- concern to preserve equitable representation at the level of expertise; both allowed under- represented countries to benefit. The delegation also wished to hear from India on whether it had withdrawn its proposal, as well as to ask the Secretariat to come up with a proposal text that could be submitted to the Assembly.
- 266. The delegation of India remarked that had China's proposal been on the screen earlier it would not have submitted its amendment, adding that China's proposal was more in line with its earlier statement regarding people from developing countries understanding their intangible cultural heritage better, which it fully supported. The delegation also thanked the Secretary for the clarification and Palestine for pointing out the issue of ' giving priorities ' , as gender and Africa priorities did exist. Thus, giving priority to capable candidates from developing countries should not pose a problem administratively. It therefore called upon the Assembly to support China's proposal for equitable geographical distribution.
- 267. After hearing the discussion, the delegation of Bangladesh believed that China's proposal captured the sentiment expressed, which it therefore supported.
- 268. The delegation of Grenada congratulated the Chairperson and the Bureau members. It favoured the proposal by Algeria, as the principle of equitable geographical distribution was the principle guiding the policy of human resources that was also a principle agreed by the General Conference, the Member States and all the governing bodies, and which was currently being followed. Changing the principle would thus require a decision by the governing bodies. Moreover, going into the detail of priorities should not be undertaken by the General Assembly. The delegation concurred that the [hired] experts should take into consideration the needs of developing countries. However, it did not wish to state in writing that experts from developed countries were incapable of understanding the needs of developing countries. The delegation recalled its own experience since the beginning of the creation and negotiation of the Convention, which had been very positive with many experts from both developed and developing countries. The Assembly should therefore not take a position against one category of States. For this reason, it strongly supported Algeria's proposal.
- 269. The delegation of Ethiopia took note of India's remarks and the specifi c needs of developing countries and supported China's proposal.
- 270. The delegation of Germany favoured Algeria's proposal, citing the reasons expressed by Grenada. However, it was unsure whether the wording ' giving priority ' was in line with current recruitment procedures that had been agreed upon during the General Conferences in the past.
- 271. On a technical observation, the delegation of Palestine noted that the names of all countries supporting the different proposals did not appear on the screen. It remarked that Algeria 's proposal had reproduced a contradiction in its paragraph. Bearing in mind the principle of equitable geographical distribution, as pointed out by the Secretariat, priority would be given to under-represented countries, which may not necessarily meet the ' specific needs of developing countries ' . The delegation did not see the link between meeting the specific needs of developing countries and the principle of equitable geographical distribution. It believed that China ' s amendment was clear. In fact, although conferring priority was not standard practice, it must be kept in mind that these posts were also funded in an unusual, exceptional way. Occasionally, exceptions determined the rules. China's proposal was thus applicable.
- 272. The Chairperson understood the democratic process but before changing the rules, it was important to understand what was at stake and to have a clear vision.
- 273. The delegation of Algeria suggested that, before listening to the delegations any further, since all agreed with the spirit of the amendment but had issues with the wording, the floor be given to the Secretariat and its administration to make a clarification. For example, it was unclear to which countries 'developing countries' allude d and whether in fact there was an exhaustive list of developing countries determining their classification, given that 'equitable distribution' meant ' equity ' .