Libya claims a place for its couscous in UNESCO's intangible heritage

Libyans gather around a giant couscous, at the site of the ancient Roman theater of Sabratha, about 70 km west of the capital Tripoli, March 10, 2023. In 2020, Algeria, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia jointly inscribed the dish inscribed on UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage. AFP - MAHMUD TURKIA

Text by: RFI Follow

2 min

Couscous, an emblematic dish of North Africa, made its debut in UNESCO's intangible cultural heritage at the end of 2020. Four countries - Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Mauritania - are on the list of countries preparing this popular dish, but not Libya. The Libyan state, in fact, has not acceded to the UN convention, but the Libyan authorities still want to show that couscous is part of its culinary traditions.

Advertising

The Libyan authorities recently organized a "national day" of couscous, for the third consecutive year.

The initiators of this day cooked a giant dish, with 2,500 kg of couscous seeds. The goal: to draw the world's attention to Libya's cultural heritage, but also to send a message to the Libyan parliament to adhere to the UNESCO convention.

In Libya, this popular delicacy comes in many variations. Ayman al China participated in the organization of this event: "We have in Libya, of course, several varieties of couscous... We have the onion couscous, with camel meat. We call it Msagu, it's our specificity. There is also couscous with offal, mutton, chicken, fish and then we have another Libyan specificity, couscous with elongated cabbage. It is a wild plant that grows in the mountains.

According to the organizers, joining this convention will not only preserve couscous: "Libya is rich in culture. Its heritage is not protected," they say.

Moreover, the association, at the origin of the event, aspires to an international recognition of the Libyan gastronomic and cultural heritage.

Every year, for the past three years, giant couscous has been organized at an important historical site. This year, the choice fell on Sabratha, an ancient city that was the starting point for camel caravans for Ghadamès and central Africa.

Libya claims a place for its couscous in UNESCO's intangible heritage

Libya claims a place for its couscous in UNESCO's intangible heritage

You may like

Trends 24h

Latest