The Timbuktu region in Mali was a treasure trove of African literature up until armed groups showed up in town. Century-old manuscripts, some of them from Northern Nigeria, were about to be burned. Korans, poems, mathematic treaties, you name it, all kinds of texts. Incredibly, Timbuktu families managed to hide them and transport them away. Now, the manuscripts are threatened not with fire, but with water: they made it though the centuries thanks to the desert climate, but mildew in their newfound hiding places is going to destroy them very soon unless something is done. There is some crowdfunding effort going on, will it be enough to protect this global heritage? Time will tell.

Source, pics, links, video, interview: http://en.starafrica.com/news/you-can-save-the-timbuktu-manuscripts-interview-abdel-kader-haidara-stephanie-diakite.html