By Astou Jawara
The National Centre for Arts and Culture (NCAC) will, on Friday, April 1, 2022, launch a two-year project on the inventory of the Gambia’s Intangible cultural heritage across the country.
The project dubbed: “Strengthening National Capacities for Safeguarding Intangible Cultural
Heritage and Contributing to Sustainable Development in The Gambia”, is funded by UNESCO.
The NCAC will work with communities and experts in the seven regions to research, list, photograph the myriad of Gambian rituals, ceremonies, oral traditions, performing arts, social practices, rituals, festive events, knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe or the knowledge and skills to produce traditional crafts.
This information will be published into a document called Inventory of Gambian Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) which will help The Gambia in its quest for the SDGs, especially SDG 17, to strengthen multi-stakeholder partnerships and enhance policy coherence for sustainable development at the national level.
Other Areas include food security (SDG 2), health care (SDG 3), quality education (SDG 4), gender equality, and also be a reference for Gambian heritage.
In 2011, The Gambia ratified the UNESCO 2003 Convention on Intangible Cultural Heritage. Even prior to its ratification of the Convention, the country inscribed ‘Kankurang, Manding initiatory rite’ on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2008 as part of a multinational nomination with Senegal.
The Gambia also participated in the project ‘Action Plan for the Safeguarding of the Kankurang, Manding Initiatory Rite’ funded by the Japan Funds-in-Trust and implemented between 2006 and 2009.
The Friday opening is expected be graced by the Minister of Tourism and Culture (MoTC) Mr. Hamat Bah, Permanent Secretary (PS) of MoTC, Director of the UNESCO Multisectoral Regional Office for West Africa (Sahel), Mr. Dimitri Sanga, and Mrs. Seraphine Wakana, the UN Resident Coordinator, UN The Gambia Country Team, and stakeholders in the country.
