By Asha Elmi - Reporter
DJIBOUTI, September 19, 2026 - Experts from the International Council on Monuments and Sites, an advisory body to UNESCO, are expected to conduct a technical assessment of Djibouti’s Abourma rock art site in October, the Djiboutian News Agency reported on Friday.
The assessment is part of the process for evaluating the site’s historical significance, state of conservation and management plan as Djibouti seeks its inclusion on UNESCO’s World Heritage List.
The planned mission was discussed at a meeting of Djibouti’s National Cultural Heritage Commission chaired by Youth and Culture Minister Fardouza Moussa Egueh.
The ministry has requested that two funding lines be included in the national budget — one to support the preservation of Abourma and another to finance the commission’s operations.
Participants were also presented with Abourma’s nomination dossier and management plan, along with heritage legislation and proposed rules governing the commission’s work.
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Abourma is located in the Makarrassou massif in Djibouti’s northern Tadjourah region. UNESCO describes it as the country’s most significant rock art site.
Thousands of engravings extend across nearly three km (1.9 miles), depicting people, hunters and animals including elephants, giraffes, hippopotamuses, rhinoceroses, antelopes, cattle, goats and camels.
The animals portrayed suggest that the area was once wetter and greener than it is today, according to UNESCO.
Abourma has been on UNESCO’s Tentative List since 2015, a register of sites that countries intend to nominate for World Heritage status.
Djibouti has not said when it expects a final decision on Abourma’s nomination.