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Engaging Parliamentarians in Mali

Sanitation and Water for All Secretariat
14 Mar 2023

Mali, a pioneer country of the SWA Mutual Accountability Mechanism (MAM), is structuring deliberations and actions around its commitments to water, sanitation and hygiene.

Last year, at the 2022 Sector Ministers' Meeting, the country reported that it had achieved almost all its previous commitments and is accelerating the rate of access to services.

Additionally, the country held its first dialogue on financing – a major achievement after financial partners had been reluctant in previous years to support the sector due to socio-political instability. The success of the dialogue spurred engagement with parliamentarians on water and sanitation, the revision of tariff structures and the finalisation of sector policies.

These achievements were made possible through the State’s financial efforts and partners which have rallied to support these commitments, as well as the robustness and stability of the Sector Consultation Framework. Additionally, multi-stakeholder collaboration through the SWA Committee in Mali, and new financing modalities such as partnerships with the private sector contributed greatly to this success.

The country has tabled several new commitments around which future collaborations will be structured including mobilizing resources to implement the newly adopted policies, accelerating access rates to services; managing and regulating rural services; effectively managing sector information, and ensuring that the water, sanitation and hygiene sector can access climate action funds.

Another key to the sector's success is awareness-raising and mobilizing political actors to act on behalf of the sector. To date, Mali has mobilized 18 parliamentarians and two Presidents of Parliamentary Commissions. Parliamentarians have a specific and important role to play in this regard, as evidenced by SWA’s Handbook for Parliamentarians which was launched in October 2022.

In an interview with SWA, two members of the SWA Committee in Mali, Boureïma Tabalaba, CN/CIEPA Coordinator, and Fousseny Traoré, Head of Advocacy at Action Contre la Faim, discussed the engagement of sector actors with parliamentarians and other policy makers to improve the sector's visibility and resources.

The below interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Why is it important for the sector to mobilize parliamentarians?

Because parliamentarians are representatives of the people and are responsible for voting on laws and overseeing government action, they play a significant role in guiding public and budgetary policies for the water and sanitation sector.

Parliamentarians have the power to influence the Prime Minister, the Minister of Finance, and other ministerial departments to prioritize water and sanitation issues. Also, parliamentarians have a lot of influence over government decision-making and can question ministers at any time about the execution of actions in favor of water and sanitation.

In the current context of Mali, the members of the National Transition Council (CNT) have the power to influence the government to recognize water and sanitation as fundamental human rights. Considering all these capacities of parliamentarians, the SWA Committee in Mali has initiated a collaboration with the parliamentary institution in the advocacy process for increased funding and recognition of water and sanitation as constitutional rights.

How does mobilizing parliamentarians complement other efforts in the sector?

The mobilization of parliamentarians has amplified many significant efforts of Mali’s water, sanitation and hygiene sector. These include:

  • The integration of human rights, equity and inclusion, governance and transparency in Mali’s National Water Policy (PNE), the National Sanitation Policy (PNA) and the eight associated programmes;
  • An increase in the State budget allocated to the sector;
  • Tariff reforms in the water sector and the review of the Commission de Régulation Eau et Electricité (CREE) in Mali;
  • The construction of wastewater treatment plants in Bamako and other major cities in Mali, as well as solid waste management in Bamako;
  • The creation of water agencies, water policing and financial contributions to water;
  • The recognition of water and sanitation as constitutional rights in Mali.

Can mobilizing parliamentarians help increase sector funding?

Without a doubt, if parliamentarians get involved with the SWA Committee in Mali, the State budget allocated to the sector will reach five per cent in a few years. The budgets of external partners could also increase through loan or donation agreements that parliamentarians can authorize to the government.

How did the launch of the Handbook for Parliamentarians generate momentum in your country?

The launch of the Handbook for Parliamentarians was an opportunity for the SWA Committee in Mali to present parliamentarians with the financial, legal, social and community welfare implications of water, sanitation and hygiene. Through the participatory approach developed, the SWA Committee was able to arouse the interest of parliamentarians and draw their attention to the opportunities that this Handbook offers them from the point of view of the country's development and its opening to the outside world. The launch day was captivating and full of emotion, which gave hope to the parliamentarians and other actors in the sector. The encouraging remarks made by the two presidents of the parliamentary committees demonstrate the level of commitment of the Malian parliament.

The strong mobilization of more than twenty parliamentarians, parliamentary assistants, university law officials, central water and sanitation services, representatives of partners, civil society leaders and the press attests to the enthusiasm that everyone has shown. It is important to note the presence of two parliamentary committee chairmen who, despite their plenary session that Thursday, deemed it important to be with the other parliamentarians. This gesture for us is the testimony of the interest that they wanted to carry to this day but also of all the consideration that they have for the SWA at the international level.

What are your next steps for engagement with parliamentarians?

For our next steps, we plan to organize a workshop on the Handbook for Parliamentarians so that we can develop partnerships with these political leaders and continue to advocate the recognition of water and sanitation as fundamental human rights. We will also reflect on the involvement of parliamentarians in financing opportunities related to climate financing.

Some of these activities will be made possible thanks to the catalytic funding that Mali has just been granted by the SWA Finance Working Group (SFWG). More broadly, we intend to continue the reform process, the validation of sector policies and the water code, the tariff review as proposed in 2022, and the commitments on service regulation.