Agency Goal: Stabilizing World Population Growth and Protecting Human Health

Mali's high population growth rate of 3.2% is an obstacle to economic growth and political stability. USAID is targeting youth under 25 years old as the demographic group whose behaviors must change in order to reduce population growth. USAID is helping young mothers to improve their child care skills, encouraging young people to practice contraception, and supporting basic education.

In 1995, USAID's child survival work with private voluntary organizations (PVOs) led to a significant reduction in infant mortality, malnutrition and child morbidity in several geographic areas. Primary school enrollment increased by 4%, with USAID assistance. As the major donor in the family planning sector, USAID claims much of the credit for the 59% increase in national contraceptive prevalence rates in 1995. While nationally, contraceptive rates increased to 7%, USAID-funded PVOs in several limited geographic zones helped raise contraceptive prevalence rates to above 55%. These levels are especially noteworthy given that, in 1987, the national rate was 1.3%.

Despite the significant progress made, the percentage of couples practicing modern birth spacing is extremely low. Government family planning and health services need continued strengthening at the central level, but they are not capable of meeting the needs of the entire country. Since health services are delivered at the regional and local levels mainly through the initiative of local communities, USAID is targeting a large portion of its assistance directly to communities and using the private sector to respond to the large latent demand for family planning. Mali's extremely low school enrollment and literacy levels are barriers to increasing the use of contraceptives. Therefore, USAID is convinced that its investment in primary education, and particularly girls' education, will increase the impact of its family planning activities.

The Malian Government's campaign to pass decision-making authority to locally elected bodies will create a more supportive environment for community initiatives in family planning, health and education. Communities will have greater liberty and greater resources to organize their own health centers and schools. USAID, working through PVOs, plans to provide significant resources in FY 1997 to support these activities.

Agency Goal: Building Democracy

Following the revolution of 1991, Malians installed a stable system of constitutional democratic governance. The transition government oversaw elections leading to the first democratically elected government in 30 years. The advent of democracy inspired Malians to create thousands of citizens' groups. However, Malian institutions, both governmental and nongovernmental, are very weak. As a result of the current decentralization campaign, new local governments will be elected. As part of a multi-donor effort to improve governance at all levels, USAID is focusing on preparing the civil society to be a full partner in governance with the newly elected local governmental bodies.

In FY 1995, USAID sponsored several activities to support democratic governance. With USAID support: (a) the Association of Mayors met to plan a strategy for improving the confidence of the population in local institutions; (b) a seminar on local finance helped a locally elected city council increase tax and service revenues by 400%; (c) a survey of citizen opinions on rural services will now guide decision-making by community organizations and local governments, (d) civic education training sessions took place in three regions in preparation for redistricting, the first step in decentralization; (e) women parliamentarians were trained in constitutional law; and (f) 17 private voluntary organizations received grants during the year for work in a variety of development sectors.

Mali's community organizations face numerous obstacles in playing responsible roles within a system of democratic governance. Their members are frequently illiterate and lack basic organizational skills. Poorly developed advocacy skills impair their ability to carry out development activities. Under the democratic governance strategic objective, USAID will help Malians to address all of these issues. Under the information and communication special objective, community radio stations and facilities for printing local newspapers will take on a stronger role in civic education.

By 1997, new locally elected governments are expected to be in place. These fledgling governments will benefit from working in partnership with community organizations. USAID funding will help these organizations to be ready for the new partnerships.

Mali is a Sahelian country with a fragile environment. Population growth is putting increasing pressure on natural resources. While the country is now able to export more food than it imports, the effort to feed increased numbers of Malians will force some farmers to use environmentally risky farming practices. USAID has addressed these issues by funding agricultural research, extension, and private voluntary organization (PVO)- managed natural resource management activities, and by encouragingthe revision of the country's Forestry Code. The sustainable economic growth strategic objective will address environmental constraints to increasing productivity on a sustainable basis. The youth strategic objective will encourage the integration of environmental education into the primary school education curriculum. It also will train youth in income-generating activities that are natural resource-based and designed to protect the environment. The governance strategic objective will help community organizations advocate for more appropriate natural resource management policies. The information and communication special objective will help Malians learn about environmental policy, issues and practices.

