- addition to the exhibition, on 5 June there would be dance and martial arts performances and story-telling. The NGOs would also hold its Forum meeting the following day. The NGO Forum wished the assembly fruitful discussions in outlining the overall results framework to guide the Convention and to refine the Operational Directives, as well as in the governance of the Convention' s procedures and working methods.
- 207. The Chairperson thanked the NGO representatives for their presentations, adding that she was impressed by the progress made in organizing the Forum and the work carried out since its creation. She took the opportunity to thank the NGOs for their continuing efforts, welcoming their crucial role in implementing the Convention at the national and international levels, and for the safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage.
- 208. The Secretary reminded the Assembly that the Bureau would be held in the morning prior to the session, which would be open to Observers. A side event was organized for later in the evening hosted by the delegation of Cuba under the theme ' intangible heritage in the heart of national cultural identities: Cuban cultural elements '.
- 209. The Chairperson duly adjourned the day's session.

### [Tuesday 5 June, morning session]

## ITEM 8 OF THE AGENDA: USE OF THE RESOURCES OF THE INTANGIBLE CULTURAL HERITAGE FUND Document: ITH/18/7.GA/8 Document: ITH/18/7.GA/INF.8 Resolution: 7.GA 8

- 210. The Chairperson greeted the Assembly and noted the good progress made so far. The Bureau had met earlier and no changes had been made to the timetable. As previously announced, the election of Members of the Committee under agenda item 14 would be held the following morning as scheduled, after which items 11, 12 and 13 would be considered. The Chairperson asked that proposed amendments to the draft resolutions be sent in advance using the form available from the Secretariat. She then turned to agenda item 8 on the use of the resources of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund and Document 8. The Assembly would review and adopt the draft plan for the use of the resources of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund for the next two years. This proposal was transmitted by the Committee following its last session, as per Article 7 of the Convention.
- 211. The Secretary referred to the two documents related to this item. The first document, ITH/18/7.GA/INF.8 [the financial statement], concerned the previous biennium and the report on the implementation of the Fund from 1 January 2016 to 31 December 2017. The Document 8 had two main parts. The first part presented an analysis on past expenditure trends, explaining the current situation of the Fund. The second part concerned the future and included the proposed plan for the use of resources of the Fund, as approved by the Committee for the current biennium and the first six months of 2020. Annex I included the actual draft plan for the use of the resources of the Fund. The Secretary recalled the low use of the Fund in the recent past. The insufficient use of International Assistance and Technical Assistance by States Parties had been the main reason behind the increase of the total budget approved from one biennium to the next over the past several cycles. Although efforts had been made by the Secretariat to improve the use of these mechanisms, which resulted in a recent increase in expenditure compared to previous biennia, it had not yet proved sufficient to compensate for the general increase of the Fund. If States continued to underutilize the resources of the Fund, this trend would persist and the total approved budget would continue to increase in future cycles. The problem would clearly not go away without a specific strategy to address it at a time when UNESCO was facing such financial constraints. With regard to the future plan for the implementation of the Fund (in Annex I), the proposal was structured by budget lines divided into four categories, as per previous