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Director-General, Audrey Azoulay

September 29, 2021

UNESCO – MONDIACULT 2022: Regional Consultations Kick-starts with Europe and North America

On 13 December 2021 more than 20 Ministers of Culture and highlevel representatives and around 30 intergovernmental organizations nongovernmental organizations UNESCO Chairs and specialized networks participated in the online Regional Consultation on Cultural Policies for Europe and North America

December 20, 2021

UNESCO – MONDIACULT 2022: The Asia-Pacific Regional Consultation held under the chairmanship of Indonesia

On 11 and 12 January 2022 the online AsiaPacific Regional consultation was held under the chairmanship of the Ministry of Education Culture Research and Technology of Indonesia in the run up to the UNESCO World Conference on Cultural Policies and Sustainable Development MONDIACULT 2022 with a view to shaping a new global agenda for cultural policies

January 12, 2022

Promoting peace in the Lake Chad basin through the sustainable management of its resources

A financing agreement was signed between UNESCO and the Lake Chad Basin Commission LCBC on 29 May 2017 at the LCBC headquarters in NDjamena Chad to fund the project Applying the model of transboundary biosphere reserves and World Heritage sites to promote peace in the Lake Chad basin through the sustainable management of natural resources

Underwater Heritage (Convention 2001)

September 28, 2021

Lake Chad: UNESCO promotes the consideration of the ecological crisis at the Berlin Conference

UNESCO and the partners of the Biosphere and Heritage of Lake Chad BIOPALT project participated in the HighLevel Conference on the Lake Chad Region held in Berlin from 3 to 4 September On this occasion UNESCO emphasised the need to address the ecological crisis together with the humanitarian and security crises in order to reduce poverty and promote peace and development in the Lake Chad basin

September 7, 2018

Presentation of BIOPALT to the high-level United Nations Conference on South-South Cooperation (BAPA + 40)

SouthSouth cooperation in UNESCO biosphere reserves was presented in a special event during this highlevel conference which mobilised several UNESCO partners including the African Development Bank financial partner of the BIOPALT Biosphere and Heritage of Lake Chad project At this occasion the importance of transboundary cooperation was put forward to strengthen the resilience of the vulnerable populations of the Lake Chad basin and consolidate the subregional integration for peace and sustainable development

UNESCO commits to safeguarding Lake Chad

UNESCO will bring a preservation project focusing on research and the dissemination of knowledge the rehabilitation of wetlands and wildlife corridors and the promotion of sustainable income generating activities to the International Conference on Lake Chad which will take place in Abuja Nigeria from 26 to 28 February

February 22, 2018

UNESCO/EU Workshop on the financial sector’s role in fighting illicit trafficking of cultural property

February 1, 2022

Regional Perspectives | Arab States

Ministers of Education of the Arab Educational Cultural and Scientific Organization ALESCO have endorsed a strategy for the development of theatre in schools across the Arab region The Arab Theatre Authority is tasked with implementing a strategy for school theatre in line with the needs of each country as per the recommendation of the ministerial meeting that took place November 2325 Whilst the Arab Theatre Authority has worked with some education ministries for several years this move will deepen cooperation to incorporate theatre into the curriculum The 4th Arab Digital Content Forum was held in October resulting in a set of recommendations to boost the presence of Arabic language online Among key recommendations were the promotion of Arabic domains for easier access to Arabic content as well as join efforts to support innovative projects to boost online content in Arabic The Islamic World Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization ICESCO has proclaimed Cairo as Capital of Culture in Islamic World for 2022 during a press conference held at the Cairo Opera House on December 7 just prior to the 14th Session of ICESCOs General Conference hosted also by Egypt

January 5, 2022

Regional Perspectives | Asia and the Pacific

The inaugural eexhibition of the ASEAN Cultural Heritage Digital Archive website was unveiled on 26 November at an event Forging History Metals in the Crucible of ASEANs Transformation which aspires to promote ASEANs rich and diverse cultural heritage to a wider audience through engaging storytelling while also inspiring museums galleries and libraries to explore innovative ways to present their collections using digital technology To date 267 cultural assets from Cambodia Indonesia Malaysia Myanmar and Thailand are available to the public At the meeting of the Council of Heads of Government of the Commonwealth of Independent States CIS held on November 12 an Action Plan was validated for the Year of Folk Art and Cultural Heritage in 2022 including about ninety events to preserve the traditions of folk art historical and cultural heritage cultural heritage in the field of arts literature as well as in the field of sports and tourism In late October CIS countries also gathered to discuss a multiyear program of museum cooperation covering topics from decorative arts to the use of the Russian language in the museums Separately film studios of CIS Member States intend to expand mutually beneficial cooperation as discussed at a meeting of the heads of national film studios held on November 22 Furthermore the VI International Congress World Heritage of the CIS countries brought together more than 60 experts from CIS countries and Russia to discuss the process of nominating cultural heritage sites to the UNESCO World Heritage List in the context of new requirements for research work and new trends in the selection of relevant sites including transnational serial nominations as well as cultural landscapes The Pacific Community adopted its 10year strategic plan during its Meeting of the Committee of Representatives of Governments and Administrations held in Nov 30Dec 2 Pacific indigenous languages have been incorporated for the first time in an SPC strategic plan through the values that will guide the organisation aroha care kaitiakitanga stewardship enginkelap generosity and gida gaituvwa unity In the meeting Food systems were highlighted by SPC DG as an example of how the new strategy would guide the organisation toward more integrated ways of working that respond to member needs Finally the Asia Pacific Economic Council held a meeting on 12 November during which the host New Zealand particularly advocated for the needs of all the 270 million indigenous peoples across the AsiaPacific region

January 10, 2022

Regional Perspectives | Europe and North America

The Council of Europe and the United Nations World Tourism Organisation UNWTO will work together to develop the opportunities tourism offers to local communities and to enhance the tourist experience along the European regions Cultural Routes Launched by the Council of Europe in 1987 the Cultural Routes demonstrate how the heritage of the different countries and cultures of Europe contributes to a shared and living cultural heritage while supporting sustainable tourism and dialogue The European Union EU held a High Level Conference on Rebuilding Europe with Culture on 8 December gathering EU and national decisionmakers to discuss Europes response to the urgent needs of the culture sector roughly one year after the EU launched its unprecedented historical financial plan for the recovery of European economy after the Covid19 pandemic A European partnership gathering cultural networks organisations and a region has won a grant from the European Commission to carry out a study on the linkages between culture and health in Europe carry out pilot projects and make a set of policy recommendations to improve opportunities for actors in the field Culture Action Europe has just published Culture in the EUs National Recovery and Resilience Plans It offers an overview of the place of culture in the National Recovery and Resilience Plans NRRPs of EU Member States and also follows up on the call by the European cultural and creative sectors and backed by the European Parliament to specifically earmark at the very least 2 of each NRRP for culture

January 10, 2022

Culture in the 2030 Agenda

January 11, 2022