USAID's investment in agricultural research and extension has resulted in considerable increases to production. USAID interventions have influenced 14,000 farmers in one geographic zone to adopt 17 environmentally appropriate technologies for increasing their production. USAID also helped animal slaughterhouses to better manage their waste products. With USAID support, the revised Forestry Code was widely distributed in 1995. Communities throughout Mali increased their income through working with USAID-funded PVOs to better manage their natural resources.

The newly elected rural governments will be delegated significant authority to manage the resources in their districts in 1997. USAID will help them to identify those environmental issues that have the greatest impact on sustainable economic growth. Environmental education relevant to local conditions will be integrated into primary school curriculums. If other environmental issues at the regional and national levels are judged to constrain economic growth, USAID will help to address them in partnership with the Malian Government and other donors.

USAID Mission Director: Joel Schlesinger

PROGRAM: MALI
TITLE AND NUMBER: Sustainable Economic Growth, 688-S002
STATUS: New
PROPOSED OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY 1997: $17,882,891 DFA
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1997; ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2002

Purpose: To increase the value-added of specific economic subsectors to national income.

Background: Mali's past economic performance has led to low per capita incomes. The long-awaited 1994 currency devaluation needs to be joined with a variety of technical, regulatory and economic factors to enable Malians to take full advantage of the resulting economic opportunities. Continuing macroeconomic reform now needs to address comprehensively the structural constraints in some of the subsectors contributing most to economic growth: livestock, cereals, financial services and non-traditional products. This USAID program consolidates the ongoing Animal Productivity and Export and the Upper Niger River Development projects, and also incorporates all or part of the following projects: Food and Agricultural Policy Support, Strengthening Research Planning and Commodities Research, and Private Voluntary Organization Co-Financing. This new program supports the Malian Government's commitment to a focus on subsectors. Improved policy coordination among West African countries will contribute to the success of this program.

USAID Role and Achievements to Date: USAID's assistance focuses on agricultural research and extension, resolution of marketing problems, privatization, export promotion, mobilization of savings, and microenterprise. USAID-sponsored research resulted in the adoption of two new cropping practices and eight new technologies in several geographic zones, increasing farm productivity and income. USAID has contributed to achievement of a 30% increase in agricultural production and a 25% increase in the value of agricultural exports since 1988. Growth in grain production outpaced growth in population during this same period. With USAID assistance, rural credit has more than doubled since 1989. USAID investments in the livestock sector helped producers and traders to increase the value of exports by two-thirds following the 1994 devaluation.

Description: For each subsector, results sought will include an improved policy and regulatory environment, better use of technology, improved skills, and increased access to relevant information. For livestock, activities include improving commercial transport and regional trade policy, improving production techniques, business training, and development of a livestock information system. For cereals, activities include developing the analyses needed for the Malian Government to improve trade policy and land tenure, funding business training, developing information systems, funding research and extension, promoting exports, and encouraging diversification in food processing. For financial services, activities include developing an appropriate regulatory framework, funding business training, and encouraging the creation of and training of non-bank financial institutions. For non-traditional products, activities include eliminating export policy constraints, establishing a market information system, improving export infrastructure, and helping financial institutions to understand the needs of exporters. Together, the private sector emphasis of this program and USAID's participatory approach are expected to create the demand needed to sustain these activities after USAID funding ends.

Host Country and Other Donors: In 1993, USAID, the World Bank and France were the largest donors in agriculture and natural resources. Other major donors included Germany, the Netherlands, the European Union, Denmark, the African Development Bank and Japan. Several donors, along with the Malian Government, jointly manage a cereals marketing reform project;USAID is an active player in this body. In its work with another group focused on reform of the rice sector, USAID identified the need for and supported the privatization of four large rice mills. Donor coordinating bodies in the sectors of livestock and agricultural research meet regularly. While the donors finance the investment budget of the Malian Government, the government funds the human resources associated with donor projects.

