Mali is a landlocked West African country, and while its territory reaches deep into the Sahara Desert, most of the population lives in the southern part of the country in the Sudanian savanna. The last decade has been turbulent, with armed conflict breaking out in early 2012, followed by a military coup. Since then, insurgencies have gathered pace, and two more coups (2020 and 2021) have taken place, the first of which overthrew the civilian government.

Despite many challenges, Mali has one of the youngest populations in the world with a median age of just 16 years old. However, nearly 20% of the population suffers from food insecurity and 42% live below the poverty line. Nearly a quarter of Malian children are malnourished. Combined with natural disasters and armed conflict, Mali is at a critical juncture.

• Our work in Mali has reached nearly 6,000 program participants, including 1,240 young people (aged 16–35 years).

• We’ve worked with 60 professional training centers and local businesses to build capacity locally.

• Our work has involved 190 members of conflict mediation committees.

• We’ve supported upwards of 900 community members who directly carry out peace projects

RET is proud to have launched operations in the country in late 2022, directly supporting tens of thousands of program participants with a project that includes three pillars:

Employability and income opportunities

Food security

Peaceful community relations

Our current project will run through 2025 and focuses on empowering vulnerable women and youth in the Segou region through vocational training, business management as well as agricultural practices courses, and conflict mediation committees.

In Mali, we have collaborated with government agencies, training centers, and local civil society organizations like ALPHALOG and REFOR to realize this project.