MLI/015
Conservation of Ancient Manuscripts of Timbuktu

Legendary city in the north of Mali, Timbuktu was once the intellectual, spiritual and economic capital of West Africa. Not too long ago Timbuktu returned to the limelight with the rediscovery of the ancient manuscripts containing the invaluable intellectual heritage of the region.

Mostly written in Arabic and Fulani the manuscripts, some of which date back to pre-Islamic times, document the historical magnificence West Africans attained at the time. Their content is often didactic, especially in the subjects of astronomy, music and botany. More recent manuscripts deal with law, sciences and history.

It is estimated that more than 300,000 manuscripts exist in the region. In Timbuktu alone there are between 60 and 80 private collections.

Preservation of this cultural inheritance of Mali is endangered by poor preservation conditions of the manuscripts and their illegal trafficking for rich collectors. In 1999 UNESCO initiated a programme to preserve and make accessible to the larger public the unique literacy heritage of the Malian city of Timbuktu which exist in public and private libraries. In 2004 Luxembourg Cooperation became involved by supporting the efforts deployed by UNESCO.

The project, formulated between 2007 and 2008, started its activities in April 2009 and has the common aim of physically and numerically preserving the manuscripts and use their contents for scientific purposes. Finally, the project looked at integrating this heritage in the sustainable economic, social and cultural development policies, strategies and programmes of the region.

The project was relocated to Bamako in the wake of the conflict in the region and currently operates from there.