Beneficiaries: The program will have its greatest impact on the rural areas, where 80% of the population lives. It also will help increase employment and income in the urban areas, particularly through support of the microenterprise activities of women and artisans. Increased personal income will have the indirect effect of increasing both consumption of locally produced products and government tax revenues.

Principal Contractors, Grantees, or Agencies: USAID will implement these activities through contracts with Title XII universities, such as Washington State and Texas State Universities; a disadvantaged enterprise, RONCO; and grants to U.S. PVOs, such as Appropriate Technology International.

Major Results Indicators: Baseline (1995) Target 1

Value-added from financial services $40,000 $150,000
Value-added by the livestock sector $208 million $252 million
Value-added by the cereals sector $56 million $80 million
Value-added by non-traditional products $630,000 $1.2 million

Purpose: To make targeted community organizations effective partners in democratic governance, including development decision-making and planning.

Background: After the March 1991 revolution, Mali committed itself to a multi-party democracy and a policy of decentralization. Malians demanded a democracy in which local populations could participate in decisions related to their daily lives. After extensive analysis of democratic governance in Mali, USAID concluded that its program impact would be increased significantly through promoting a system of democratic governance in which community organizations, as the base of civil society, participate as equal partners in sustainable national development efforts.

USAID Role and Achievements to Date: USAID's efforts have focused on policy reform and support to local nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and community organizations (such as community school management committees, producer associations, health committees and village associations). As a result, these community organizations have been able to manage their own schools and community health centers effectively and to manage their income-producing activities better. More importantly, they have engaged in civic actions for the benefit of their members. USAID activities contributed to the participation of civil society in development decision-making and advocacy, resulting in increased primary school enrollment and basic health coverage in Mali. USAID funded two private voluntary organizations in their efforts to help dozens of villages form school committees to build, manage and finance their own schools. The Cooperative League of the USA received USAID funding to help village committees lobby successfully for privatization of rural transportation. With support from USAID, the Near East Foundation helped community organizations to lobby for reform of the government's forest management policy. USAID also helped community health centers throughout Mali to federate. World Education received USAID funds to improve the capacity of student-parent associations to advocate and work for better school conditions.

Description: USAID focuses its activities on two major areas: (1) helping target community organizations to engage in democratic governance and civic actions primarily at local levels; and (2) helping put in place an enabling environment that empowers community organizations and representative partner organizations. To help community organizations engage in democratic governance and civic actions, USAID will strengthen the capacity of local NGOs, federations and representative partner organizations, fund local NGOs and federations to support community organization democratic self-governance and civic actions, and assist target representative partner organizations to represent community organization interests effectively at the local level and beyond. To help put in place an empowering enabling environment, USAID will identify and address constraints in existing regulations affecting community organizations. It also will carry out civic education campaigns on decentralization, voter education, and laws and policies affecting community organizations.

Host Country and Other Donors: The Malian Government is in the process of implementing decentralization. Many donors are supporting the government in these efforts, including the World Bank, the United Nations Development Programme, France, Germany, the European Union, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Canada. The government is funding the costs of personnel and management.

Beneficiaries: Community organizations at village and commune levels are the major beneficiaries. These institutions are regarded as the most representative of Malian civil society. Over the planned life of this program, USAID Mali will reach approximately 750 community organizations in 20% to 25% of the country's communes.

Principal Contractors, Grantees or Agencies: USAID will implement activities through private nonprofit organizations, including U.S. PVOs such as World Education.

Major Results Indicators: Baseline 1 Target 1

Percent of total target community organizations that have TBD TBD
affected two or more development decisions.
Number of regional/national government decisions that TBD TBD
target intermediary non-governmental and community
organizations have affected.
Percent of target community organizations that have TBD TBD
formed good partnerships with local governments in
delivering services.
Percent of target communes in which new community TBD TBD
organizations have formed during the year.
Percent of target communes in which non-target community TBD TBD
organizations adopt civic action practices.
Percent of target community organizations that have TBD TBD
expanded their development services and activities.

