Mali - Context and Land Governance

^{Photo: Community Farming in Gao, Mali, 2017, photo by United Nations. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 license.}

Livestock herding alone contributes 15% to the country’s GDP². The majority of the population lives off rain-fed agriculture and pastures, seasonal migration, and a range of activities, such as trading. The mining sector generates significant tax revenues but is well-known for corruption, and its negative social as well as environmental impacts.

In 1992 the government adopted a new constitution and put in place policies that aim at economic liberalization and political decentralization. Economic growth has remained strong despite recent coups d’état (in 2012, 2020, and 2021) which have further destabilized the country and its relations with its neighbors and European partners. While private land ownership is recognized, most land titles are found only in urban areas. Customary tenure and usufruct rights are dominant in rural areas. Since the adoption of the Agricultural Land Law in 2017 individuals can apply for a land title, for the first time, using evidence of customary rights as the basis for their claim. 

Deforestation is a major problem and conflicts related to land and water access are common throughout the country. This includes disputes between sedentary farmers and transhumant pastoralists over damaged crops, and access to water and pastures, intergenerational conflicts, women’s unequal access to land, and poor urban land use planning.

Land legislation and regulations

The Constitution of 1992 recognizes the right to own property and provides legal protection of property for all citizens. Primary legal instruments include the Pastoral Charter Law (2001), the Agricultural Orientation Law (2006), the Code on Territorial Collectives (2017), the State Property and Land Code (Land Code, amended in 2016), and the Agricultural Land Law (2017). The Land Code provides a legal framework for land transfers and expropriation and introduces the potential for establishment of land registers at commune level³.The Agricultural Orientation Law aims to enhance the agricultural sector with an emphasis on family farming, and women and youth empowerment⁴.

The Ministry of State Property and Land Affairs implements relevant national policies, including the Land Code, and manages State property. Moreover, it directs the National Directorate for State Property and the National Directorate for the Cadastre (or Land Registry) which administers the Land Book. In addition, the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Environment, Sanitation and Sustainable Development, the Ministry of Planning and Population, the Ministry of Livestock and Fish, as well as the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Decentralization have specific land-related responsibilities and decision-making powers. It is not always clear how such dispersed responsibilities are exercised effectively.

the National Directorate for the Cadastre (or Land Registry) which administers the Land Book. In addition, the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Environment, Sanitation and Sustainable Development, the Ministry of Planning and Population, the Ministry of Livestock and Fish, as well as the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Decentralization have specific land-related responsibilities and decision-making powers. It is not always clear how such dispersed responsibilities are exercised effectively⁵.Not only are the communes’ capacities limited but decentralization has also led to overlapping institutional authority and power vacuums⁶. The government itself describes its land administration as weak and ineffectively organized⁷.

Land tenure classifications

The Land Code of 2000 recognizes private land, and State land which is inalienable and comprises all untitled land including customary land, although this has now been changed as a result of the 2017 legislation (see below)⁸. There are six tenure types in Mali. Individuals or groups may obtain ownership through land titling (titre foncier) and registering private or customary land in the Land Book. Leaseholds and rural concessions may be granted by the State for up to 50 years. Permit rights are issued by government authorities and allow for residential use or the cultivation of irrigated land. Customary authorities may enter into agreements with individuals or groups who have the same customary rights with the option of receiving a validated certificate (attestation de transaction foncière)⁹. Moreover, pastoralists have access rights to natural pasture, fallow land, and post-harvest cropland for which fees may apply¹⁰.

Customary laws vary across Mali. To govern land access and use on an everyday basis, customary land systems continue to serve as the main land administration system. Generally, usufructuary rights for housing and farming are allocated by the male heads of first settler families in the form of leases, pledges, loans, or inheritance. Since the 2017 Agricultural Land Law, individuals or groups may obtain a customary land certificate (attestation de detention coutumière) which can be registered at the level of the commune¹¹. Non-indigenous families have traditionally made an arrangement for usufructuary rights with their landlords (known in French as “tuteurs”, or “jaatigi” in Malinké).

