Initiative Dogon Culture and the new member Boureima Teme

During our trip in the Dogon Country in February, we visited interesting sites for the restoration projects related to the Initiative Dogon Culture. The Initiative Dogon Culture aims to protect the historical and cultural values of the heritage through the engagement of the local community. The cultural heritage reflects the life, history and identity of the Dogon, linking their past with their present and their future. The preservation of the culture and all his forms of expression, as for example architecture, is important not only for the local community and the survival of its historical and cultural values, but also for its outstanding universal value. In fact, the Dogon Country has been included on the World Heritage List of UNESCO since 1989.

The purpose of the Initiative Dogon Culture is to strength the role of the heritage into local development programs, enhancing the local community cohesion and its own identity. Through awareness and training, it is possible to ensure the protection and achieve a long-term preservation of the heritage. Raising awareness has to start from the children at school, where they can understand the importance of preserving the cultural sites.

Young people can be also trained in traditional construction techniques, needed for the conservation and rehabilitation of earthen architecture. This could be also a strategy to help young generation not to abandon the villages due to the lack of employment and tourism, which before represented a source of income.

The restoration program comprehends the rehabilitation of some specific buildings in the village of Nando, Neni, Yougo Dogourou, Yendouma Ato and the Toloy Cave near Pegué. These villages are part of the UNESCO World Heritage and they need to be protected for their Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) and its role within the local community. The unique earthen architecture of these villages shows the traces of a deep rooting of the population in its territory and a harmonious integration of human settlements into the landscape. In fact, the architecture has been adapted to benefit from the physical constraints of the place.

The program of the Initiative Dogon Culture is quite large and it needs a good organization to carry out the work on site. For this reason, we have now in our team a new member, Boureima Teme. Boureima Teme studied Cultural Anthropology and History in Bamako and he is a literate and motivated young man, who now is taking care of the awareness program in the school of Sangha and of the research on site, as our local expert. On one hand, the objective of the school program is to raise awareness in the children and make them understanding what is their history, the importance of preserving their culture and of protecting the cultural sites against vandalism. On the other hand, the goal of the research on site is to get more detailed information about the restoration of the houses in Yougo Dogourou, on the symbols and signs inside the mosque of Nando, more detailed information of the Toloy cave, the village of Neni and Yendouma Ato. In this way we can ensure that the knowledge of the local population is preserved.

“Country of culture, country of hospitality, peace and integration. Stop all vandalism and preserve our cultures and cultural sites which are the foundations of our history and make us proud finally to promote a sustainable development program.” This is what Boureima Teme affirmed in the beginning of his task. This demonstrates that working together is essential, being a solid organization with a real partnership and with local people involved.

The barrage in Yougo has a reliable amount of water

The four wells in Sogou Yagem, Kundou dah, Kundou maternite and Koundou dagomo are now all filled with reliable amount of water (at least 3 meters).

Also the barrage in Yougo Dougouro, which we have raised and strengthened this year, is working properly even if there is still a small leak. In fact, there is already more than 1200 m3 of water available for the village.

Grant of the Prince Claus Fund

The restoration of the Tellem monument in Yougho makes very good progress. It is fantastic that we have received a part of the funding via the Emergency Programme of the Prince Claus Fund. The first preparations of the real work have already started in December 2013. From January 2014 on the collection of clay has begun. The old dam on the road to Yougho Piri has been heightened. On a new site work on a new dam has started.

Restauration Yougo – Update june 2014 from stichting dogon onderwijs on Vimeo.

Meanwhile, during my visit in April 2014 some sixty persons worked in several teams. Two teams worked on two parts of the monument. A pair of older and more experienced masons joined by youngsters prepares the material to be processed. A group of women and men looks down below for water, necessary wood and additional material for clay. This implies a walk of 45 minutes upwards! A team of 12 youngsters coming from the nearby situated Yougho Na, is busy to empty the new basin of about 1.200 m3 high on the mountain. End May 2014 a very large part of the work had been finished already. Two pieces have been left over to be dealt with. We hope that these will be terminated before the rainy season.

Meanwhile the project has been visited by the Aga Khan Foundation and by the Mission Culturelle in Bandiagara and their reports are enthusiastic. At the same time we have received intermediary reports and pictures. Next month we will send a first report to the Prince Claus Fund. In order to prevent that everyone must wait too longue, we hereby present already splendid images. Aside from the images, we hope that the efforts presented here will inspire you, and that these will clarify what the community is capable of. We also hope this will be the first impulse to a follow up. In autumn a more extensive publication will appear. At the beginning of the coming year (2015) we would like to organise a small debate and an exhibition, and we aim to bring to the attention our results and some topics related to the UNESCO heritage site as well as some issues referring to the empowerment of the community.

