Value
Some facts
Impact on the
environment
Natural factors: climate,
drought, quicksand, the
high soil salinity and soil
creep.
Human factors: such as
over grazing, poor irrigation
methods, deforestation,
creeping urbanization and
pollution.
Timbuktu was known as a city
of books. Islamic scholars
Timbuktu is a city in Africa with a long
brought hundreds of thousands
history. It was a trading center for several
of handwritten manuscripts to
ancient empires.
Timbuktu.These manuscripts
Timbuktu is home to three of West Africa’s
prove that Africa has a rich
oldest mosques: Djinguereber, Sankore, and
legacy of written history.
Sidi Yahia. They were built more than 500
years ago By the 12th century, Timbuktu
In 1988 the United Nations added Timbuktu was a well-known centre of
to its list of World Heritage sites. The city Islamic learning.Timbuktu was
was once an active trading cente
Leo Africanus was born in Spain in 1483
known as a city of books.
Leo Africanus travelled to Timbuktu twice
during the 16th century. He travelled on the Sustain
trade route as part of a camel caravan
South Africa became very involved
through the Sahara Desert. He was one of
in the preservation of the Timbuktu
the few people
Manuscripts.
in the 16th century to travel through Africa
and write about it.
Former South African president,
Thabo Mbeki visited Mali in 2001
Timbuktu occupied an important position at
and promised to help rescue the
the end of the camel caravan route and was
manuscripts and educate the
near several big salt mines
world about African history.