^{Kani Kambole, Southern Mali, 2013, photo by Göran Höglund (Kartläsarn). CC BY-ND 2.0 license.}

One third of Mali’s population say they feel insecure about their tenure¹². Reasons are manifold and range from a low literacy rate to the lack of knowledge about land registration, and limited financial resources with which to engage in the long and costly process of registering land claims. Conflicts – mostly as concerns overlapping rights, or disputed claims - are typically resolved through chief-led negotiation or mediation through the village council, or land commission. If the parties do not reach an agreement, the dispute may go to the local commune and from there to the formal courts¹³. Regarding pastoral matters, local authorities are responsible for conflict resolution, guaranteeing pasture access, and ensuring respect for livestock corridors, in order to reduce the risk of crop damage¹⁴.

Community land rights issues

Customary land management is practiced by sedentary farming as well as pastoral communities all over Mali. However, it is only since the adoption of the Agricultural Land Law in 2017, that customary user rights may be used as the basis for land claims. The 2017 legislation takes a big step forward for community rights as untitled customary held under customary law is no longer recognized as belonging to the state¹⁵.

^{Kani Kambole, Southern Mali, 2013, photo by Göran Höglund (Kartläsarn). CC BY-ND 2.0 license.}

Both rural communities including herding groups may now own their traditional land and exercise rights over this land. Moreover, the law emphasizes the need to secure vital spaces (espace vital), common spaces surrounding settlements, pasture, and woodland areas.

Pastoral communities can receive official user rights to land and water since 2006. Historically, these groups used to depend on farmers to allow passage to be able to follow their traditional routes. In 2001, the Pastoral Charter, supplemented by a presidential decree on transhumance in 2010, recognizes pastoralism and the right of transhumant, nomadic, and agro-pastoralists to move their livestock (across borders) and use pastures and water resources. Migration corridors have been established¹⁶ and, at the local level, collectivités teritoriales are required to include pastoral representatives with regard to seasonal land use planning and pastoral land management¹⁷. 

However, armed conflict in northern and central Mali has impeded pastoral movement since 2012 as have large-scale agribusiness ventures in the Niger Delta. Also, violent sedentary-pastoral conflicts have arisen increasingly in central Mali where more and more farmers own livestock, generating increasing competition for limited grazing and water¹⁸.This is aggravated by climate change effects, growing water scarcity, and droughts¹⁹. Whatever the law says, access to water and grazing has to be negotiated on the ground. The ease with which this can be done depends on the local context, and how relations between herders and farmers have evolved over recent years. 

Land use trends

In 2019, 43% of the population including seasonal migrants lived in urban areas²⁰. Agriculture provides a partial livelihood for 80% of the working population and the average farm size is 4.87 hectares²¹. However, many rural families also have close relations in town, and many farmers spend several months each year seeking work and income in urban areas.

The country’s ecological systems are divided fivefold: the Sahara Desert that takes up more than half of Mali’s land cover, followed by the semi-arid Sahel, the wetlands of the Niger Delta, the southern Sudanian zone, and the humid forests. Only one third of the total land area is agricultural land much of which is used as permanent meadows and pastures. Only 15% of this area is used as arable land cultivated by small-scale farmers, largely in fallow rotation. Apart from rice grown in irrigated areas, millet, sorghum, and corn are the most common dryland cereals²². Livestock production – sheep, goats, cattle, camels, chickens - based on seasonal and annual patterns of movement is practiced in the drylands and wetlands. In addition, people make a living from fishing along river valleys and in the vast inner Niger Delta.

