- decisions taken by the Committee and its Bureau during both its eleventh and twelfth sessions. Mr Lee began by expressing his gratitude to the Committee for its confidence in electing him as Chairperson of the twelfth session and for having given the Republic of Korea responsibility to serve as host. Indeed, the Republic of Korea was very proud to have been given the opportunity and Mr Lee remarked on the many delegates that had travelled the globe to gather on the island of Jeju. During the past two years, the Committee and its Bureau had made many achievements, but Mr Lee would not provide a complete list of all the activities and decisions taken, and would instead focus on the major accomplishments during that period. Mr Lee remarked that the Convention continued to enjoy broad support from all regions of the world, reflected by the addition of eleven new States to the Convention during the reporting period. In addition, there had been three additional ratifications since January 2018: Kiribati, Singapore and the Solomon Islands. According to Article 34 of the Convention, the Convention enters into force three months after the deposit of the instrument of ratification. Since Kiribati and Singapore ratified in January and February 2018, respectively, they had already become States Parties. In the case of the Solomon Islands, the ratification took place on 11 May 2018, so they would become a State Party on 11 August 2018.
- 45. Mr Byong-hyun Lee turned to the issue of governance. In line with House-wide discussions on improving the governance of UNESCO, the Committee examined the actions already taken, as well as those foreseen to improve the governance of the Convention. One important tool for the sound governance of the Convention was the knowledge management system. Recognizing its importance, the Bureau of the Committee approved an amount of US$386,900 for the period January 2016 to December 2017 for activities aimed at improving the system's accessibility, usability and functionalities. Mr Lee also mentioned the creation of the informal ad hoc working group, which had been established by the Committee at its eleventh session in 2016 in Addis Ababa. At its twelfth session, the Committee then decided to continue the informal ad hoc working group, now open-ended in 2018, and extend its mandate. Mr Lee would later present the report of the informal ad hoc working group in 2017. The Committee also undertook a number of actions that had a direct impact on the implementation of the Convention at the national level. Considering that implementation depends on a thorough knowledge and understanding of its concepts, measures and mechanisms by local actors, the Committee continued to grant priority attention to the global capacity-building programme. In particular, the Bureau of the Committee had allocated 51 per cent or US$817,346 to the programme under the line ' other functions of the Committee ' for the period January 2016 to December 2017. Furthermore, the Committee had approved the programme as one of two main funding priorities for the Convention for the period 2018 - 2021. The Committee also supported the integration of intangible cultural heritage into university courses, as well as training programmes for teachers and educators through funds allocated under the line ' other functions of the Committee '. The second priority approved by the Committee was aimed at initiating efforts to incorporate intangible cultural heritage into formal and non-formal education. As informal, intergenerational transmission of safeguarding intangible cultural heritage is disrupted in our contemporary world, education can play a valuable role in transmitting and thus safeguarding intangible cultural heritage. At the same time, intangible cultural heritage can contribute to improving the quality and relevance of education. Another notable mechanism for safeguarding intangible cultural heritage at the national level is International Assistance, which can be granted from the Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund to supplement national safeguarding efforts. These projects may be implemented according to States ' priorities in the spirit of the 2003 Convention. During the 2016 - 2017 period, the Committee and its Bureau approved eighteen requests for International Assistance, for a total amount of US$1,783,506. Furthermore, seeking solutions to the continuous under-utilization of the funds dedicated to International Assistance, the Committee would submit to the current session of the General Assembly a plan for a new approach to increase the utilization of the Fund, while maintaining the biggest percentage for International Assistance, which would be deliberated under agenda item 8.
- 46. Mr Byong-hyun Lee reported that the Committee recognized the commitment of the States Parties concerned to take appropriate safeguarding measures and it had thus inscribed ten