Malians, My dear compatriots of the interior and the Diaspora,
The Time has come for us to come together!
In recent years, our country has suffered too much from all sorts of divisions: political, ethnic, religious and social.
I stand before you today to call ALL Malians to come together for the unity of our beautiful nation, rich in history, culture and diversity.
I was born to a Christian father and a Muslim mother. My family is very diverse and hosts ethnic groups from West, Central and North of our country. I was raised under the strict authority and benevolence of my mother primarily, in an environment where discipline, humility, respect for others and difference were rigorously applied.
I grew up in the district of Lafiabougou in Bamako where I graduated in 1992. I experienced the many disturbances that characterized the schooling of Malian high school students of that time. Schoolless, I spent most of my time in the Askia Mohamed high school library eagerly reading history and political books. Impressed by the impact that great politicians have had on civilizations, the desire to engage in collective causes began to germinate in me and never stopped growing.
Throughout my career, I have stayed close to people and accessible. I continue today, daily and tirelessly, to receive, listen to and learn from Malians and strive to contribute to solving their problems regardless of their belonging: political, social or religious.
In recent years, I have traveled 40 circles, more than 200 municipalities in our country and 50 countries outside Mali to meet Malians where they live. It allowed me to fully measure the challenges, the realities and the difficulties facing our people but also the enormous potential of our country. By their contact, I better understood Mali!
On this day of April 8th, 2018, I declare my candidacy for the presidential elections of 2018 and pledge to deploy all my energy to restore the trust between us, essential to the rally and national unity. Mali needs us ALL.
As a candidate, I would be the leader on topics that are dear to me and for which, I have my whole life, fought a fierce battle. These are convictions that I firmly defended as a private sector actor, member of civil society, Mayor of Bamako Commune IV, Minister of Planning and Policy of the City, Prime Minister, and as a simple Malian concerned about his future:
1. Leadership Renewal and Rejuvenation: Four out of five Malians are under 30 with an average age of 16 years and a half. We can no longer afford to have a leadership that recycles the same ideas for decades. Our country has a burning need for innovative, pragmatic and concrete ideas brought by new leaders and able to meet the aspirations of every citizen.
2. Fighting corruption of the elites: We live in a country where wealth is held by a minority at the expense of the rest of the population. The fight against elite corruption is imperative. It is through exemplary, equitable and inclusive governance that we will succeed in unleashing the potential of our country while reallocating our resources to projects that benefit everyone. The well-being of Malians, especially those who suffer, has always been my goal.
3. Decentralization: Mali should not be limited to Bamako only. No citizen, no territory, no rural area should be left behind; the needs of Malians must be met where they live so that they do not have to come to the capital for treatment or employment. An effective and profound decentralization of Mali will create the conditions for the promotion of our diversities, the development of Malians, the development at the base, and the strengthening of our unity towards a standing and prosperous Mali.
4. Increasing the incomes of the most disadvantaged: Mali is first and foremost a nation of farmers, retail traders, modest employees of the public and the private sector, craftsmen, this multitude of informal sector workers, people with disabilities, people who have no work, the youth who loses a little hope every day. It is to them that I will address myself first and foremost for them that I am engaged.
The problems of Mali are not inevitable and can be solved given the many talents that are available and who believe in the future of our country. We must gather around a common project and dismantle the policy that has divided us since independence and which consecrates the victory of some over the humiliation of others.
Very soon, I will reach out to other political parties, movements and individuals to form a grand coalition. I firmly intend to govern in an inclusive and transparent way because the time of Miracle President is over.
Finally, in the coming weeks, I will share my project for Mali commonly known as Projet de Société, which will further support the details of the various axes around which we intend to transform today’s Mali, fraction by fraction, village by village, city by city, region by region, within the country but also for the benefit of the diaspora.
Leadership, commitment and determination for Malians are and will always be my core belief. The time to give a new destiny to our country has come. I intend to embody it and build it step by step with YOU ALL.
Long live Mali and may God continue to bless our beautiful country.
