Mali

Belgium, which is determined to actively contribute to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals, is strongly committed to fighting poverty on the sides of the State of Mali. To meet its commitments, Belgian cooperation in Mali has decided to concentrate mainly on two sectors:

• Rural development and food security;
• Support to the decentralisation and deconcentration reform (launched by Mali in 1993).

Mali, the 5th poorest country in the world according to the United Nations (2009), is a Sahel country with no access to the sea; over the three last decades it has been confronted to a succession of droughts.

The direct consequences of these natural disasters were enormous losses in local agricultural production and a dramatic impoverishment of the population.
The Azawak zebu selection and breeding project in the north of the country, for instance, has enabled more than 355 families to rebuild a zebu herd, prime source of their economy. Likewise, a project in Timbuktu aims at strengthening the production, processing and commercialisation of wheat, a local crop, in view of reviving the regional economy

The support to the decentralisation and deconcentration reform is the second concentration area of Belgian cooperation in Mali. The granting of more responsibilities and resources to local authorities is essential for local embedment and democracy, local development and the fight against poverty. With its activities in the Koulikoro region BTC strengthens the capacities of local elected representatives and their administration through training sessions and the support of operational management. It also finances a series of tools and infrastructure needed for the good functioning of decentralised institutions. The purpose of this national reform, in which Belgium is involved, consists in enabling local authorities to respond from nearby to the daily needs of the population.

BTC also intervenes with targeted expertise in other sectors such as access to drinking water, health, disarmament and peace-building in the northern regions, education and urban sanitation. In this last sector, for instance, BTC has conducted a complete programme of waste collection, sorting, destruction and recycling in the city of Sikasso. The installation of a garbage collection system, including public garbage bins, and the construction of a public waste dump, which is unique for west Africa, aim at a sanitized environment for the population.

Besides the projects and programmes financed by Belgium, BTC also executes activities financed by other donors, such as the European Union, for whom it technically supports the economic development projects for the northern regions. BTC also supervises bridge construction sites for the Republic of Cyprus.