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| >> AFR Regional Overview >> Mali Overview | |||||||||
IntroductionAssistance to Mali is concentrated in five strategic areas: additional access to improved health care and basic education, increased economic opportunities and income, strengthened civil society through community organizations, improved access and use of development information, and lasting establishment of national and regional stability. These key objectives are closely integrated with the U.S. Mission Performance Plan wherein many political and economic interests of the United States match with those of Mali. Mali continues to be a politically and economically sound partner with the United States, striving for regional stability and expansion of trade in West Africa. Malian President Konare has accepted the chairmanship of the Economic Community of West African States for an additional year through 2001, with conflict mitigation and enhanced regional trade as top priorities. Mali actively participates in the Leland Initiative, the Africa Food Security Initiative, the Education for Development and Democracy Initiative, the Micro-enterprise Initiative, the Heavily Indebted Poor Country Debt Reduction Initiative, the Internet for Economic Development Initiative, and the Africa Trade and Investment Policy Program. The Development ChallengeMali is a poverty-stricken nation, without significant natural or economic resources. The infrastructure is very limited, per capita income is about $250 per year (6 million people, equal to 60% of Mali's population, are living under the poverty line), and literacy is roughly 30%. About 80% of the populace lives in rural areas and engages in subsistence agriculture. However, the democratically elected Government of the Republic of Mali (GRM) continues to implement forward-looking policies that are liberalizing the economy and the political system, and are expanding programs in education and health. Advances are hampered by the population growth rate, which continues to increase the burdens on social services and the economy. Over 60% of the population, equal to more than 6 million youth, are under 25 years of age. Access to primary education is now being rapidly expanded but still only reaches a total of 58% of the school age population (48% for girls) at the primary school level. Food production during the last two years has exceeded national requirements, but Mali remains vulnerable to unreliable rainfall for most agricultural activities. Decentralized decision-making and influential civic action are progressing steadily, with communal councils operating nationwide. Access to development information through rural radio and Internet has made great strides since 1997 (when USAID supported introduction of the Internet in Mali), but does not approach that of more developed nations. Stability in the North, both political and economic, is still tenuous, although improvements can be noted. Other DonorsIn 1999, bilateral, multilateral and bilateral donors provided an estimated $370 million in assistance to Mali. The United States is a major donor, having provided roughly 10% of Mali's total donor assistance. Other major donors (in order of importance) include: European Union, France, the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Japan, United Nations agencies, Germany, the Netherlands, Canada, Norway, Switzerland, and Belgium. FY 2002 ProgramMali continues to make steady progress in education and health, in economic growth, and in democratic governance. Building on this progress, USAID's support under Strategic Objectives defined in the Country Strategic Plan period (1996-2002) is helping: 1) to improve access to, demand for and quality of services to help youth become more productive citizens; 2) to increase economic growth through investment in major economic subsectors; and 3) to help community organizations work with the government to enhance the quality of life in Mali. USAID also supports a cross-cutting Special Objective that improves access to and use of development information, generating increased impact of these three objectives. Certain activities related to the three objectives are part of a second Special Objective that focuses on northern Mali work to improve political and social stability through integration of northern ethnic groups into Mali's political, economic and social structures. During 2000, USAID met or exceeded most performance targets set in the Mission's performance measurement plan and is currently on track to reach the goals laid out in the Mali Country Strategic Plan. A Food for Peace P.L. 480 program is not being conducted in Mali, although "monetized" Food For Peace resources (generated elsewhere from Title II commodity sales) are used to finance Malian development activities. Mali's current Country Strategic Plan (CSP 1996-2002) is nearing completion and USAID is in the process of designing a new Country Strategic Plan for the 2003-2012 period. Building on the lessons learned and successes of those activities supported under the CSP 1996-2002, the new strategy, entitled Promoting Economic Growth and Combating Poverty Through Development Partnerships, will continue its strategic focus on the sectors of health, education, economic growth, and democratic governance. Key lessons learned highlight the importance of giving development programs the appropriate implementation time needed to demonstrate their full potential benefits and outcomes. Most notably, the success of many grassroots activities is a direct outcome of long-term investments. The timing is appropriate for transitioning into a new strategic plan, moving into areas of focused needs where USAID can have the greatest impact. Global HealthUSAID's assistance emphasizes expansion and improvement of community health services, improvement of family planning practices, and greater access to health facilities. As the major donor in Mali, USAID has a direct positive impact in family planning assistance. Programs in child survival and reproductive health are contributing to reductions in child mortality and decreases in the population growth rate. Access to health care and availability of family planning services continues to improve, but the population growth rate and mortality figures are still distressingly high. The GRM's National ten-year Health Plan for improved health delivery has now been operating for just two years, with demonstrated improvement in the management of health services resources. Economic Growth and AgricultureUSAID's sustainable economic growth activity identifies and addresses the obstacles to increasing the value added of production, processing and marketing in some of the country's most important economic subsectors. Overall economic growth for 2000 has exceeded 5%, with USAID-supported sectors matching that growth target. USAID supports rice production, which has increased 20% since 1996. Cattle offtake has better than doubled since 1996. The democratic governance activity is helping over one thousand community organizations advocate for improved policies and infrastructure. In 2000, USAID supported activities met or exceeded most of their performance targets for community organizations. By facilitating the use of information resources, e.g. the Internet and community radio stations, the information and communication activity is increasing Malian access to development and business-related information. In 2000, the information and communication activity exceeded all information access and coverage performance targets (radio coverage and number of institutions assisted with Internet connections). The North assistance activities, working towards economic and social parity of the North with the southern regions of the country, have also made positive progress: 547 new income-generating activities were started, 26 new schools were built with over 2,700 children enrolled, and 66 water points were established or renovated. All of USAID's objectives contain activities for building human capacity. Along with other donors, USAID is working within the framework of the GRM's new ten-year Education Development Plan (1998-2007). USAID's activities in establishing community-managed and community-financed primary schools contribute significantly to increasing primary school enrollment. Through activities implemented by U.S. private voluntary organizations, over 1,500 classrooms have been built since the inception of the strategic plan in 1996, pushing primary school enrollment up by more than an additional 10%, a gain largely attributable to USAID's support. All activities are ahead of performance targets. All USAID-supported grants and contracts contain training components. USAID's efforts have now helped bring radio coverage to over 75% of the populace. Additionally, USAID's support of Internet user training and the doubling of the number of Internet service providers have brought a new wealth of information to thousands of Malians. USAID is working with Malian communities in the agricultural sector to become more efficient producers and to increase farmer incomes through agricultural best practices and better management of their natural resources. USAID continues to expand its Integrated Pest Management activities and to promote better management of forests and other natural resources by local communities. Adoption of improved agricultural practices grew, with 1,900 farmers adopting better farming and forestation practices in 2000. Conflict Prevention and Development ReliefIn 1999, communal elections were held throughout Mali for the first time ever. Newly elected local leaders are assuming decision-making responsibilities in partnership with citizens, community associations and civic action groups. Various activities for strengthening the capacity of local organizations to operate effectively for the benefit of their members continues to be the central focus of the Democratic Governance Objective. Over 1,000 community organizations were assisted and the majority operates effectively and democratically. Foods For Peace commodities are monetized in Chad by an U.S. private voluntary organization that uses part of those funds to support food security initiatives in Mali. Activity Data Sheets
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