At the second meeting of the ‘Transition Support Group in Mali’, which took place in Togo on Monday, Malian Foreign Minister Zeïni Moulaye committed to holding presidential elections in March 2022. Promisingly, this abides by the 18-month timeline that was agreed to by the military junta in a Transition Charter last September following the coup in August. The meeting was co-chaired by the United Nations (UN), the African Union (AU), and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
Following the meeting, Moulaye declared, “The presidential election is what interests everyone. In principle, it will take place in March 2022.”He added, “Within the framework of the next elections, there will be a new CENI [Independent National Electoral Commission] which will include at the same time representatives of the administration, representatives of the political class, representatives of the civil society.”
In fact, in late February, the interim Prime Minister (PM), Moctar Ouane, said that he is working towards reforming the constitution and decentralising power and holding negotiations with jihadists. Critics, however, say that progress is being hindered by the over-representation of the military in the government.
In fact, Colonel Assimi Goïta, who led the coup last August and is now the Vice President, has hinted that he may put forth his candidacy for the March 2022 election. Such suggestions have generated anger from citizens, particularly the M5 group, which placed an inordinate amount of pressure on President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta and PM Boubou Cissé to resign prior to the military coup.
The new interim government came into power following a military coup on August 18, in which erstwhile President Keïta and PM Cissé were ousted from power. Thereafter, Mali’s military junta, headed by Assimi Goïta, appointed former defence minister Colonel Major Ba N’Daw as Mali’s interim president for 18 months. N’Daou then appointed former foreign affairs minister Moctar Ouane as the country’s new prime minister.
Aside from the former PM’s complicity in the disputed parliamentary elections last April, Keïta was also criticised for his failure to tackle jihadist elements in the north that are now spreading to the centre and his inability to control the ongoing economic crisis.
His ouster, however, has done little to curb insurgencies in the country. Extremist violence has tainted Mali since 2012, which marked the rise of a brutal jihadist insurgency in the region. In recent months there have been multiple deaths of French soldiers and UN peacekeepers.
In light of this continued instability, PM Ouane has put in place a plan to recruit 25,000 more soldiers. Furthermore, despite earlier hinting at the withdrawal of troops due to public discontent against French military presence, French PM Emmanuel Macron backtracked last month at the G5 Sahel summit, when he said that France would be “re-engaging” its forces” to “decapitate” the Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), the Group to Support Islamic and Muslims (GSIM), and other terrorist groups. Chad, too, agreed to deploy 1,000 troops to the shared border of Niger, Burkina Faso, and Mali.
The Malian interim government’s decision this week to honour its pledge to hold elections after 18 months could push the international community to re-double its efforts to tackle insurgencies in the country. Nevertheless, they must remain wary of the military junta’s shaky commitment to handing over control to civilian authorities.
Malian Interim Government to Hold Elections in March 2022, Honouring Transition Charter
The interim government of Mali, led by a military junta that came into power following a coup in August 2020, has honoured its commitment to holding presidential elections after 18 months.
March 10, 2021
Malian Interim President Ba N’Daw (L) with Vice President Assimi Goïta SOURCE: AMADOU KEITA / REUTERS