Paris, 20 October 2025 — UNESCO today marked the 20th anniversary of the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions with a High-Level Anniversary Conference bringing together ministers of culture, artists, technologists, and civil society from over 140 countries.
The 2005 Convention at Twenty
Adopted in 2005, the Convention established the principle that cultural goods and services have a dual nature — both economic and cultural — and must therefore be governed by frameworks that protect cultural diversity alongside commercial interests. It was a watershed moment in international cultural policy, recognized as the first international treaty to affirm the sovereign right of states to adopt cultural policies.
Over the past twenty years, the Convention has catalyzed the adoption of cultural policies in more than 90 countries and provided a legal basis for bilateral and regional trade agreements to include cultural exceptions.
New Digital Culture Protocols
The anniversary conference adopted two supplementary operational guidelines specifically addressing the digital transformation of cultural industries:
1. Protocol on Algorithmic Curation and Cultural Diversity: This protocol calls on States Parties to ensure that streaming platforms and social media algorithms operating in their jurisdictions meet minimum standards for the recommendation of diverse and non-dominant cultural content. It establishes monitoring mechanisms and reporting obligations.
2. Protocol on Equitable Participation in Digital Creative Markets: Addressing the concentration of digital creative revenues among a small number of global platforms and their preferred content providers, this protocol establishes principles for equitable revenue sharing and market access for cultural producers from the Global South.
UNESCO Creative Economy Fund
UNESCO simultaneously announced the UNESCO Creative Economy and Cultural Diversity Fund, a USD 25 million vehicle to support micro- and small-scale cultural enterprises in developing countries in accessing digital distribution channels.
