Mali: Relief in Bamako after ECOWAS sanctions lifted

« I plan to leave tomorrow, Tuesday, for Abidjan to do some shopping! » Trader in Bamako, Kadiatou Coulibaly does not hide her satisfaction at being able to return to neighboring Ivory Coast after six months, in the wake of the lifting of the West African embargo against Mali, punished after two coups.

For several months, « it’s the same articles (in the stalls). I am very happy for the end of the embargo, » says this saleswoman of loincloths and other women’s items, in her forties, at the Halles de Bamako, one of the largest markets in the Malian capital.

« It is a great relief for the transport sector. All the drivers have resumed after the announcement of the lifting of the sanctions, » added Youssouf Traoré, president of the Malian Council of Road Transporters (CMTR), in this landlocked country which is essentially dependent on road trade with its West African neighbors for its supplies.

West African leaders lifted on Sunday in Accra the trade and financial sanctions decided in January against Mali, in the heart of the Sahel, scene of two military coups in August 2020 and May 2021.

The political crisis in this country goes hand in hand with a serious security crisis since 2012 and the outbreak of independence and jihadist insurgencies in the north.

The ruling colonels have given in to demands from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) by recently issuing a new electoral law and timetable that includes a presidential election in February 2024, during a transition limited to two years.

Individual sanctions and the suspension of Mali from ECOWAS bodies remain in place until constitutional order is restored.

The lifting of the embargo was the main point of discussion on Monday at the big market in Bamako. In addition to Abidjan, traders said they were considering shopping in Dakar, whose port receives some of the goods destined for neighboring Mali.

One week before Eid
The end of the blockade comes less than a week before the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, scheduled for July 9 in Mali where it is called Tabaski, traditionally an occasion for much spending.

Trader Kadiatou Coulibaly plans to go to Abidjan for purchases and « come back to sell them for the holiday. Women only like new things.

« We have to sell our sheep to our Senegalese and Ivorian brothers first, » a cattle seller told AFP recently, anonymously, in front of his animals in Bamako.

Mali, with its large herd of cattle and its large pastoral population, is one of the leading suppliers of livestock to the sub-region.

Members and officials of the Malian Shippers’ Council rushed to the organization’s headquarters in central Bamako on Monday.

« We believe that with the lifting of the embargo, economic and transport activities will resume towards West African countries, » said Mr. Traoré of the CMTR.

« We are coming out of a situation that has weakened many companies, » said Youssouf Bathily, president of the Mali Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The instability and sanctions have led to « a downward revision of gross domestic product growth estimates from 5.3% to 3.4% » for 2022 « and a deterioration of living conditions » in Mali, 42% of whose imports come from West African countries, according to a recent UN report.

Because of the sanctions, institutions such as the World Bank and the African Development Bank had suspended disbursements to Mali, which had also defaulted on payments, particularly on the West African financial market.

« During the embargo we found alternative solutions. We went through (the ports of Nouakchott) and Conakry » to bypass Dakar and Abidjan. « Our activities were stopped at 70%. We are now waiting for the State to accompany us in the tax system so that we can get off to a good start, » added Mr. Touré of CMTR.