Following the collapse of several Takienta during the rainy season in 2018, an on-site emergency mission was carried out by UNESCO from 19-24 October 2018 to assess the extent of the damages caused.
The mission resulted in the adoption of Decision 43 COM 7B.112 by the World Heritage Committee at its 43rd session (Baku, 2019). The Decision mainly reports issues related to the conservation and management of the site and encourages the State party to undertake an inventory of the Takienta and attributes contributing to the OUV of the site; a definition of its boundaries and an update and validation of its management plan.
Koutammakou, the Land of the Batammariba (Togo) was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2004. Located in the northeast of Togo, this 50,000-ha cultural landscape is home to the Batammariba people (‘those who shape the earth’) and stands out for its remarkable Takienta, which are mud tower-houses associated with ceremonial spaces. Koutammakou as a living and evolving landscape exhibits all features of an agricultural society working in harmony with the landscape, where nature underpins beliefs, rites and daily life.
This project, based on the recommendations of the mission of October 2018 and the Decision 43 COM 7B.112, aims at implementing activities to improve the state of conservation of Koutammakou, the land of the Batamariba. More specifically, it will contribute to the following objectives:
Inventory and mapping of the site (boundaries of the site and its buffer zone, attributes, conservation issues);
Capacity building of the management team and of local communities
Updates and technical support of the validation process for the management plan of the property (including a risk management plan);
Implementation of a methodology for the reconstruction of the Takienta (organisation of a field school and preparation of a manual on construction techniques of the Takienta).
Particular attention will be given to active participation of the authorities (national and local) and to the local communities’ appropriation of the project by means of community engagement, in order to ensure in particular the sustainability of the project, but also the understanding of the dynamic, current issues and challenges of the site and the consistency of the proposed ideas.
From 21 to 25 September 2020, the training workshop on inventory and mapping techniques of the Takienta (mud tower-houses) and attributes contributing to the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of Koutammakou, the Land of the Batammariba (Togo) was held in Nadoba (Togo). Organised by the Ecole du Patrimoine Africain (EPA) on the premises of the Service de Conservation et de Promotion du Koutammakou (SCPK), the workshop aimed to build the capacity of community representatives, surveyors and stakeholders in participatory inventory and mapping techniques of the Takienta and attributes contributing to the OUV of the site. It brought together 23 participants (agents from the Service de Conservation et de Promotion du Koutammakou and students in geography, history and linguistics) from the cantons of Nadoba, Warengo, Koutougou and Akpontè, and was moderated by resource persons from EPA, the Direction du Patrimoine Culturel (DPC) of Togo, the SCPK and two consultants recruited by EPA. The workshop enabled participants to exchange on the concepts of World Heritage and cultural heritage, the characteristics of the site and the conservation of the buildings, and the inventory process. The theoretical work was followed by a practical inventory exercise in the field with the mobile application Kobocollecte and the inventory form developed by EPA in collaboration with the World Heritage Centre and CRAterre.
The inventory of the Sikien carried out from 5 October to 24 November 2020 by EPA in close collaboration with the management team contributed to the precision of the site's boundaries. At the end of this exercise, a total of 1727 Sikien were counted. Read the most recent activity report here.
© Zanmassou, August 2020
© Zanmassou, August 2020
© Zanmassou, August 2020
© Zanmassou, August 2020
September 2020
November 2021
From 23 November to 3 December 2021, a "Participatory Workcamp on the Conservation of Sikien" was held in Koutammakou as part of the project. The activity started with an opening ceremony on 23 November 2021 at the Service de conservation et de promotion du Koutammakou (SCPK). The ceremony was attended by thirty-three (33) participants including representatives of UNESCO, the Ecole du Patrimoine Africain (EPA), the Direction du Patrimoine Culturel (DPC), the conservation department of the site and the Centre de la Construction et du Logement de Cacavéli (CCL), as well as members of the local community including representatives of associations, resource persons, tourist guides, masons and sikien owners. It was followed by the official handover of computer equipment by the UNESCO representative to strengthen the capacity of the management team, as well as an awareness-raising session for stakeholders on the state of conservation of the site.
The following days were devoted to the workcamp, which was divided between the three sikien selected for the occasion by the conservation team according to their state of conservation. The selection was made in order to have an overview of several aspects related to the construction and maintenance of the sikien, through the reconstruction of a wall, the construction of a granary and the plastering of walls.
The workcamp was a real opportunity to exchange and share knowledge and know-how between the different actors for what concerns the characteristic architecture of the Batammariba people, but also earthen architecture in a more general way. It also allowed to contribute in a participatory way to complete the "Book of recommendations on the maintenance of sikien" which will be finalised by CRAterre within the framework of the project, and to make an evaluation of the competences of the local actors involved in the construction and the maintenance of sikien which could constitute thereafter a database of reference.
© UNESCO
© EPA
© EPA
© SCPK
© SCPK
Download the report: https://whc.unesco.org/uploads/activities/documents/activity-975-23.pdf
This project contributed to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), specifically
National: State party of Togo
International: École du patrimoine africain (EPA), CRAterre.
This project is made possible thanks to the financial support of the Norwegian government.
The World Heritage Committee,