^{Tanezrouft Basin, Sahara Desert, 2021, photo by European Space Agency. CC BY-SA 2.0 license.}

Due to its geographical location, forests only cover about 4% of Mali’s territory, mostly in the south. Between 2001 and 2020, Mali experienced a 15% decrease in tree cover. The drivers of deforestation are mainly unsustainable resource extraction for firewood and charcoal clearing land for agricultural purposes, and the impact of climate change²³. The Senegal and Niger Rivers, and inland Niger Delta are the country’s major freshwater sources. There are also very considerable groundwater reserves tapped by means of wells.

Mali’s east and west are rich in mineral resources, notably gold, rock salt, sand, and semi-precious stones. In addition, Mali has vast but unexploited bauxite, manganese, and uranium depots. The mineral sector contributes 6.5% to the GDP.

Land acquisitions

The compulsory acquisition of private property by the government in the public interest and in return for fair and prior compensation is enshrined in the constitution²⁴. Public interest is defined as public works, forest preservation, or infrastructure development. The Land Code provides guidance on State expropriation and compensation procedures, which may not always be followed in practice.

The State may grant rural concessions for unregistered customary land. The responsibility for allocating rural concessions lies with (sub-)prefects, governors (up to 5 ha), or the Ministers of Lands and Territorial Administration (up to 100 ha), depending on the size²⁵. If the land was previously used by customary users, concessionaires must pay compensation upon a public investigation identifying the current right holders. The compensation payment may be negotiated between the parties or determined by the court. In practice, most customary users are not aware of their right to compensation, however²⁶. Moreover, the government has pressured customary rights holders in some cases²⁷. There is a large gap in knowledge, power, and access to information which means that government can exercise considerable control over land and water resources.

Land investments

The Land Matrix lists eight land deals in the agricultural sector since 2010 – of which half were abandoned – covering altogether 156,000 ha²⁸. FAO estimates that until 2015 about 650,000 ha were allocated to foreign investors from China, Libya, and South Africa close to the River Niger and in the inner Niger Delta²⁹. China also plays a major role in irrigation development and dam construction. Although the law provides that development projects must consider pastoral needs, these are often neglected. Likewise, the State may revoke previously transferred land from customary communities at any time and, in practice, often without any compensation. The attribution of 20,000 hectares to the Chinese sugar company N’Sukala, in the Ségou Region, is a case in point³⁰.

Women’s Land Rights

Women face major constraints in accessing and securing land despite fairly equitable policies and laws. The Constitution, the Land Code, and Agricultural Orientation Law strongly support women’s rights to land and respective benefits. What is more, the Agricultural Land Law requires that the State or customary authorities must allocate at least 15% of land in areas subject to development and improvement to women and youth associations. But there remains a vast gap between the provisions of the law and what happens in practice.

Patriarchal customary norms and inheritance systems continue to impede women’s tenure access and security, especially in rural areas. Under customary law, both indigenous and non-indigenous women have no rights to land although they are key food producers for their families. Land is understood as being controlled and transferred by men who are legally the head of the family³¹. Women usually form part of the household workforce which farms a common field, from which the collective granary is filled.

Only an estimated 20% of farming women have direct access to individual land plots, which they can farm in their limited spare time³². Many women lack the knowledge or awareness of their rights and judicial processes are costly and slow. Rather than pursue a formal process, women seek access to a small plot of land through their fathers, husbands and sons.

Under customary and Muslim law, land is held by family lineages as collective property, and the surviving spouse or spouses inherit(s) one quarter of the property including usufruct rights³³. If a woman decides to remarry into another family, she must return the land she has been farming to her former husband’s family. In animist groups, the widow is supposed to marry a younger brother or close male relative and thereby remains within the larger family. Despite the new Personal and Family Code, it is still the custom that daughters only inherit in the absence of brothers.

Urban tenure issues

Urban planning and tenure insecurity are major challenges. Less than one third of urban households hold formal rights to land and 56% live in slums with poor or no access to basic services³⁴. The Ministry of Housing, Land Affairs and Urbanism is starting to address these issues, but there are overlaps in jurisdiction with mayors and municipal government. Effective land-use planning and governance in cities would likely attract investments in housing and infrastructure development and help accommodate rural-to-urban migrants. There is a very lively, active market for peri-urban land and many politically prominent people have large-scale investments in urban property and real estate³⁵. Bamako has to date been the main focus for these investments, but other cities have also become caught up in speculative activity.

