Decade of Action for Indigenous Languages programme

Why is in news? UNESCO looks to set up fund to promote ancient and tribal languages across the globe

The United Nations is looking to set up a multi-donor fund to revitalise, preserve and promote ancient and tribal languages across the globe, including ancient Indian languages such as Prakrit, Pali and Sharda among others.

The International Decade of Indigenous Languages programme by UNESCO has launched a task force,aims to translate these languages, including other indigenous ones from across the world, to more accessible modern ones to preserve and promote them.

UNESCO established the global task force for making a Decade of Action for Indigenous Languages on March 22, 2021.

The members include Canada, Iceland, Norway, Latvia, Russia, Ukraine, Bolivia, Paraguay, Peru, Australia, India, Thailand, Gambia, Madagascar, Zimbabwe, Bahrain, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.

There are nearly 1,700 languages in India, out of which there is no data for 949 languages. The fund set up by the UN can be utilised for the digital archiving of the lost languages.

The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed the period between 2022 and 2032 as the International Decade of Indigenous Languages (IDIL 2022-2032), to draw global attention on the critical situation of many indigenous languages and to mobilize stakeholders and resources for their preservation, revitalization and promotion.

The proclamation of an International Decade is a key outcome of the 2019 International Year of Indigenous Languages, for which the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) lead global efforts.

The Organization will continue to serve as lead UN Agency for the implementation of the International Decade, in cooperation with the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) and other relevant UN Agencies.

The International Decade aims at ensuring indigenous peoples’ right to preserve, revitalize and promote their languages, and mainstreaming linguistic diversity and multilingualism aspects into the sustainable development efforts.

It offers a unique opportunity to collaborate in the areas of policy development and stimulate a global dialogue in a true spirit of multi-stakeholder engagement, and to take necessary for the usage, preservation, revitalization and promotion of indigenous languages around the world.

In line with the objectives of the International Decade, the online platform of the IDIL 2022-2032 aims to build a global community for indigenous languages, facilitate information-sharing on activities and events organized all over the world, promote relevant resources and tools, report and monitor progress made, and create new opportunities for exchange and dialogue among a wide network of stakeholders.