Made possible by:

The completion of the water basin in Yougho

A larger group of people worked on the renovation of the water basin in Yougho and now the final result can be seen. The existing small dam was raised and the second damn has been realized.

The clay has to be removed from the natural basin, which can hold 1.200 m3 of water, if it’s going to rain of course. The work was supervised by Kenneko Dara. To bring water to the village situated below, the walk takes 5 to 10 minutes, a lot less than the 40 minute walk to the plains and back, which is necessary if the water in the first basin is finished.

On our agenda, there is also another restoration project concerning four beautiful houses, where some parts collapsed, while other parts present damages and cracks.

Second dam in Yougho

The experience of the past year with a new site for a dam has also been successful. The place we found, enclosed by a small dam, has well functioned. Now the dam is being heightened. The clay that is present in the natural basin will be taken out. In total there will be a water-basin of 1.200 m3. For sure the condition is that rain should fall! The interventions will be coordinated by Kenneko Dara. In autumn, when the basin will be filled, we are going to study a simple method to transfer water to the lower village. By foot about 5 – 10 minutes are needed, which is much better than the actual walk needing 40 minutes uphill from the plain, and necessary when the water in the first basin is exhausted.

Restauration projects Nando and Yougo

This year we will start with the restauration projects in Nando and Yougo, where several buildings that are part of the cultural heritage will be worked on by us, the ADI, and the villages themselves. We have applied for funds with the Prince Claus Fund and the World Heritage Fund. We are looking forward to finally starting the work after all the preparations that took place in the past year. The funding applications are only a small start.

Telem homes under a cliff.

Film interview with Sirou about the importance of the cultural heritage.

In Yougo we will start with restoring the Telem homes. By comparing pictures we have been able to determine that the mud towers have deteriorated significantly over the past 20 years. During our visit we have documented some of the houses and delineated them.

The mosque in Nando with the women’s quarters to the right.

The women’s quarters have received less attention than the mosque over the past years.

Due to this, the roof is starting to show weak spots and has even collapsed in some places.

The wooden foundation is also weak due to termites and leakages.

In Nando we will restore the roof of the women’s quarters. Throughout the years, not all parts of the mosque have received similar care when maintaining the mud plastering. Termites have damaged the wood supporting the roof and there are a lot of leakages. The roofs will thus have to be restored thoroughly. In addition to the mosque, we will work on the restauration of the unique stone wall surrounding the village.

The mosque’s roof.

Yougo Dogorou

Langzaam maar zeker krijgt het grote project wat we met het dorp en de dorpsbewoners willen gaan doen vorm. Al jaren lang zijn we bezig om in dit bijzondere UNESCO werelderfgoed Dogon dorp water te organiseren. De Dam gaan we weer verhogen, we zijn bezig een dam van een andere organisatie werkend te krijgen en gaan een derde dam maken. Alles bij elkaar hopen we dan dat het voldoende zal zijn om het hele jaar boven op de berg voldoende water de hebben. Het water is een voorwaarde om de leefbaarheid in het dorp te vergroten. Het is overigens vrijwel zeker dat het dorp waar nu een kleine 350 mensen wonen, bewoond zal blijven. Van veel families staat hier het “familie huis’ en in dit dorp beginnen ook alle belangrijke rituele feesten van de Dogon gemeenschap, zoals de Dhamma en het Sirigi feest dat eens in de 60 jaar gehouden wordt (2027). In december hebben we al intensief gesproken met de bewoners over wat hun gedachten en ideeën zijn en wat zij zelf gaan doen. Het grootste deel van de werkzaamheden zal uiteindelijk door de gemeenschap moeten worden uitgevoerd. Zij weten hoe de huizen gebouwd zijn en hoe de oude nu deels ingestorte huizen eruit hebben gezien. Veel hangt ook af van de families die nu met vooral veel jongere in de vlakte zijn gaan wonen maar nog wel hechte banden onderhouden met het geboorte-familie dorp. Ook zij zullen gaan mee werken aan het dorp. Deze reis hebben we bij vrijwel alle woningen foto’s gemaakt en zijn er inventarisatie lijsten opgesteld met de naam van de bewoners, de opzet van de huizen en de gebreken. Van een aantal huizen zijn we voorzichtig aan begonnen met het opmeten en uittekenen. Het belangrijkste monument, centraal in het dorp met nog duidelijk elementen van de Tellem zal een va de eerste doelen moeten zijn. Een aantal silo’s zijn inmiddels ingestort in de afgelopen 20 jaar. Wij hebben veel beeldmateriaal om dat aan te tonen en willen dan ook gaan inzetten op een gedeeltelijke reconstructie maar vooral ook het behoud van de nog ogenschijnlijk stevig beschut staande torens. Het blijkt toch dat de combinatie van wind en regen de gebouwen aantasten.