Land governance innovations

Mali’s government endorsed the VGGT in 2012. In 2017/18, FAO undertook a capacity building project, and promoted the VGGT in partnership with national civil society organizations. The project also aimed at encouraging various stakeholders in participating in tenure reform and national multi-stakeholder platforms³⁶. Regardless of the government’s endorsement of the VGGT, there remains a big gap between policy and legislation relating to land, and its practical application in villages, communes, districts and at regional levels.

Timeline – milestones in land governance

1992 – Constitution
The new constitution seeks to promote economic liberalization and political decentralization.

2003 - Pastoral Charter Law
Originally adopted in 2001 and supplemented by a presidential decree on transhumance in 2010, the law recognizes pastoralism and the right of transhumant, nomadic, and agro-pastoralists to move their livestock (across borders) and use natural resources.

2006 - Agricultural Orientation Law
The Agricultural Orientation Law aims to enhance the agricultural sector with emphasis on family farming, and women and youth empowerment.

2016 - State Property and Land Code
Adopted in 2000, the Land Code provides a comprehensive legal framework for land management and administration. 

2017 - Code on Territorial Collectives
As part of the decentralization strategy, it provides guidance on the authority transfer over spatial planning, management, and infrastructure development to commune, cercle, and region levels.

2017 - Agricultural Land Law
Since the Agricultural Land Law, individuals or groups may obtain a customary land certificate (attestation de detention coutumière). 

Where to go next?

The author’s suggestion for further reading

This UNOWAS study provides insights into the causes and drivers of pastoral-related conflicts in West Africa and the Sahel and identifies prevention strategies that aim to promote peace and stability.

The paper of Benjaminsen et al. sheds light on the often underexplored issue of land grabbing in Mali’s peri-urban areas.

References

[1] World Bank. 2019. World Development Indicators. URL: https://datacatalog.worldbank.org/dataset/world-development-indicators

[2] UNOWAS. 2018. Pastoralism and Security in West Africa and the Sahel: Towards Peaceful Coexistence. URL: https://landportal.org/library/resources/land-use-conflicts-inner-niger-delta-mali-does-climate-change-play-role

[3] GOM. 2000. State Property and Land Code. Last amended in 2016, Art. 49.

[4] GOM. 2006. Agricultural Orientation Law. Art. 3 + 83.

[5] GOM. 2017. Code on Territorial Collectives. and International Institute for Environment and Development. 2009. Décentralization et Limites Foncièrs au Mali. URL: https://landportal.org/library/resources/9781843697282/d%C3%A9centralization-et-limites-fonci%C3%A8rs-au-mali

[6] Benjaminsen et al. 2010. Land use conflicts in the Inner Niger Delta of Mali: does climate change play a role? PRIO report, Oslo. URL: https://landportal.org/library/resources/land-use-conflicts-inner-niger-delta-mali-does-climate-change-play-role

[7] GOM. 2014. Agricultural Land Policy of Mali.

[8] GOM. 2017. State Property and Land Code. Last amended in 2016, Art. 27.

[9] GOM. 2017. State Property and Land Code. Last amended in 2016.

[10] GOM. 2001. Law No. 01-004 On the Pastoral Charter in the Republic of Mali (Portant Charte Pastorale en Republique du Mali). As amended 2003.

[11] GOM. 2017. Law No. 2017-001 On Agricultural Land (Portant Sur le Foncier Agricole). URL: https://www.landportal.org/pt/library/resources/lex-faoc165599/loi-n%C2%B02017-001-du-11-avril-2017-portant-sur-le-foncier-agricole

[12] Prindex. 2022. Mali. URL: https://www.prindex.net/data/mali/

[13] Skidmore, Mark et al. 2016. Population Growth, Land Allocation and Conflict in Mali. Area Development and Policy. 1(1): 113-131.

