The European Union steps up its support to Mali
Commissioner Mimica will meet with the President of Mali Ibrahim Boubacar Keita and attend high-level meetings on development and migration. Furthermore, together with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mali and National Authorizing Officer, Abdoulaye Diop, he will sign several projects of cooperation, worth a total amount of €67 million.. , These projects are mainly financed by the EU Emergency Trust Fund for Africa and will directly contribute to long-term peace and development in Mali. They will focus on improving food security, local development and security, resilience of the most vulnerable people, as well as on improving access to education. These projects will support the implementation of the Peace Agreement signed in June 2015.
Ahead of his visit, Commissioner Mimica said: "The EU's commitment to the stabilisation and development of Mali has been constant, increased during the 2012 crisis, and continues to be strong. EU' support to Mali for the period 2014-2018 amounts to more than 1.7 billion euros. We stand by the Government and hope that reforms will be accelerated so that people can see the peace dividends."
Peace and national reconciliation will also be important subjects during the different meetings, given the worsening security situation in the north and centre of the country. The two parties will also discuss the state of play of measures taken to implement the Valletta Action Plan.
Background
Under the 11th European Development Fund (EDF) for 2014-2020, the four sectors of priority are: rule of law and state consolidation (€ 280 million); agriculture (€ 100 million); education (€ 100 million), and infrastructure (€ 110 million). These measures will be complemented by measures to strengthen civil society.
Mali is one of the five priority countries for the new Migration Partnership Framework, and one of the main beneficiaries of the EU Emergency Trust Fund for Africa.
Under the EU Emergency Trust Fund, € 91.5 million have already been approved for Mali, and the country is one of the main beneficiaries of the EU Emergency Trust Fund. This includes projects that support national reconciliation and better migration management through the protection, return and reintegration of migrants, especially within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). The Trust Fund also aims to support economic development and job creation, especially for youth, and to prevent radicalisation.
A first Annual Action Plan was signed in 2015 for a total amount of €295 million, to directly support the implementation of the Peace Agreement. It is comprised of a second State Building Contract (€220 million), a project for road maintenance/jobs for youth (€20 million), Education (€20 million), food security for Gao, Kidal, Mopti and Timbuktu (€30 million) and support to national administration (€5 million).
The Annual Action Plan 2016 (€120 million) is currently under preparation and will also contribute to the implementation of the Peace Agreement, as well as to economic development. It will do so by supporting agriculture and job creation programmes (€50), improving infrastructure (€60 million) and supporting security sector reform (€10 million).
More info
Website of Commissioner Neven Mimica: http://ec.europa.eu/commission/2014-2019/mimica_en
On EU funded projects in Mali:
http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/countries/mali_en
IP/16/3210
Press contacts:
General public inquiries: Europe Direct by phone 00 800 67 89 10 11 or by email |