De samenhang van dit project met al onze andere werkzaamheden en projecten zijn we bezig in kaart te brengen. Het heeft vanzelfsprekend te maken met het behoud van een uniek UNESCO monument, maar ook met opleiden, onderwijs, water, en toerisme wat hoogstwaarschijnlijk weer terug zal komen in de toekomst. Kijk vooral ook naar alle inmiddels geplaatste stukken en artikelen op de website.

Introduction Yougo

The Cliff of Bandiagara (Land of the Dogons) was inscribed on the List of World Heritage properties in 1989. It was inscribed as a cultural and natural site on the basis of criteria V and VII, and is one of the largest mixed sites inscribed in the World Heritage List of UNESCO. It extends over 4,000 km2 and, as such, is an area where around 500.000 people are living in 289 villages. Nando is one of these villages. Among them, Nando holds a special status due to the unique mosque which lies in the centre of the village.

The land of the Dogon lies south of the river Niger not far from Mopti and Djenne. The region is composed of three zones: the plateau, the cliffs and the lower plains. The plateau rises like an immense fortress to a height of approximately 300 metres above surrounding plains. It is delimited by the Bandiagara escarpment, a cliff of more than 200 km long, which runs from southwest to northeast. Successive waves of immigration have populated the area. Over the ages peoples from different horizons had to share, not often without harm or conflicts, the same territory. Today the originality of Dogon country resides in its ethnic, cultural and linguistic diversity. A homogeneous Dogon society does not exist. Like so many other farming societies, the Dogon have no centralized power structure. Political and religious authority belong to the village elders. In line with its diversity, each region of the Dogon land has its own traditions. Variants in belief, myth and history abound.

Just a bit free from the Bandiagara cliffs lie the villages of Yougo; Yougo Piri, Yougo Na and Yougo Dogorou. They are among the most beautiful villages of the Unesco list. The overwhelming awareness of time manifested by presence of the well kept Tellem houses and tombs easily included in the culture and architecture of the Dogon village. Yougo Dogorou has a special status and meaning for the whole Dogon land, this unique cultural position of the villages is based on its role. The society of the masks is based in the village and all the important feasts like de Sirigi every 60 years and the Dhama start here. All funerals for the Hogons, the wholy man in the Dogon society, are held in the village and they are tombed in the highly placed caves.

From our first trips since 1972 it was clear that it is extremely difficult to approach the villages of Yougo because of their isolated place. Since 1981 (see picture, on the road from Sangha, passing by Koundou heading for Yougo with Herman Haan) we started making water dams for providing drinking water near to the village. Our last water project is from 2009 in Yougo Na. There have been several plans for renovating parts of the village.

The project presented in this document has been prepared by the Foundation Dogon Education in collaboration with LEVS architects Amsterdam, The NAi (Architectural Institute of the Netherlands) and the Mission Culturelle de Bandiagara, the decentralised government structure in charge of the protection and conservation of the Unesco site. The project will be supported in the future by several partners listed in the credits. The start of the project is an response to the concerns expressed by the leaders of the village Yougo, the chief of the region Sangha and several other villages and inhabitants of the land of the Dogon. Due to its cultural position Yougo will never be abandoned but that’s not a guarantee that quality of the village will continue without support.

Finding the village, architecture and heritage

It is difficult to describe the villages and approach of Yougo and its beauty. The village of Yougo Piri is more easy to understand because of its overwhelming moment when you see the houses almost stuck against the wall, after climbing from the plain 300 meters coming from Koundou, Yendouma or Tiogou. When you walk thru the village one comes to “the roof” of the mountain and walks toward Yougo Dogorou at the other side of the freestanding mountain.

Walking over bridges made with braches to overcome the several gaps that cut throughthe mountains you come to the entrance of Yougo Dogorou. A very narrow steep gap protected for falling by braches you can climb down over typical Dogon ladders towards the cavern with the old Tellem houses nearby.

Continuing your walk one finds two dams made by us which holds the water that comes down during the rain period at the end one comes at the viewpoint of the most beautifully protected Tellem granaries under the enormous overhang of the rocks. Continuing through the houses of the village, which are situated in between all the bolder rocks and mostly have several levels, one arrives on the village square with the Toguna, the Giant Baobab. Here all the people of the Dogon land comes for advice and consultation and this is the place where the Sirigi and Dama starts. De villages continue down de slopes. One descends the village on this side of the mountain passing by Yougo Na facing de cliffs of Bandiagarra and Koundou.

