On November 1, two decrees adopted in the Council of Ministers classify the Kamadjan Arch site in Siby and the Kamablon, sacred hut of Kenioro (also in Siby) in the national heritage.
This decision comes after these two sites were registered, respectively in 2009 and 2010, in the inventory of national cultural heritage. This did not protect them from the threats linked to anarchic urbanization, land speculation, the immediate use of the close surroundings and water erosion, according to the government.
«The classification of the Kamadjan Arch site and the «Kamablon» sacred hut in the national cultural heritage aims to protect them against these threats», says the Malian government in the statement of the Council of Ministers.
The Kamadjan Arch site is in Siby, Kati commune, located about fifty kilometers south-west of Bamako. This cultural landscape, which houses the cave of lions, the place of divination, the cave of sacrifices, the shelters under the rocks and the Telikourou site, served as a protective wall to the village of Siby. At the time of Soundiata Keita, meetings of troops, councils of war, demonstrations of knowledge took place there. Also, last but not least, this site hosted the investiture ceremony of Soundiata Keïta.
In Kenioro, a village in the Siby commune, is the «Kamablon», one of the oldest sacred huts of Manden, «a circular plan construction covered with a conical thatched roof, constructed on an area of 28.26 square meters» For the Government, their classification in cultural heritage, in addition to their protection, «will contribute to the development of local cultural tourism, facilitate development work, promote scientific research and academic training on these two sites».