Kouroukan Fouga

According to the "Epic of Sundiata", Kouroukan Fouga or Kurukan Fuga was the constitution of the Mali Empire created after the Battle of Krina (1235) by an assembly of nobles to create a government for the newly established empire.
According to oral tradition of the "griot" poets of Mali and Guinea, the Kouroukan Fouga established the federation of Mandinka clans under one government, outlined how it would operate and established the laws by which the people would live. The name "Kurukan Fuga" is a toponym, translating to "clearing on granite / lateritic rock", referring to the plain near the town of Ka-ba (present day Kangaba) where the narrative has Sundiata Keita present the charter.
The "Manden Charter, proclaimed in Kurukan Fuga", was inscribed in 2009 (4.COM) on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity kept by UNESCO.
Reconstruction.
The earliest extant versions of the "Epic of Sundiata" were collected in the 1890s, and the first close transcription dates to 1967. As an instance of oral history, the epic does not exist in a fixed form.
An attempt to "reconstruct" the Kouroukan Fouga from oral tradition was made in 1998, in a regional workshop held in Kankan, Guinea, with the aim of publishing and preserving the oral history related to the area's "djeli" or "griots". Assisted by modern communicators and Guinea linguists under the supervision of Siriman Kouyaté, the workshop transcribed and translated the laws and edicts preserved in different regions from the core of the Mali Empire.
Kouyaté judged his reconstruction as being "a relatively faithful reproduction of a charter created in the fourteenth century". Djibril Tamsir Niane in an interview went as far as claiming the reconstruction was a "declaration on the rights of man" drafted "in 1236".
The English version of the charter was re-published by Mangoné Niang, Director of CELTHO/UA (Niamey), with a short commentary prepared by Siriman Kouyaté, as an annex to the "Working Documents" for the "Inter-generational Forum on Endogenous Governance in West Africa" organised by Sahel and West Africa Club / OECD, Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso), 26 to 28 June 2006.
According to Niang's introduction, 
Niang lists ten "traditional communicators" on whose authority the text was reconstructed.
Siriman Kouyaté, the author of the reconstruction, is listed as one of the ten authorities.
Niang adds that "the original text in Malinke is available on the digital data bank ARTO".
The ten sources are listed as follows:
Siaka Kouyaté, Niagassola, Siguiri (Guinea),
Lamine Kouyaté, Loïla, Mandiana (Guinea), 
Damissa Sékou Diabaté, Siguiri (Guinea), 
Koulako Touré, Faranah (Guinea), 
Mamady Kante dit Konkoba, Dinguiraye (Guinea), 
Old Koita, Kérouané (Guinea), 
Sekouba Condé, Dabola (Guinea), 
E. Oumar Camara, Kankan (Guinea), 
Abdoulaye Kanouté, Tambakounda (Senegal), 
Siriman Kouyaté, Niagassola, Siguiri (Guinea).
Contents.
The reconstructed Kouroukan Fouga, as published by Kouyaté, contains 44 edicts. They are divided into four sections concerned with Social Organization (edicts 1-30), Property Rights (edicts 31-36), Environmental Protection (edicts 37-39) and Personal Responsibilities (edicts 40-44).
The Kouroukan Fouga divided the new empire into ruling clans (lineages) that were represented at a great assembly called the "Gbara". There were 16 clans known as the "Djon-Tan-Nor-Woro" (quiver carriers) responsible for leading and defending the empire. There were also 4 clans known as the "Mori-Kanda-Lolou" (guardians of the faith) who guided the ruling clans in matters of Islamic law. There were 4 "nyamakala" clans (people of caste) who had the monopoly on certain trades, which included but was not limited to smelting, woodworking, and tanners. Lastly, there were 4 clans of "djeli" (masters of speech) who recorded the history of the empire through song. Combined these would make up the 29 seat "Gbara" at the plain of Kouroukan Fougan (named after the event where Sundiata "divided the world"). The 30th seat was likely occupied by the mansa's "djeli" called the "belen-tigui" (master of ceremonies), or may have been reserved for a female monitor since the constitution states women are to be represented at all levels of government (edict 16).
Article 7 institutes the "sanankuya" (a type of cousinage or joking relationship that is a longstanding West African social tradition) as a civic duty.
Kouyaté in his commentary draws attention to paragraph 20, dealing with the humane treatment of slaves.