Three new African sites inscribed on UNESCO World Heritage List

ANKARA/DAKAR, Senegal

Three sites from the African continent were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List on Sunday during the 47th Session of the World Heritage Committee held in Paris, France.

Malawi’s Mulanje Mountain, revered by locals as a dwelling place for gods and sacred spirits and known for its unique flora and numerous hiking routes, was among the newly listed sites.

In northern Cameroon, the Diy-Gid-Biy cultural landscape in the Mandara Mountains, estimated to have developed between the 12th and 17th centuries and comprising archaeological, agricultural and religious sites, was also inscribed.

Guinea-Bissau’s Bijagos Archipelago, consisting of 88 islands and islets spanning 12,950 square kilometers (5,000 square miles), was added to the list as well.

The islands, home to the matriarchal Bijago ethnic group known for animist beliefs and female leadership, became the country’s first entry on the World Heritage List.

Only 30,000 people live on 20 of the archipelago’s islands, which serve as a critical habitat for over 870,000 migratory birds.

Meanwhile, several African sites were removed from the List of World Heritage in Danger.

These include the Rainforests of the Atsinanana in Madagascar, the Abu Mena heritage site in Egypt, and the ancient city of Ghadames in Libya.

Despite being the world’s second-largest continent, Africa hosts only 9% of the sites on the World Heritage List, while nearly a quarter of the entries on the endangered list are located there.