Pony: The Association of Students and Professionals of Culture and Tourism (AEPCT) carried out a clean-up operation at the ruins of Loropeni on Saturday, mobilizing more than a hundred participants to preserve and enhance the first Burkinabe site inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2009. Staying in the locality as part of UNESCO's "World Heritage Volunteers" programme, the Association of Students and Professionals of Culture and Tourism (AEPCT) invaded the stony enclosure of Loropeni to clean up the guide circuit and clear the accesses.

According to Burkina Information Agency, the representative of the regional director in charge of the Culture of Dj´r´, Guillaume Kam, stated that this action gives visibility to the site which had been difficult to access for a while. "Thanks to the efforts of the SDF and the VDP, access is now secure. What the AEPCT is doing reinforces not only the promotion, but also the preservation of these ruins, which had become dense," he said.

For Ludovic Mano, president of the organising committee, the intervention of the AEPCT responds to a civic duty towards the national heritage. "We were motivated by the desire to contribute to the protection and enhancement of cultural heritage, especially here in Loropeni, the first site inscribed on the World Heritage List," he explained. He said that their 10-day stay included "four awareness-raising activities and four practical activities, carried out from November 20 to 30, including conferences-debates and cleaning sessions."

The site guide, Alexis Dourbiel, welcomed the initiative, stressing that it contributes to raising awareness of the importance of this common good inscribed on the World Heritage List. In addition to sanitation, the participants were encouraged by the local authorities who visited the site to congratulate the volunteers and urge them to continue this type of community engagement.

Through this project, the AEPCT intends not only to make the site more attractive and accessible, but also to strengthen the awareness of communities for the sustainable preservation of the ruins of Loropeni, a true historical treasure of Burkina Faso.