05.01.12 Sahara Focus
New Saharan provinces in Mali
On 16th December, the Malian government announced that it was going ahead with
the plan to create two new provinces in the northern desert regions of Taoudéni
and Ménaka. Taoudéni is currently part of the Timbuktu region and Ménaka part
of
Gao.
This move is in accordance with the intention to increase the number of
provinces from eight to 19 over five years. While justified as part of the
state's
decentralisation programme, the creation of these two new provinces in
particular is
also an attempt to improve the security of the country's northern region. The
move will inject more administration into these largely ignored regions, as
well
as new military commands.
While the proposal appears to be welcomed by some sectors of the population,
notably the Arab community of Timbuktu, it is receiving mixed initial views
from
the Tuareg population. While some see it as a genuine move towards
decentralisation, others are wary that it will establish greater restrictions,
especially
militarily, over the predominantly Tuareg regions. The schedule for these new
regions
coming into practice is not yet established.
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© 2012 Menas Associates