VZCZCXYZ1228
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHBP #0643/01 2791153
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 061153Z OCT 09
FM AMEMBASSY BAMAKO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0764
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC

UNCLAS BAMAKO 000643 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR S/GPI AND S/P 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: BEXP BTIO EAID OEXC OIIP PGOV PHUM PREL SCUL
SMIG, TSPL, EINV, ML 
SUBJECT: MALI REACHES OUT TO ITS DIASPORA 
 
REF: STATE 86401 
 
1.(SBU) Summary: Over four million Malians, or roughly one 
quarter to one third of all Malians, live outside of Mali. 
While the largest numbers of Malian emigrants live in nearby 
Cote D'Ivoire and Senegal, there are also significant 
communities in France, Spain, and the United States.  Mali's 
expatriates are highly organized, and remittances constitute 
a sizeable portion of Mali's foreign exchange earnings.  On 
September 29, PolOff met with Mamadi Traore, 
Secretary-General of the Ministry of Malians of the Exterior, 
to discuss the Malian government's efforts to maintain 
relations with and offer support to its compatriots living 
abroad.  End Summary. 
 
------------------ 
Land of Emigrants? 
------------------ 
 
¶2. (SBU) On September 29, PolOff met with Mamadi Traore, 
Secretary-General of the Ministry of Malians of the Exterior 
and African Integration.  According to Traore, the Malian 
diaspora is four million strong, representing a quarter to 
one third of all Malians.  Traore admitted the strongest 
pressure behind Malian emigration is poverty and lack of 
economic opportunity in Mali, but also noted that foreign 
travel is a valued Malian cultural tradition, repeating the 
Malian joke that when Neil Armstrong landed on the moon, a 
Malian vendor approached trying to sell his wares.  Although 
the largest numbers of Malian emigrants are in neighboring 
countries such as Cote D'Ivoire and Senegal, there are also 
significant Malian communities in France and Spain. 
According to the Embassy's consular section, Malian 
communities in the United States can be found in New York 
City, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Arizona. 
 
¶3. (SBU) The Malian diaspora is highly organized.  Malian 
diasporans have formed associations at the level of each host 
major host country, with delegates representing that host 
country's association in the Mali-based High Council of 
Malian Expatriates.  The purpose of the High Council is to 
bring difficulties of expatriates to the attention of the 
Malian government, and assure representation of expatriates 
in domestic political discussions.  In addition, Malian 
expatriates join "village associations," consisting of 
expatriates who originate from the same town or village in 
Mali.  This is facilitated by tight kinship networks that 
result in many Malians from the same village emigrating to 
the same location abroad. 
 
--------------------- 
An Economic Necessity 
--------------------- 
 
¶4. (SBU) The Malian diaspora contributes significantly to the 
economy of Mali in the form of remittances.  According to the 
World Bank, remittances from Malian expatriates totaled 177 
million USD in 2006, or 3.3% of Mali's GDP that year. 
Similarly, remittances form a large share of Mali's foreign 
exchange, equivalent to 18 percent of its total exports and 
surpassing livestock and cotton exports as a source of 
external income.  The national figures fail to reflect the 
importance of the remittances for individual communities, as 
the number of emigrants (and remittances) is highest in rural 
areas that have been hardest hit by the vagaries of an 
agriculture-based economy. 
 
¶5. (SBU) In addition to remittances, the village associations 
pool financial resources in order to fund small 
infrastructure improvements in the community of origin.  Such 
improvements include wells, schools, clinics, and even 
mosques.  Traore provided the example of his home village of 
Yelimani, in Kayes region.  Yelimani is one of a group of 12 
closely-knit villages, which were formerly served by one 
school building built by the French in 1956 and which had no 
primary health care facility.  According to Traore, village 
associations abroad paid for the construction of small school 
houses and simple health clinics in each of the 12 villages. 
 
---------------------------------- 
The Government sees an Opportunity 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) The Ministry of Malians of the Exterior and African 
Integration was originally a division of the Ministry of 
Foreign Affairs.  In 2004, the Direction was upgraded to 
Ministry status because the Malian Government recognized that 
the massive Malian diaspora represented Mali's largest 
untapped asset.  Today, the Ministry's role includes both 
assisting Malians abroad (e.g., the Minister recently 
traveled to Libya to argue for improved conditions for 
Malians held in detention there) and facilitating 
opportunities for members of the Malian diaspora to re-invest 
in Mali.  For example, the Ministry arranges for Malians 
abroad with advanced degrees in domains where local knowledge 
is lacking to return to Mali to teach courses at local 
universities and training colleges. 
 
¶7. (SBU) The Ministry's most difficult task is convincing 
expatriates to invest in business opportunities in Mali. 
Traore said that Malian expatriates have the same misgivings 
about investing in Mali as do foreign businesspersons -- 
lack of infrastructure, high rates of corruption, 
bureaucratic hurdles, etc.  The Ministry attempts to allay 
those concerns by facilitating contacts between Malian 
expatriates and local businesses and financiers that can 
serve their needs. 
 
--------------------- 
Managing the Diaspora 
--------------------- 
 
¶8. (SBU) As Mali's dependence on its diaspora has grown, so 
too has the need to deal with the concerns of host countries 
facing large numbers of illegal economic migrants.  Mali has 
entered into a number of immigration accords with several 
European countries -- although not yet France -- to control 
the flow of Malians across the Mediterranean Sea.  In 
addition, Mali is currently serving as the site of a Pilot 
Project known as CIGEM, short for Center for Information and 
Management of Migrations.  CIGEM's purpose is to locate 
employers in Europe in need of temporary labor and match 
those employers up with Malians willing to provide that 
labor, who are then provided temporary work visas in the 
European Union.  If the CIGEM project is a success, it will 
be expanded to other West African nations. 
 
¶9. (SBU) Malian expatriates have found a variety of methods 
to participate in the political life of their nation.  Malian 
expatriates, who are able to vote at Malian diplomatic 
missions in their host country, are actively courted by 
politicians seeking office.  Recently, the President of the 
up-and-coming Malian party CODEM, Housseini Guindo, traveled 
to Cote D'Ivoire, in part to address a crowd of thousands of 
Malians resident in that country.  Malian expatriates are 
also exceptionally active on Malian interactive news websites 
and blogs, including www.maliweb.net and http.kidal.info. 
 
¶10. (SBU) Embassy is not aware of any time the Malian 
government has specifically requested the assistance of the 
diaspora in disaster relief, nor has the diaspora 
distinguished itself as either a hindrance or a help in 
matters of conflict resolution. 
 
-------------- 
Embassy's Role 
-------------- 
 
¶11. (SBU) To date, the Embassy has not engaged in any public 
diplomacy outreach specifically targeting the Malian 
diaspora.  While the Embassy has been contacted by Malian 
expatriate groups, those contacts have primarily solicited 
financial support only, and current Embassy staff do not 
recall any specific instance in which the Embassy was able to 
fund the project proposed, either because the project bore no 
relation to the Embassy's strategic goals, or because of 
budgetary limitations.  More generally, PAO believes current 
budgeting levels do not allow for a robust public diplomacy 
program that is aimed specifically at Malians living abroad. 
The Embassy POC for this submission is Fred Noyes, who can be 
reached at (223) 2070 2533 or noyesfn@state.gov 
 
BARLERIN