Government invests in valorisation of Portuguese paviours and cobblestone

The Government is setting up a Working Group for the Valorisation of Portuguese Paviours and Cobblestone with the aim of protecting, dignifying, and ensuring the continuity of this unique intangible cultural heritage, which is currently up to become UNESCO Intangible World Heritage. 

The aim of the decision is to ensure this unique know-how is preserved, one that is threatened by the heigtened ageing in the profession and lack of qualified craftsmen.

The current average age for paviours is between 55 and 60 years and in around half of the municipalities, the existing craftsmen are all above 50 years of age. From 2021 to 2024, only 22 formal certifications were issued, which shows the lack of training capabilities in the country and the urgency in finding structured measures to ensure this know-how’s continuity. 

For the Government, this situation is a real risk for traditional knowledge to die, which makes safeguarding "the art of knowing how to make Portuguese "Calçada" Cobblestone" urgent. Portuguese cobblestone has been on the National Cultural Heritage list since 2021.

Among the structural challenges identified one finds the lack of an integrated training path, the lack of uniform technical standards, and the absence of consistent certification mechanisms, factors that compromise the preservation of this identitarian cultural heritage.

The Working Group’s mission is to analyse the paviours’ professional reality, put forward concrete proposals, and make legislative recommendations that ensure the safeguarding, valorisation, and sustainability of both the profession and the Portuguese cobblestone.

Presided over by the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports, the group will have representatives from the Ministry of Labour, Solidarity and Social Security. The final report will be presented within six months after the government decree is issued.