According to a statement from the Paris-based Unesco headquarters, Director General Koichiro Matsuura proclaimed 43 new Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritages of Humanity, with Baul Songs being one of them.

It was one of the three Heritages of Humanity identified by the Unesco from South Asia. Ramleela, the traditional performances of the Ramayana in India, and the mask dance of the drums from Drametse of Bhutan, were the two other such intangible heritages identified from the region.

The World Heritage Committee of Unesco earlier inscribed the Mosque of Bagerhat in Khulna and the Ruins of the Baudhha Bihar (Buddhist Monastery) at Paharpur on the World Heritage List in 1985 and declared the Sundarbans, the world's largest mangrove forest, as a site of World Heritage in 1997.

Unesco also organised two folk festivals in 2004 and 2005, with a view to promote and safeguard traditional folk songs and forms of Bangladesh.

This was Unesco's third proclamation of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage, an international distinction aimed at raising public awareness about the value of such heritages. This includes popular and traditional oral forms of expression, music and dance, rituals and mythologies, knowledge and practices concerning the universe, know-how linked to traditional crafts and cultural spaces.

An 18-member jury, chaired by Princess Basma Bint Talal of Jordan, proposed the 43 new masterpieces to the Director-General. The jury met from November 20 to 24 to examine the 64 national and multinational candidatures.

A total of 47 masterpieces were proclaimed in 2001 and 2003. Twenty-seven of them have already benefited from Unesco's support, particularly from safeguarding operations, which received financial assistance from Japan, Unesco officials said. They also hinted that this third proclamation would probably be the last of the series.