Ninth session of the Conference of Parties
The ninth session of the Conference of Parties to the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions was held at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris from 6 to 8 June 2023.
During this session, the representatives of 151 States Parties to the Convention and the European Union examined the state of implementation of the Convention worldwide and the major challenges facing the cultural and creative sectors in the post COVID-19 pandemic context. In particular, they discussed ways to enhance the diversity of cultural expressions in the digital environment, ensure preferential treatment measures for cultural goods and services, and strengthen the status of artists and cultural professionals.
The main outcomes of the Conference of Parties are the strategic orientations that determine the future activities of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions for the 2024-2025 period. Notably at this session, 12 new members of the Committee were elected. Moreover, Parties examined a concrete proposal aiming to rationalize the submission cycles of the periodic reports and a proposed revision to the Rules of Procedure. The issue of strengthening collaboration with the stakeholders of the Convention, including civil society organizations, micro, small and medium-sized cultural enterprises and cultural institutions and organizations, was also discussed.
The Conference of Parties was preceded by the fourth edition of the Convention’s Civil Society Forum, which was held on 5 June 2023.
Webcast
Working Documents
Information Documents
Side events
A number of side events will be held in the framework of the ninth session of the Conference of Parties, including :
Tuesday 6 June, 2023
- at 1pm in Room IX and online
Exchange session on "Fair Culture and Preferential Treatment", organised by the German Commission for UNESCO
- at 6pm in Room I
Award Ceremony of the UNESCO-Bangladesh Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman International Prize for the Creative Economy
Wednesday 7 June, 2023
- at 1pm in Room IX and online
Exchange session on “digital”, organised by the Permanent Delegation of Canada to UNESCO, the Permanent Delegation of France to UNESCO, the Permanent Delegation of the Republic of Korea to UNESCO and the Government of Quebec
- at 6.45pm in Room I
Film screening within the framework of the "UNESCO-Nara Film Residency programme”
Thursday 8 June, 2023
- at 1.30pm in Room IV
Presentation of the Transcultura project by the UNESCO Regional Office for Culture in Latin America and the Caribbean
Participation of civil society
1. Participation of civil society organisations in the ninth session of the Conference of Parties
In accordance with Rule 2.3 of the Rules of Procedure of the Conference of Parties, intergovernmental organizations and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) having interests and activities in the field covered by the Convention who wish to participate as observers to a session or all sessions of the Conference of Parties, are asked to submit a written request to the Director-General of UNESCO. Only NGOs which meet the criteria outlined in Annex to the operational guidelines of Article 11 (Role and participation of civil society) are eligible. The request must be accompanied by the documents mentioned in paragraph 2 of the Annex.
2. Civil Society Forum (5 June 2023)
In accordance with Decision 16.IGC 11 of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, the fourth edition of the Civil Society Forum will be held prior the ninth session of the Conference of Parties, on 5 June 2023. The Civil Society Forum provides a framework for exchange and cooperation among CSOs and strengthens their contributions to the governing bodies' agenda. Its main goals are to enable representatives of CSOs to examine their current concerns and discuss issues related to the implementation of the Convention and to allow them to make proposals to the Conference of the Parties on issues or problems that they consider to be priorities and that they would like to see reflected in the work of the Convention’s governing bodies.
The fourth edition of the Civil Society Forum will be held in hybrid format on 5 June 2023.