Although Mali has no cause to be envious of other African countries where democracy is concerned, there is always room for improvement. For various population strata to be involved in the decision‑making process and truly participate in improving their fate, much effort is still needed, and the Quebec NGO SUCO (Solidarité Union Coopération) is working on just that thanks to the support of the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA).

After colonization and years of dictatorship, Mali has had a democratically‑elected government for the past 15 years or so; however, governance is not always very democratic.

“There isn’t really a democratic culture in Mali. Previously, nobody was elected in the villages. Politicians managed villages from afar, while the Councils of Elders were responsible for everyday life. Following the pressures from the World Bank to implement its decentralisation policy, the first elections in rural areas were held in 1999,” explains Bernard Aubin, Program Manager for Africa with SUCO.

Village Associations
To help instil a type of participatory democracy, SUCO begins by convening villagers in the public square in order to address issues that affect them.

“We discuss a variety of issues: from village management to globalization to the environment. We are also setting up a Village Association with all segments of the population to manage the village’s development. By doing so, we hope that all villagers truly learn about democracy and have a greater control over what determines their growth,” says M. Aubin.

For the program to take shape, certain rules need to be followed, both by SUCO and the villagers. “We are setting up a real partnership with the village. In order for each session to begin, 25% of the population over age 15 must be present. If that number is not reached, the session is cancelled; after two cancellations, the partnership is suspended. We do not work without a purpose or against the wishes of the people.” says Bernard Aubin.

In exchange, SUCO is committed to guiding the village for two or three years— until its citizens begin to see real improvements in their conditions of life—and to giving a resource envelope to the Village Association.

Resource Envelope
The funding comes once the Village Association is well in place: when the villagers have explored the issues and established priorities. When the Association receives the resource envelope from SUCO, it is free to invest it however it sees fit “on the condition that the investment generates revenue,” points out Mr. Aubin.

“Villagers often consider health as their priority, for example; however, because healthcare does not generate revenue, they are not authorized to invest in it. The rule exists because we want to ensure that the investment is sustainable. It would not be worthwhile for villagers to invest in healthcare and eventually have no money to maintain their investment,” he says.

Thus, Village Associations often invest in agriculture and improving means of production. “For example, family may be loaned money to buy cattle, a plough or all other equipment that could help improve their food security with a small cash crop. Because the country has poor rainfall distribution, and therefore has periods of drought, such revenues are essential when the granaries are empty. Village Associations also loan money to women to set up small businesses or to improve the shea butter process technique,” explains Bernard Aubin.    

The families must gradually reimburse their loans with interest. “After several years, when a Village Association has met the main needs of families and that the fund has substantially grown with interest, it is possible to invest in another area without revenue, life healthcare,” says Mr. Aubin.  

A Motivated Community
Although some leaders in control of the development money may be reluctant to join NGO projects, the Malian community generally reacts favourably to the participatory democracy model proposed by SUCO. It does, however, entail a big change in their traditional culture.  

“Culturally‑speaking, Malians do not question the authority of their parents and never challenge that of their elders. To involve all segments of the population in the discussion, including women and youth, and rally them to important issues for the village, is all very new to them,” says Mr. Aubin.   

It seems, however, that the redistribution of power is nevertheless established quite actively. “The elders cannot deny that the old operating procedure, which set aside most of the community, was inefficient. Having no decision‑making power, the youth wanted to leave the country, which is why we saw many go to Europe in a rowboat with all the risks that it entailed. By involving the youth in the decision‑making process, we slowly give them hope,” says Mr. Aubin, adding that SUCO now hopes to enrich and influence the Mali government’s practice thanks to its field experiment.      

Article traduit par: Hélène Jutras