History of Yougo

The patronymic surname of Yougo Dogorou’s inhabitants is Doumbo which means “rock”. The elderly say this name refers to Bamba, a region where they stayed temporarily before moving to and settling down on the isolated mountain of Yougo. In “Les âmes des Dogons “, G. Dieterlen does not mention any Doumbo migration via Bamba. But in “Les Devises des Dogons “, S. de Ganay states that the Tige of Bamba is “ Bamba dumboo dumbo “ meaning “ rock, the rock of Bamba “. Yougo Dogorou is unique. It is perched next to the top of an isolated mountain separated from the cliff. A gigantic rock, called “the anvil”, rises next to the village. Open caves sheltering Tellem and Dogon constructions overhang the village. In ancient times the inaccessibility of the site protected Yougo Dogorou against the outside world. Today its isolation has the opposite effect. Most of the adult population moved to the villages of the Seno-Gondo plains where working conditions are far easier. The village is inhabited by a few families and some elderly people who are the guardians of the local altars. On certain occasions family members and relatives will visit the village. On the death of an elderly parent, they will gather in numbers and participate in funerary rituals and dances. The face of the cliff to the West of the village is strewn with open caves containing constructions left by the Tellem. The first Dogon migrants from the Arou tribe took up residence at the foot of this cliff. Traces of their passage are still visible. Old foundations can still be discerned and millstones lay around. There are no paths leading to this place. One has to make a way around and over huge boulders. initial place of settlement initial place of settlement initial place of settlement As regards traditional belief, two localities in Dogon country are of crucial importance. In both cases the Arou tribe assumes supreme authority Arou is the place of residence of the Hogon whose religious authority spans the whole land. As a priest of agrarian rites, he represents the Earth, fertility and life. He is to ensure the perpetuation of his people. As regards Yougo Dogorou, this is where commences the Sigui, the ritual that commemorates the first ancestor who died in the form of a serpent.

The ritual takes place once every 60 years and symbolizes the renewal of generations. It is also in this village that the sacred cave of Albarga is located, the old man of the myth who was discovered by Yayeme, the lady who confiscated the masks from the Andoumboulou. People come from afar to make sacrifices for protection against sorcery. Also, in case of serious problems having to do with masks, the village elderly will be consulted by visitors and matters will be discussed in the Togu Na bordering the central village square. Marcel Griaule mentions in “Masques Dogons “ the existence at Yougo Dogorou of Albarga’s walking cane which is used in rites for rain making. Today this rite is still of actuality. Villages in the region that suffer from severe drought may call for this cane to intervene and block the evildoers who are responsible for the lack of rain. Once every three years, a delegation from Yougo Na, Yougo Dogorou and Yougo Piri will visit those villages that asked for help. By means of the cane the culprit will be ritually uncovered and he will die within the three years that follow. So Still the village that is very difficult to live in will never be abandoned because of this special role in the Dogon land. Today the young people of the village lives in the plain and take care of the harvest while their wife’s and the young kids life upon the village to take care of the elderly. the houses and de society of masks that means so much for the whole Dogon area.

Starting with water

Since 1981 we did several projects for improving the water situation in the villages of Yougo. Dougoro is the most difficult of the three. going down to a nearby well is almost no solution, it takes at least two ours walking and climbing for one canary of water (16 litters) The first project was a small dam in the entrance cavern this worked but was not really sufficient for a long period after the rain season. In 1995 we decided to make a new dam closer to de villages which could contain more water. During the years after this we made several small improvements, while the dam was leaking.

In 1999 and 2005 we enlarged the height of the Dam to the almost maximum because the location is also the entering zone of the village. the two formed water basin with a total length of almost 70 meter contains almost 270 m3 water. This is only sufficient for the period august (beginning of the rainfall until the end of February) the frits 3 dry month, after the rain. it means about 8 litter of water for the 120 inhabitants each day) That means that there is still a long period for the women to get the water down to the foot of the hill. For restoring the houses and the village is clearly no time left. For that reason we made a proposition to solve the water problem during the whole year. When this is solved the people can collaborate with us to reinforce the village and the monuments.

Current state

It is difficult to give a good overview of the current situation. There are some families left and their houses are completely collapsed. But there are still 120 elderly, women and children living in the village and still supported by 240 younger man and woman that lives nearby in the Seno. The woman are very well organised and work thoroughly together with several women groups organised in the area. they have a garden project, epic centre, granary and an maternity in the village of Koundou. The houses that are occupied are sometimes partly collapsed, sometimes only the granaries or they need new plastering. The most vulnerable are the old ( 600 years and more) Tellem houses.