[14] GOM. 2001. Pastoral Charter Law.

[15] Camilla Toulmin. 2017. Q&A: How a new law in Mali is securing villagers' rights to land | International Institute for Environment and Development. IIED. URL: https://landportal.org/news/2017/08/qa-how-new-law-mali-securing-villagers-rights-land

[16] Camilla Toulmin. 2017. Q&A: How a new law in Mali is securing villagers' rights to land | International Institute for Environment and Development. IIED. URL: https://landportal.org/news/2017/08/qa-how-new-law-mali-securing-villagers-rights-land

[17] GOM. 2001. Pastoral Charter Law.

[18] Kidmore, Mark et al. 2016. Population Growth, Land Allocation and Conflict in Mali. Area Development and Policy. 1(1): 113-131; UNOWAS. 2018. Pastoralism and Security in West Africa and the Sahel: Towards Peaceful Coexistence.

[19] Benjaminsen et al. 2010. Land use conflicts in the Inner Niger Delta of Mali: does climate change play a role? Report. PRIO. Oslo.

[20] World Bank. Data Mali. URL: https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.URB.TOTL.IN.ZS?locations=ML

[21] FAO. 2014. Country Stat Database Mali. URL: http://mali.countrystat.org/key-indicators/en/

[22] FAO. 2018. Profil National Genre des Secteurs de l’Agriculture et du Développement Rural: Mali. URL: http://www.fao.org/3/i8706fr/I8706FR.pdf

[23] Global Forest Watch. 2021. Country Stats. Mali. URL: https://gfw.global/3gCRJAP

[24] GOM. 1992. Constitution. Art. 13.

[25] GOM. 2001. Decree No. 01-040/P-RM determining the forms and conditions of allocation of land in the private domain of the State, Art. 7.

[26] Djiré, Moussa. 2006. Improving Tenure Security for the Rural Poor: Mali Country Case Study. Working Paper No. 4. FAO. URL: https://landportal.org/library/resources/improving-tenure-security-rural-poor-mali-country-case-study-working-paper-no-4

[27] Durand-Lasserve, Alain et al. 2015. Land Delivery Systems in West African Cities: The Example of Bamako, Mali. URL: https://landportal.org/library/resources/978-1-4648-0433-5/land-delivery-systems-west-african-cities

[28] Land Matrix. 2022. Mali. URL: https://landmatrix.org/map

[29] FAO. 2015. Aquastat: Country Profile Mali. URL: http://www.fao.org/3/ca0200fr/CA0200FR.pdf

[30] Toulmin, C. (2020) Land, Investment and Migration. 35 years of village life in Mali. Oxford University Press.

[31] GOM. 2011. Law n°2011-087 on the Code of Persons and the Family.

[32] FAO. 2018. Profil National Genre des Secteurs de l’Agriculture et du Développement Rural: Mali.

[33] GOM. 2011. Law n°2011-087 on the Code of Persons and the Family, Art. 797.

[34] Durand-Lasserve, Alain et al. 2015. Land Delivery Systems in West African Cities: The Example of Bamako, Mali.

[35] Bertrand, M. (2021) Bamako: De la ville à l’agglomération. IRD Editions. Benjamin Neimark, Camilla Toulmin & Simon Batterbury (2018) Peri-urban land grabbing? dilemmas of formalising tenure and land acquisitions around the cities of Bamako and Ségou, Mali, Journal of Land Use Science, 13:3, 319-324, URL: https://landportal.org/library/resources/peri-urban-land-grabbing-dilemmas-formalising-tenure-and-land-acquisitions-around

[36] FAO. 2018. Augmenter l’utilisation des Directives volontaires pour la gouvernance responsable des régimes fonciers (DVGF) parmi les organisations de la société civile et de base. Mali. URL: https://landportal.org/node/80732