UPDATES FROM THE MALI HEALTH TEAM 
The impact of US foreign aid cuts in Mali
The abrupt shutdown of USAID and US foreign aid is having devastating effects that feel too numerous to count. In the short term, critical programs have ended nearly overnight, and we are all still wrapping our minds around the long-term effects so that we can find a...
Unprecedented flooding in Kalabambougou
During this year's rainy season, Mali has experienced extraordinary flooding. Several regions were hit hard, including Bamako. Bamako is particularly vulnerable to flooding, particularly communities along the Niger river, like...
Improving livelihoods and food security by reducing organic waste
The Gnaman ni Sôrô ani Kènèya project has entered its third phase. Women and youth in three peri-urban communities are building a local, circular economy designed to create sustainable livelihoods and address environmental health and...
Sustaining quality: partners earn recognition for health data quality
In a very crowded hotel meeting room in Bamako, brimming with dozens of dignitaries and officials from all levels of the health system along with a wide variety of partners, a special award ceremony recognized the winners of a unique...
Maternal health equity is an urgent challenge that can be solved
Worldwide, we are losing ground on maternal health outcomes. Maternal deaths are rising in many parts of the world, and we are not on track to meet SDG 3.1: Reduce the global maternal mortality ratio (MMR) to less than 70 per 100 000...
Investing in health workers, from the ground up
During World Health Worker Week, let’s remember that communities and patients are not just the recipients of health worker services, but investors in them.
Advocating for the community health system in Mali’s national quality improvement strategy
Since Mali Health began our participatory quality improvement work nearly ten years ago, we have worked directly with 28 community health centers (CSComs) and 11 health districts. Though we focus on overlooked peri-urban communities, we...
Meet Mandy Tounkara
Late on a Tuesday afternoon in October, when the sun descends to a favorable height, you could walk about 300 meters from a bank of the Niger River and find Mme. Mandy Tounkara, at work in her vegetable garden. In the peri-urban...
Meet the women of Coopérative Bènkadi in Sanankoro
One morning in March, at the beginning of Mali’s hot season, we went to meet Fatoumata to learn more about the activities of the women of Sanankoro, and their cooperative. Despite the blazing heat, 40° C (104° F) in the shade, Fatoumata...
Collecting data and waste for Gnaman ni Sôrô ni Kènèya
The following are excerpts written by Adam Aicha Hanne, an MPH – PharmD student who spent her summer practicum working with the Mali Health team in Bamako. She worked on the Gnaman ni Sôrô ni Kènèya project with the Community Capacity...