_____________________________________
1 To be determined

PROGRAM: MALI
TITLE AND NUMBER: Youth, 688-S001
STATUS: New
PROPOSED OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY 1997: $18,233,032 DFA
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1997; ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2002

Purpose: To change social and economic behaviors among youth in targeted geographic areas.

Background: USAID has made significant investments and achieved important results in the sectors of health, family planning and basic education. While these activities are essential for Mali's development, USAID concluded that they could be more effective if they were better integrated and coordinated. Mali, like many developing countries, has a population where over two-thirds are younger than 25. Reducing population growth and increasing economic growth cannot be accomplished without targeting those younger than 25. Many young people are now making child-bearing decisions and engaging in economic and environmental management activities that will impact Mali's future. Eventually, these Malians and those even younger will constitute the country's most productive human resources. Therefore, USAID will target its child survival, family planning, basic education, environmental education and job skill development activities to youth. The Malian Ministries of Health and Basic Education, as well as the Presidency, understand and support this approach. They believe that in addition to improving the quality of life, a true focus on youth will lead to greater political stability. The program integrates activities in four ongoing projects--Community Health and Population Services, AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Diseases Awareness and Prevention, Malaria Prevention, and Basic Education Expansion--as well as several grants under the Private Voluntary Organization Co-Financing project. To maximize impact, program services will be concentrated in targeted geographic areas.

USAID Role and Achievements to Date: USAID is targeting children and youth from birth to the age of 25. Activities include child survival, basic education with an emphasis on girls, environmental education, job skills, reproductive services, HIV/AIDS, and development of youth groups. With USAID assistance, infant mortality has decreased, in some targeted areas dropping from 108 to 49 per 1,000 since 1989. Out of each 1,000 girls entering primary school, the average number completing sixth grade has increased from 236 in 1990 to 388 in 1993. The number of girls entering first grade has increased by 83% since 1990. Enrollment in grades one through six has increased by 60% in the six years of USAID intervention, 1990-1995. As the main donor involved in family planning, USAID can claim much credit for the increase in the national contraceptive prevalence rate from 1.3% in 1987 to 7% in 1995. In Bamako, the rate increased to 13%. Due to USAID efforts, almost 100% of women with the highest risk of contracting AIDS report that they use condoms. Use of condoms is key to reducing the transmission of the HIV virus.

Description: The results sought by USAID with respect to youth include increased availability and access to targeted social services, improved quality of targeted social services, and increased demand for targeted social services. For child survival, activities include the training of traditional birth attendants in safe birthing, post-natal and first-aid techniques, the development of child-to-child health education programs, and assistance to youth in the management of village pharmacies. For basic education, activities include renovating, building and equipping schools with community participation, revising curricula and training teachers, supporting policy reform and consciousness-raising regarding girls' education, performing market research into appropriate employment opportunities, and improving training in basic employment skills. For reproductive health services, activities include helping Malian leaders and health service providers to be aware of key concerns in this area, focusing social marketing of condoms on youth, establishing youth clinics within health centers, supporting the health information system, and financing a demographic health survey. Forenvironmental education, job skills and youth groups, activities include: training youth groups in literacy, numeracy, management and technical skills; helping youth groups engage in social marketing of contraceptives and natural resource management activities; and developing a microenterprise program for youth. Investing in youth rather than in the population at large is an effective way to focus resources and sustain the desired behavior changes, since young people will pass on the behavior to succeeding generations.

Host Country and Other Donors: USAID was the fourth largest donor in health, social development and human resources in 1993, after the World Bank, Canada, and the United Nations Children's Fund. Other major donors include Japan, the Netherlands, Germany, and Switzerland. The World Bank coordinates two multi-donor projects, one in health and family planning and one in education, which provide fora for donor coordination. Under the multi-donor education project, USAID is the second largest donor. Other major donors include France and Canada. USAID coordinates its assistance in basic education with other donors' assistance to secondary education. The Malian Government funds the human resources associated with these projects.

Beneficiaries: Youth in targeted geographic areas will be the major beneficiaries of this program. However, services will not be denied to Malians over the age of 25. Services will be integrated within targeted geographic areas to have the maximum effect on the youth in those areas.