During the last 30 years two “towers has completely collapsed and the 3 remaining are in a bad state. Also the several monument is the entrance zone needs reparations. In this village, Wolf Schijns, a Dutch architect and professor at the University of Eindhoven did some documentation and research. Some of the houses he documented in 1999 are now, 2012 , completely collapsed. The aim of the project is of course to stop this not by rebuilding what has collapsed but by renovation and reinforce what is now available.

Approach and action plan

The project in Yougo cannot be done with the elderly people who lives there today but they will play an important role in the restoration because of their knowledge. We have already talked about the complete approach of the work, the period of working, and the younger people and teams that will do the work in the future. It is clear that the village will profit by the project but we want also assurance from the village that they can really do the work. For that reason there will also be support from other villages like Yendouma, Tiogou en Koundou.

Action plan and implementation
Based on our experience In Nando and Arou and combined with the experience of the Organizations involved, FDE (SDO), ADI en Mission Culturelle Bandiagara (see background information) and the Vision supported broadly by the local and national governments, we made an proposal for an action plan for the Period 2013-2017. The Foundation Dogon Education will take the lead in organizing this process. There will be an office, working place in the village of Koundou and Sangha. There is mobile internet available so it is very good possible to communicate with all the partners involved. Our local team leader Keneko Dara has already experiences with doing renovations. He was responsible for the renovation of the house of the Hogon in Arou under supervision of
the Mission Culturelle de Bandiagrra. The most important role however are of course the inhabitants of the village Yougo, which will be supported by the villages surrounded by is like Koundou, Yendouma and the young family members living in the Seno. The organization of the process will be based on their collaboration. We spoke with the heads of the villages, heads of the family’s as well as the major of Sangha. Its seems to them it is possible to renovate the village in 4 years. The work by the village and collaborating villages will been done from October to may, before and after the important harvest period and the rain season. The preparation for the work, documenting the several houses and organizing materials can be done in the period June till October by the other team members.

The goal is also to start building a small practical school ( 10 classes) in Sangha with some local partners in his school there will be classes in traditional masonry, building with local materials in a new and traditional way and renewal in agricultural techniques. The project of Yougo would fit very well in the curriculum of the goals of the school.

Project planning and organization tasks
Tasks of the several members of the projects Foundation Dogon Education (FDE, or in Dutch, Stichting Dogon Onderwijs , SDO): Responsible for the finance control, final reports, organizing exhibition (travelling) and publication ( in English and French). In collaboration with LEVS architects in Amsterdam and Mopti ( local office) and if possible students from the technical school Sevaré, and students from the architectural school of Bamako. The project leader of FDE (SDO) will visit the at least 3 times a year the work in combination with other project for reducing the cost for travelling etc. The communication with ADI, the office in Sevaré and Sangha, will be weekly by Skype and e-mail. The practical program of establishing the renovation will be prepared by FDE but the practical implementation will be done by ADI.

Association Dogon initiative (ADI):
Organizing the fieldwork with the local several parties involved in the project with two technical project leaders and one financial and overal project leader. They work from the office in Sangha and Koundou.

Mission Culturelle Bandiagara:
Before starting with the projects and the work it will be thoroughly reviewed with the Mission for that reason they will accompany FDE(SDO) during their visits to Yougo.

Results of the project
The first result of the project is of course the complete renovated village of Yougo Dogorou. The second result we hope to establish in the same period is reinforcement of the economic situation. Organizing schools, water, and improving agricultural methods by working together with IFD ( Initiative Femme Dogon) which is already very active in the region of Koundou. The third result we hope to accomplish with the mission Culturelle de Bandiagarra by organizing entrance fees etc like it has been done in Songho and Nombori, tourism as a part of the economic basic for the village, assuming the tourist will return. We assume that the last result, the rapport and publications will stimulate this. The Fourth result we hope to establish is the growth of local knowledge and enthusiasm to build with local materials which is important for a durable and sustainable future.

The fifth result we hope is the continuation of an unique cultural aspect of the Dogon, the feast of the Dama, Sirigi feast and the society of the masks which is so special connected to this unique culture and part of the Unesco goals.

The last result:
Every year there will be a review of the project and a financial report. After finishing the project which is estimated in 2017 there will be an complete review and final financial specification. The publication shall be made in English and French and broadly available on internet as a learning process en project. The material will also be prepared for an travelling exposition starting of course in Mopti in the Centre for earth architecture built by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture.

(Nederlands) Water in Yougho

Sorry, this entry is only available in Dutch.