The International Committee on Underwater Cultural Heritage has been confirmed to participate in an accredited NGO side event during the 10th session of the Meeting of States Parties to the 2001 UNESCO Convention on the Protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage in Paris from June 16–17, 2025 . This event focuses on enhancing the capacity to protect and promote African underwater cultural heritage—regionally significant shipwrecks, submerged archaeological sites, and traditional cultural landscapes at sea—by spotlighting both the pressing challenges and the emerging opportunities in the sector

The Meeting of State Parties

The Meeting of States Parties to the Convention is the sovereign body of the Convention, composed of the States that have ratified. It is composed of the representatives of its States Parties, as well as observers from other UNESCO Member States, delegates from accredited NGOs and invited experts. The Meeting is convened in ordinary session by the Director-General of UNESCO at least once every two years. At the request of a majority of States Parties, the Director-General can convene an extraordinary session and has done this already once in 2009, shortly after the entry into force of the Convention in order to speed up its implementation process. 

The Meeting provides strategic guidance for the implementation of the treaty and takes all measures it deems necessary to promote its objectives.