India hosts the ICH Committee session, and the meeting will be chaired by Vishal V. Sharma, India’s permanent delegate to UNESCO. The event coincides with the twentieth anniversary of India’s ratification of the 2003 Convention for Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2005, underscoring India’s sustained commitment to preserving living cultural traditions.
Intangible cultural heritage, as UNESCO defines it, include the practices, knowledge, expressions, objects, and spaces that communities see as part of their cultural identity. Passed down over generations, this heritage evolves, strengthening cultural identity and appreciation of diversity.
For the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage, UNESCO adopted the 2003 Convention on 17th October 2003 during its 32nd General Conference in Paris. The Convention responded to global concerns that living cultural traditions, oral practices, performing arts, social customs, rituals, knowledge systems, and craftsmanship were increasingly threatened by globalisation, social change, and limited resources.
The Convention placed communities, especially indigenous communities, groups, and individual practitioners, at the heart of safeguarding efforts, acknowledging their vital role in creating, maintaining and transmitting cultural heritage. It underscored the interdependence between tangible and intangible heritage, the need for global cooperation, and the importance of raising awareness among younger generations. With a shared global commitment to protecting humanity’s living heritage, the Convention formally established mechanisms for international cooperation, support, and recognition, laying the foundation for UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage lists and the subsequent work of the Intergovernmental Committee.
