Decision of the Intergovernmental Committee: 15.COM 7.9

The Committee,

  1. Having examined document LHE/20/15.COM/7,

  2. Recalling Chapter V of the Operational Directives and its Decisions 6.COM 8.21 and 11.COM 9.b.6,

  3. Expresses its thanks to the United Arab Emirates for submitting, on time, its report on the status of the element ‘Al Sadu, traditional weaving skills in the United Arab Emirates’, inscribed in 2011 on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding;

  4. Takes note of the efforts undertaken by the State Party to safeguard the element, especially by strengthening the viability of the element in contemporary society, enhancing public awareness, supporting its practitioners, providing training possibilities and significantly increasing the number of bearers;

  5. Further takes note of the diverse range of governmental, non-governmental and private organizations and individuals that contribute to the safeguarding of the element and the continuous efforts of the State Party to monitor its viability;

  6. Invites the State Party to continue its efforts to integrate the learning of Al Sadu weaving skills in the school curriculum at various levels of education, and to encompass in its safeguarding efforts associated aspects of the element, including access to raw materials and the knowledge and skills on natural dyeing;

  7. Further invites the State Party to sustain Al Sadu weaving across its territory, as traditionally practised by Bedouin communities in the desert environment and in urban settings, and to ensure the participation of various practising communities in developing safeguarding measures;

  8. Encourages the State Party to take particular heed of the impact of over-commercialization on the safeguarding of the element in order to prevent its potential decontextualization and to take due account in its safeguarding plan of any risks to the element as a result of increased market demands;

  9. Also takes note of the strengthened viability to the element and the intention of the State Party to propose the transfer of the element from the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding to the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity;

  10. Requests that the Secretariat inform the State Party at least nine months prior to the deadline of 15 December 2023 about the required submission of its next report on the status of this element.

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