• Project backed by UNESCO secures and digitizes rare West African archives
• More than 2,100 manuscripts digitized and 4,000 documents cataloged
• Initiative aims to protect oral and written heritage and expand public access

Preserving Africa’s written and oral memory is not only a cultural issue but a prerequisite for its intellectual transmission and lasting place in global history. This objective underpinned a project to conserve and digitize the archives of the Amadou Hampâté Bâ Foundation, recently completed with support from UNESCO and the National Archives of the Republic of Korea.

Officially concluded in December 2025 in Abidjan, the project addressed a central challenge: safeguarding a documentary collection of exceptional heritage value in line with international standards, while ensuring access for researchers, students, and the general public.

Fragile archives, a threatened heritage

Manuscripts, correspondence, research notes, and ethnographic documents held by the Foundation form a unique body of material for understanding the intellectual, social, and cultural history of West Africa. Long stored under precarious conditions, the archives were exposed to risks linked to time, humidity, heat, and repeated handling, threatening their preservation.

The project marked a decisive step forward. More than 2,100 manuscripts were digitized, nearly 4,000 documents cataloged, and a structured database established using an open-source library system with detailed metadata. Conservation conditions were improved through the installation of appropriate equipment, while local teams received technical training in archiving and digitization.

An intellectual legacy at the core

Beyond its technical scope, the project directly reflects the work and thought of Amadou Hampâté Bâ, a leading figure in 20th-century African intellectual history. Born in 1900 in Bandiagara, the writer, ethnologist, historian, and diplomat devoted his life to preserving and promoting African oral traditions, which he viewed as a fully developed system of knowledge.

Educated in both colonial schools and traditional learning systems, Hampâté Bâ bridged two worlds. This dual background shaped a body of work combining initiatory narratives, ethnographic research, philosophical reflection, and historical testimony. Through landmark publications, he helped establish international recognition of the intellectual richness of African societies.

His commitment was also institutional. As a member of UNESCO’s Executive Council, he was among the first African intellectuals to warn, as early as the 1960s, of the irreversible loss of traditional knowledge amid rapid social change. His well-known statement, “In Africa, when an elder dies, a library burns,” expressed a methodological reality: without systems for collecting, preserving, and transmitting knowledge, a vital part of the continent’s memory would disappear.

The archives preserved by the Foundation reflect this pioneering approach. They bring together decades of field notes, manuscripts, and correspondence, offering a valuable resource for research into the social, religious, and intellectual history of West Africa. Their digitization therefore protects not only the legacy of one individual, but also an African vision of knowledge and its transmission.

A process set to continue

While this phase marks major progress, it is only one step. The gradual online publication of the archives, their promotion within academic and cultural circles, and long-term conservation efforts remain under way.

Preparation of a nomination file for inclusion of the collection in UNESCO’s Memory of the World International Register highlights the ambition for global recognition and durability. At a time when many African documentary heritages remain at risk, the initiative led by the Amadou Hampâté Bâ Foundation stands as a model of protected, shared, and transmitted memory for future generations.

Moutiou Adjibi Nourou