Malians take great pride in their ancestry. Mali is the cultural heir to the succession of ancient African empires--Ghana, Malinke, and Songhai--that occupied the West African savanna. These empires--well-organized political groupings that brought security and prosperity to large regions--based their strength upon control of Saharan trade and were in touch with Mediterranean and Near Eastern centers of civilization.

The Ghana Empire, dominated by the Soninke people and centered in the area along the Malian-Mauritanian frontier, was a powerful trading state from about A.D. 700 to 1075. The Malinke Kingdom of Mali, from which the republic takes its name, had its origins on the upper Niger River in the 11th century. Expanding rapidly in the 13th century under the leadership of Soundiata Keita, it reached its height about 1325, when it conquered Timbuktu and Gao. Thereafter, the kingdom began to decline, and by the 15th century it controlled only a small fraction of its former domain.

The Songhai Empire expanded its power from its center in Gao during the period 1465-1530. At its peak under Askia Mohammad I, it encompassed the Hausa states as far as Kano (in present-day Nigeria) and much of the territory that had belonged to the Mali Empire in the west. It was destroyed by a Moroccan invasion in 1591.

French military penetration of the Sudan (the French name for the area) began around 1880. Ten years later, the French made a conceited effort to occupy the interior. The timing and method of their advances were determined by resident military governors. A French civilian governor of Sudan was appointed in 1893, but resistance to French control was not abrogated until 1898, when the Malinke warrior, Samory Toure, was defeated after 7 years of war. The French attempted to rule indirectly, but in many areas they disregarded traditional authorities and governed through appointed chiefs. As part of the colony of Soudan, Mali was administered with other French colonial territories as the Federation of French West Africa.

In early 1957, as a result of France's Basic Law (Loi Cadre), the Territorial Assembly obtained extensive powers over internal affairs and was permitted to form a cabinet with executive authority over matters within the assembly's competence. After the 1958 French constitutional referendum, Sudan became a member of the French Community and enjoyed complete internal autonomy.

In January 1959, Sudan joined Senegal to form the Mali Federation, which became fully independent within the French Community on June 20, 1960. The federation collapsed on August 20, 1960, when Senegal seceded. On September 22, Sudan proclaimed itself the Republic of Mali and withdrew from the French Community.

President Modibo Keita, whose party, the Union Soudanaise, had dominated pre-independence politics, moved quickly to declare a single-party state and to pursue a socialist policy based on extensive nationalization. A continuously deteriorating economy led to a decision to rejoin the Franc Zone in 1967 and modify some of the economic excesses.

On November 19, 1968, a group of young officers staged a bloodless coup and set up a 14-member Military Committee for National Liberation (CMLN) with Lt. Moussa Traore as president. The military leaders renounced socialism and attempted to pursue economic reforms but for several years faced debilitating internal political struggles and the disastrous Sahelian drought.

The first moves toward a return to civilian rule occurred in 1974 when a new constitution was approved, but the military leaders declared they would remain in power for 5 more years to implement the political transition. In September 1976, a new political party was established--the Democratic Union of the Malian People (UDPM)--based on the concept of nonideological democratic centralism. Presidential and legislative elections occurred in June 1979, when Moussa Traore, the CMLN military leader, received 99% of the votes and became the first president under the new constitution. Student problems, coupled with three coup attempts in 1980, gave the appearance that efforts to move away from a military government were doomed. The political situation stabilized during 1981 and 1982. Students and teachers jailed in the 1980 riots were released. Since then, student unrest has been quelled. The UDPM began attracting additional members as it demonstrated that it could offer an effective voice against the excesses of local administrative authorities. The government shifted its attention to economic difficulties, approving plans for an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), cereal marketing liberalization, reform in the state enterprise system, and new incentives to private enterprise. In 1988, the government negotiated a 3-year structural adjustment facility with the IMF and a major public enterprise reform program with the World Bank. The government also is pursuing a cereals marketing reform program.

Current Political Conditions

The president is chief of state, head of government, secretary general of Mali's sole political party, and minister of defense. Gen. Moussa Traore was re-elected president for a second 6-year term in 1986. The cabinet--Council of Ministers--consists of 16 ministers nominated by and reporting to the president and administers government policies.

The National Assembly is the sole legislative arm of the government. Its 137 members--deputies--are apportioned one for every 60,000 inhabitants of Mali's districts, known as cercles. Elections are held every 3 years, most recently in 1988. The National Assembly meets for two regular sessions each year, during which it considers the budget and other issues. The assembly debates proposed legislation in closed sessions and offers confidential advice to the government, but it has never been known to reject legislation.

According to the constitution, UDPM is the country's supreme political authority. A 19-member Central Executive Bureau (BEC) directs party activities at the cabinet level and takes precedence over the cabinet. The BEC is the most powerful political institution in the country. The party structure parallels the structure of the government from the local to national level. The UDPM pursues the mobilization of the popular will. All Malians are encouraged to be members. Its most recent elections were open to all party members desiring to run, and many posts were actively contested by multiple candidates.

Administratively, Mali is divided into seven regions and the capital district of Bamako, each under the authority of an appointed governor. Each region consists of five to nine districts, or cercles, administered by commandants. Cercles are divided into arrondissements and arrondissements into villages.

Military officers hold five of the seven positions as governor and approximately 25% of the posts at the cercle and arrondissement level. Larger towns elect their own municipal councils and mayors.

Mali's legal system is based on codes inherited at independence from France. New laws have been enacted to make the system conform to Malian life, but French colonial laws not abrogated still have the force of law. The judicial system is an arm of the executive. The apex of the judicial structure is the Supreme Court.

Source: U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Public Affairs, December 1989.