Principal Contractors, Grantees, or Agencies: USAID will implement these activities through contracts with private firms, such as John Snow, Inc., and grants to U.S. PVOs such as Africare and Save the Children.

Major Results Indicators: Baseline 1 Target 1
Youth increase their use of family planning services. TBD TBD
Youth stay in school to complete the primary TBD TBD
six grade cycle.
Youth increase use of health services. TBD TBD
Youth have income-generating activities, TBD TBD
once they are trained.

_____________________________________
1 To be determined

PROGRAM: MALI
TITLE AND NUMBER: Information and Communications, 688-SP01
STATUS: New
PROPOSED OBLIGATION AND FUNDING SOURCE: FY 1997: $750,000 DFA
INITIAL OBLIGATION: FY 1997; ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: FY 2000

Purpose: USAID seeks to achieve improved access to, and facilitated use of, information.

Background: Reliable and timely information is essential to any society's social, economic and political development. In Mali, full access and capacity to utilize information are limited. Information is difficult to access and manage because telecommunication systems are underdeveloped, mass media have just begun to spread throughout the country, literacy rates are low, access to official data is controlled and limited, and national libraries do not exist. These factors, combined with Mali's present economic, political and social environments, indicate the great value of activities concerned with expansion of information and communication. Malians need information that is useful, well-organized, and applicable to their lives to benefit both themselves and their country.

USAID Role and Achievements to Date: USAID is collaborating with French Cooperation, the Food and Agricultural Organization, and the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) in developing this program. These donors plan to complement USAID's efforts in expanding Internet access. CIDA's efforts focus on financing telecommunications infrastructure (i.e., making it available), while USAID will build on its experience in developing development information and communications systems. Several private voluntary organizations (PVOs) in Mali have launched well-received activities to provide information access over the past few years. For example, the Near East Foundation sponsors a rural radio station in northern Mali, the Cooperative League of the U.S.A. is sponsoring a rural newsletter, and CARE (the Cooperative for American Relief Everywhere) and Africare sponsor newsletters on various technical topics.

Description: Activities under this program will not produce or create information per se, but rather will focus on expanding the dissemination of existing information.

The information and communication program consists of four main areas of activities:

(1) Right of access to public information--this component will involve a thorough telecommunications policy analysis, and propose legislation similar to the U.S. Freedom of Information Act to make public information readily accessible to all Malians;

(2) Access to information in rural areas--this activity will promote the dissemination of information in rural areas through the funding of community-operated radio stations and printing facilities;

(3) Access to information through national and local institutions--under this activity, selected schools, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), PVOs, the local Chambers of Commerce and Agriculture, and others will have access to information via Internet connections and hook-up to local networks. Also under this component, an information resources center will be established at USAID for providing access to the Internet and CD-ROM libraries.

(4) Access to information on Mali via an Internet Web site--under this activity, a number of "pages" will be set up on the Internet's World Wide Web to provide business, investment, cultural, tourist, educational, and other information on Mali.

Activities under this program will draw expertise as appropriate from the Leland Initiative, the newly authorized Internet connectivity project of USAID's Africa Bureau.

Host Country and Other Donors: The Malian Government is interested in information and communications as one of the eight themes it presented at the Donor Round Table for Mali held in 1994. It has established policies supporting community-owned rural radio and is working with USAID to insure its policies promote the use of the Internet and increased access to government information. USAID has collaborated with the Canadians in the development of its information and communications program. Canada is expected to become a significant donor in this area.

Beneficiaries: It is expected that all levels of Malian civil society will benefit from this program.

Principal Contractors, Grantees or Agencies: USAID will implement this program primarily through the private sector and with grants through private nonprofit organizations, including U.S. PVOs and local NGOs. These organizations have not yet been identified.

Major Results Indicators:
Baseline 1 Target 1

Percentage of total population covered by radio TBD TBD
Increased access by public and institutions to Internet TBD TBD
Freedom of Information Act legislation passed TBD TBD

________________________
1 To be determined.