UNESCO Advances Safeguarding of Senegal's Culinary Heritage
Strengthening Culinary Heritage Through Research and Community Participation
August 10th, 2026
UNESCO is supporting Senegal in strengthening the safeguarding, transmission and promotion of its culinary heritage through research, capacity-building and digital initiatives. Led by UNESCO's Regional Office for West Africa in cooperation with Senegal's Directorate of Cultural Heritage, the programme seeks to preserve food-related practices as living heritage while reinforcing their contribution to cultural identity, sustainable development and community resilience.
One of the programme's main activities was a capacity-building workshop held in Dakar in 2026. Around thirty participants, including community representatives, heritage professionals and directors of regional cultural centres from across Senegal, took part in practical sessions on safeguarding intangible cultural heritage. The workshop also examined community-based approaches under UNESCO's 2003 Convention and encouraged participants to exchange experiences from different regions of the country.
The discussions focused on Senegal's rich culinary traditions, including Ceebu Jën, which was inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2021. Participants also identified other food-related traditions from the country's fourteen administrative regions, helping to expand documentation of practices that remain an important part of local cultural life. By bringing together communities, researchers and cultural institutions, the programme supports cooperation in safeguarding living heritage.
Alongside the workshop, UNESCO carried out research on the current state of Senegal's culinary heritage. Fieldwork and consultations with heritage practitioners, academics, cultural institutions and civil society organisations examined how culinary knowledge is passed from one generation to the next and the challenges communities face in preserving these traditions. The findings have been used to develop recommendations aimed at improving heritage policies and strengthening cooperation between institutions.
The programme forms part of UNESCO's wider International Food Heritage Atlas and Digital Platform to Safeguard, Promote and Transmit Food Heritage to Future Generations, which currently supports sixteen countries. Through this broader international framework, Senegal's experience contributes to regional and global exchanges on protecting intangible cultural heritage while demonstrating how culinary traditions can strengthen cultural diplomacy, community participation and cooperation between national institutions and international organisations.
