1. Libyan Desert: rich in natural and human heritage but
challenges for protection, preservation and conservation
By: Mustafa J. Salem.
Nine cover pictures of the previous articles on the Libya Sahara heritage that were posted by
Libya Herald – Features in the last fourteen months. Please refer to the dates of each article in
the list below.
Tripoli, 26 June 2014

2. During the last fourteen months (since April 2013), several articles were posted in Libya Herald,
focusing on significant areas in the Libyan Sahara which contain interesting heritage sites and
attractive natural landscape. The main objective for posting these articles was to inform readers
about the importance of these areas and their content of a vast variety of human and natural
heritage, and the urgent need for their preservation and protection from further deterioration.
These articles which were posted are as follows:
1. Franco-Libyan project: A successful example of international scientific collaboration.
Mustafa J. Salem. 5 April 2013.
2. The Libyan desert: Natural and human heritage under threat. Mustafa J. Salem. 19 April
2013.
3. The Fezzan region: An interesting history and a prospect for a brighter future. Mustafa J.
Salem. 9 May 2013.
4. Waw An-Namus: A prehistoric volcano and natural heritage attraction. Mustafa J.
Salem, Mabrouk T. Busrewil and Khaled M. Oun. 3 July 2013.
5. Messak Plateau, Fezzan: An endangered natural and human heritage area. Mustafa J.
Salem. 18 August 2013.
6. Tadrart Akakus: A UNESCO World Heritage Site; a victim of neglect, vandalism and
indifference. Mustafa J. Salem. 11 October 2013.
7. Fezzan Sand Seas: A popular but unprotected area of off-road driving and adventure
tourism. Mustafa J. Salem and Hans-Joachim Pachur. 24 November 2013.
8. The Lost Oases—Awaynat and Arknu: Early exploration of Eastern Libya and Northern
Sudan. Mustafa J. Salem. 1 March 2014.
9. Jabal Al-Haruj: Biggest volcanic field in Libya with heritage and economic value.
Mustafa J. Salem. 20 June 2014.
In these articles, written primarily for general public, there were several discreet messages
included with the intention of catching the attention of the concerned bodies such as the Ministry
of Culture and Civil Society, the Department of Antiquities, the Ministry of Tourism, the
General Authority for Environment, the Ministry of Petroleum, and the like, in the hope that they
would take the necessary steps to protect the Libyan Saharan heritage and environment, which
have been deteriorating for many years.
Since the revolution, adventure tourism has ceased and most industrial development projects
have been disrupted, yet the wide-spread prevalence of arms and four-wheel drive vehicles have
led to even further deterioration of the landscape and environment of these areas due to
uncontrolled driving, indiscriminate hunting of endangered wild animals and even vandalism of
prehistoric artwork by graffiti. A 3 June 2014 Reuters article on the vandalism of Libyan desert
art at Tadrart Akakus stated, “Vandals have destroyed prehistoric rock art in lawless southern
Libya, endangering a sprawling tableau of paintings and carvings classified by UNESCO as of
‘outstanding universal value’.”

3. Satellite image of Libya showing the various sites in the Libyan Sahara, with heritage content.
These sites were described in detail in the articles sited above.
It is worth mentioning that UNESCO has listed Tadrart Akakus as a World Heritage site since
the early 1980s.
Due to the fragile security situation in Libya these days, it is not feasible to do any significant
field assessment or conduct any field preservation or conservation programs. However, it is
important at this stage for the authorities to develop a master plan for the preservation of the
Libyan Desert heritage areas, so that when the security situation improves such plans will be
ready to be put into action.
It is encouraging that the Ministry of Tourism is following such a path by starting to revise its
National Tourism Master Plan, with the help of a team of national and international experts and
advisory assistance from the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNTWO).
The Ministry of Culture and Civil Society and the Department of Antiquities is already late in
adopting the same policy, and hence should begin urgently to seek national and international
assistance to develop its Antiquity Conservation and Preservation Master Plan. This plan would
cover not only desert areas but also coastal sites as well. The following organisations and
expertise may help in the planning and implementation of the plan, if properly approached by the
Ministry of Culture and Civil Society and the Department of Antiquities:

4. 1. Universities and institutions – national and international – who are involved in research
projects in Libya, through their team of experts who conduct research in various parts of
Libya;
2. World and international organisations, such as UNESCO and its partner
organisations: ICOMOS, ICUN, ICCROM and WHC, as well as UNDP and UNWTO;
3. Government organisations and authorities concerned with the environment, heritage and
education such as the Environment General Authority, the Ministries of Tourism,
Agriculture, Water Resources, and the General Water Authority;
4. Individual experts and scientists – nationals and expats –who have interest in the Libyan
Desert and its natural and human heritage;
5. Local communities, local authorities and non-government organisations and societies, in
different parts of the country, especially in the areas to be preserved;
6. Oil companies working in the area and other stakeholders who may have interest in the
areas.
Some of these oil companies working in the Fezzan have already accepted the obligation of
taking part in the planning and development of some of the areas that they have been working in
for several years, namely the area of Messak Sattafet, which has already been heavily impacted
by the oil industry for more than two decades. Other areas may also fall in the same category,
such as Idhan Murzuk, Idhan Obari, Wadi Al-Ajal, Adrar Akakus and Al-Haruj Al-Aswad.
The task should start very intentionally by setting up a multi-disciplinary task force that can
initiate the program for the work and follow-up its development.
The Ministry of Culture and Civil Society has already been officially advised to follow such a
path. Once the process starts it will take a few years to put the plan together and set up priorities
before the actual work on conservation starts.
Prior to the 17 February Revolution of 2011, the Libyan government decided to improve the
management of cultural heritage in order to be able at a later stage to develop cultural tourism. It
had an agreement with the World Bank for assistance in this regard. The main objectives of the
task were to support the sustainable management of antiquities in the country through
institutional strengthening and capacity building of the Department of Antiquities and also to
have a strategy for conservation.
In December 2011, a final report entitled Strategy for Cultural Heritage Protection was issued.
The strategy included three main strategic components:
A. Institutional strengthening and capacity building of the Department of Antiquities, where the
key issues are decentralisation, the recruitment of additional trained staff, the adoption of new

