Mali

Mali is a very poor country. Almost half of the population lives below the national poverty line. Life expectancy is just 59 years. About twelve per cent of the people living in Mali are undernourished or malnourished. Almost one fifth of the country’s children are underweight. In 2022, just 53 per cent of people had access to electricity. In many places the effects of climate change are destroying pastures and causing poorer harvests. More and more people are competing for ever fewer natural resources which is leading to violent clashes. Attacks by terrorist groups, especially in central Mali and the border regions to Niger and Burkina Faso, are adding further to the suffering.

Defence Minister Pistorius and Development Minister Schulze arriving in Niger

The political situation in Mali is fragile. In 2012, an uprising of separatist Tuareg and rebel groups in northern Mali plunged the country into a severe crisis. Since that time, several UN missions have been put in place to stabilise Mali and restore the authority of the state and protect the civilian population. The last UN stabilisation mission, MINUSMA, was closed in December 2023 at the request of Mali. After two coups (2020 and 2021) Mali is now in a transition phase. Parliamentary and presidential elections were announced several times but have been postponed every time with reference to the transition process.

The BMZ is not satisfied with the lack of progress on democracy in Mali since the military coups in 2020 and 2021. But Germany has a huge interest in supporting Mali. As in Niger, Burkina Faso and Chad, livelihoods in Mali must be safeguarded in order to make the Sahel as a whole a safer place.
For German development cooperation, this means that it will be continued in Mali. However, for the time being, this will not be a return to the regular development cooperation with Mali’s government like before the coups. Instead, activities will be implemented without involving the government.

This means that still no funding will be channelled directly to the central government. Instead, the funds go to subordinate authorities, municipalities, civil society organisations and international organisations that then use the funding for concrete projects. In addition, development cooperation focuses on efforts that improve the living conditions for the people, for instance by creating new jobs in agriculture, developing climate-smart farming methods and improving water supply.

Current situation

Social situation

Living conditions are very hardInternal link

Mali's population is characterised by vast ethnic and cultural diversity – and a large proportion of the people are living in extreme poverty.
Economic situation

Most of the population works in agricultureInternal link

The two mainstays of Mali's economy are agriculture and mining. This means that the country is heavily dependent on world market prices for its two most important export goods, cotton and gold.