The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) announced Tuesday the rehabilitation of the heritage of Bandiagara, partly destroyed by the conflict raging in central Mali. The Malian security crisis, fueled by jihadist groups and inter-community tensions, has caused the total or partial destruction of nearly 30 villages, half of which are located on the site of the “ Falaise de Bandiagara ”, classified as a World Heritage Site. , in the region of Mopti.
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The Unesco project, funded to the tune of one million dollars by the International Alliance for the Protection of Heritage in Conflict Zones (ALIPH), aims to rehabilitate " housing, granaries and sites dedicated to traditional culture, ”the organization said in a statement.
Restore cultural traditions
The project intends in particular to restore cultural traditions such as funeral rites and masked dances, shaken up by the inter-community tensions of recent years, and thus contribute " to strengthening the social fabric and peace between the communities of the Dogon country ", notes Unesco. .
Central Mali has been the scene of a large number of violence since 2015 and the emergence of a jihadist group led by the Fulani preacher Amadou Koufa, who has largely recruited from his community, and joined the Support Group for the Islam and Muslims (GSIM), the main jihadist alliance in the Sahel affiliated with al-Qaida.
Inter-community attacks
The attacks, often followed by reprisals, have taken a cross-community turn between the Peuls, mainly pastoralists, and the Bambara and Dogon ethnic groups, who mainly practice agriculture. Seven people were killed in mid-July, as well as at least four in June and twelve at the end of April in the attack on several villages in the commune of Sangha, about thirty kilometers from Bandiagara, one of the main towns of the region.
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The “ Falaise de Bandiagara ” is home to 289 villages spread over 400,000 hectares, between plateau and plains. The communities maintain a very close relationship with their environment, which is expressed through sacred rituals and traditions, according to Unesco
Income-generating activities for women will also be at the heart of the Unesco project in the difficult context of the Covid 19 pandemic, the organization continues. " Culture is not only too often a victim of protracted armed conflicts, it is also an essential source of resilience and an important foundation for the construction of peace ", underlined the Director-General of Unesco, Audrey Azoulay.