The rains and flooding of summer 2009 is widely acknowledged to be the worst to have ravaged West Africa over the past 90 years. Although the coastal area of Burkina Faso is regularly affected by heavy rainfall and flooding, due to the rupturing of a dam, this is the first time that Ouagadougou has actually been affected. The devastating impact of the floods on the Cinémathèque was widely reported in the media, so the Prince Claus Fund sought out contact with its Director in order to offer CER’s assistance. The Cinémathèque of Ouagadougou is often referred to as the “memory of African cinema”. Its unique collection (some 3500 films) consists of the greatest and oldest works of African filmmakers originating from the whole African continent. Some of the film copies are unique and the only ones in existence. The archive is particularly valuable for its films from the colonial period (1920-1960) and from modern African filmmakers (1960-2000). Muddy floodwaters rose to over 2 metres in some spaces of the storage area, destroying one third of the film collection, as well as audio-visual, projection and office equipment and the archives. Based on the exceptional value of the collection and the urgency to treat the damaged film reels to prevent their further deterioration, CER is supporting emergency measures with a grant of 35.000 Euro.