5. and up to date management tools, the formation of a new department responsible for
architectural and urban heritage and, finally, the introduction of a structured training programme.
B. Recording and interpretation, where the main issues are the creation of a national heritage
inventory and a number of specialised units for research.
C. Conservation, where the key issues are the adoption of new regulatory and institutional tools,
the creation of specialised conservation structures and awareness-raising within the general
population.
The document also recommended a three-phase action plan that was to be implemented within
five years. The report indicated, however, that the recommended strategy could be used as a
guideline and be modified and updated according to the needs and priorities of the Government.
The document states:
“This document can be used by decision-makers in a variety of different ways: either as the basic
structure of a strategic action plan to be adopted by the Administration or, alternatively, merely
as a basket of strategic measures, recommendations and ideas from which to draw when
deciding on future policy.”
The report could provide good background information for launching a major study to set up a
Heritage Conservation and Preservation Master Plan.
Meanwhile, the UNWTO has an agreement of cooperation with the Ministry of Tourism, by
which the UNWTO will assist in developing the tourism industry in Libya, and specifically will
assist in the development of heritage sites in Jebel Nafusa in northwestern Libya for future
cultural tourism.
International organisations,especially UNESCO and its partners, will continue to offer more
technical and advisory assistance if they are asked. They have already published some very
important manuals that are practical tools for individual countries to use for the preservation of
various kinds of heritage sites. Some of these important tools are:
 Managing Tourism at World Heritage Sites – a Practical Manual for World Heritage Site
Managers. Published by UNESCO World Heritage Centre, 2002.
 Enhancing our Heritage Toolkit – Assessing Management Effectiveness of Natural World
Heritage Sites. Published by UNESCO World Heritage Centre, 2008.
 Preparing World Heritage Nominations (Second edition, 2011) Published by UNESCO,
2011.
Other international organisations that were involved in the preparation and production of these
important publications include: ICCROM, ICOMOS, IUCN, UNEP, UNF and TEMA.
Until proper actions are taken to protect the Sahara desert and its treasures we will see the
deterioration of the Libyan heritage sites continue, and it may accelerate even further in the
coming years to a point of no return.

6. The following are a few examples of natural and human degradation and human misuse of
Libyan heritage sites:
Gazelle horns (at left two males; right three females) found in a small area east of Al-Haruj Al-
Aswad. This is evidence of the indiscriminate hunting of the endangered animal. With the wide-
spread prevalence of weapons after the 17th February Revolution, mass killing of these rare
animals has accelerated even further, especially along the western borders of the country (Photo:
Courtesy of Ahmed Muftah)
Satellite image of part of Messak Sattafet Plateau surface at El Fil Oil Field. Part of the airstrip is
visible in the northern part of the image. Messk Sattafet is one of the fragile heritage areas in
Libya, with hundreds of engravings on the sides of various wadis and millions of archaeological
artifacts scattered on the surface of the plateau and wadi edges. Many of these artifacts were lost
mainly as a result of oil exploration and exploitation activities in the last two decades. Oil
activities in the Messak not only caused direct loss of artifacts, but also opened many new tracks

7. through the difficult terrain, which enabled other visitors and tourists to reach all the areas that
previously were protected by their inaccessible position.
A domesticated bovid engraving with deep incisions in Messak Sattafet. This engraving has
deteriorated as a result of natural weathering and erosion (note the surface weathering and the
deep joints that are breaking the engraving). Unless these valuable art pieces are repaired
straightaway many of them will be lost forever (Photo: courtesy of R. and G. Lutz)
Irreplaceable prehistoric grinding stones, in situ

8. Prehistoric ceramics and a rare stone hand axe. Every year the desert wind exposes thousands of
theses artifacts that lay around the old desert lakes and between the dunes in the Libyan Desert.
These artifacts are usually picked by some of the visitors–especially the smaller size artifacts–to
be kept as souvenirs, or by some artifact hunters who trade them overseas.
This is the last in the present series of articles by Mustafa J. Salam on the natural and human
heritage of southern Libya. He will, however, be returning with a series on the heritage of the
Jebel Nafusa in north west Libya.
Read more: http://www.libyaherald.com/2014/06/27/libyan-desert-rich-in-natural-and-human-
heritage-but-challenges-for-protection-preservation-and-conservation/#ixzz35sMm3kNd