UN agency assists Mali to rebuild Timbuktu

However, they need an additional $8 million to finish the rehabilitation of the site and of libraries that could again store hundreds of thousands of Malian manuscripts.

"We are looking for $11 million," UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) Representative to Mali, Lazare Eloudou Assomo, said.

The UN agency has been able to gather around $3 million through bilateral cooperation and other funding, he said, but "if we don't have the $8 million, it would be difficult for us to implement our activities".

Timbuktu was an intellectual and spiritual capital and a centre for the propagation of Islam throughout Africa in the 15th and 16th centuries.

The ancient texts date back as far as the 13th century and cover a range of topics, from astronomy to poetry.

The library was constructed by the South African government in an effort to preserve Africa's heritage and intellectual property.

According to UNESCO, the three mosques and the 16 mausoleums comprising the property are part of the fabled city that was once home to 100,000 inhabitants.

The site was heavily destroyed by occupying extremists after fighting broke out in January 2012 between government forces and Tuareg rebels.

The conflict uprooted hundreds of thousands of people and prompted the Malian government to request assistance from France to stop the military advance of extremist groups.

In March, local masons with the support from UNESCO and the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilisation Mission in Mali which is mandated in part to support the government in cultural preservation, laid the first earthen brick to reconstruct two of the mausoleums.

"It's a long and complex task. The monuments look very simple in their architecture but they are complex structures," said Assomo.