Conventions, Agreements & Treaties concerning environmental protection signed by Mali
The International Convention for the Protection of Plants
To date signed by more than 110 countries, the aim of this convention is to establish “international cooperation in the fight against organisms harmful to plants and plant products, and to prevent them being spread internationally, particularly into zones under threat”.
Degree to which the convention has been applied
The monitoring of pesticides in Mali is governed by two texts: law number 02-013 of 3 June 2002 introducing the monitoring of pesticides in the Republic of Mali and its application decree number 02-305/P-RM of 3 June 2002 outlining the way in which the monitoring of pesticides is to be enforced in the Republic of Mali.
Only one directive has been drawn up, that establishing what can and can’t be imported and under what conditions as far as plants, plant products, growing products and packaging are concerned.
Convention relating to the preservation of fauna and flora in their natural habitat
The aim of this convention is to preserve animals and plants in certain parts of the world, particularly in Africa, at the very least in national parks and reserves by regulating hunting and the collection of wild animals.
Strategies and programmes
- Concerning plants:
o Inventory of the country’s forests (1985-91)
o The Domestic Energy strategy (1996-2002),
have been carried out.
- Concerning animals:
o The National Park operation in the Baoulé belt
o Mali’s biosphere reserve
o The Gourma elephant reserve
have taken place.
- Concerning laws and regulations:
o A large range of legislative and regulatory texts accompany the strategy and the implementation of the different projects and programmes.
For more information, contact
Mr Yacouba Doumbia
BP: 275 Bamako Mali
Tel: (223) 223 36 95;
: (223) 223 36 97
Fax: : (223) 223 36 96
E-mail : conservationature@datatech.net.ml
Convention on Biodiversity
The convention has the following three principal objectives:
- The conservation of biodiversity
- The sustainable use of the elements composing such a diversity
- The fair and equal sharing of the advantages which come from genetic resources, both from commercial and other usages.
Implementation of the convention in Mali
Mali’s adherence to the biodiversity convention was confirmed by its ratification on 29 March 1995.
Mali drew up a national strategy concerning biodiversity accompanied by an Action Plan adopted in May 2001, in order to:
- Contribute to the strengthening of the global dynamic in favour of the conservation and the sustainable use of biodiversity and
- Provide the country with and strategy reference document in order to put into practice the ideals of the convention on biodiversity on a national level.
An additional activity is underway to evaluate in what areas the national capacity for conservation and traditional knowledge and practices need to be strengthened as well as investigating the possibilities of information exchanges. In terms of the implementation of the Carthage protocol on the prevention of biotechnological risks, adopted on the 29 January 2000 at Montreal, Mali ratified on the 4 June 2002 and is currently engaged in establishing a national bio-security framework under the auspices of a global UNEP-GEF bio-security programme.
Ramsar convention on humid regions
The first modern global intergovernmental treaty on the conservation and rational use of natural resources, the stipulations of the Ramsar convention are relatively simple and general in comparison to more recent conventions. The official name of the treaty is the Convention relating to humid regions of international importance, particularly as habitats of water birds.
The convention came into force in 1975 and numbers more than a hundred signatories in all areas of the globe.
Convention on the river Senegal and its management in relation to development in the basin of the river Senegal
This convention was created between the governments of Mali, Mauritania and Senegal on 11 March 1972 at Noukchott along with the OMVS – Organisation for the Development of the river Senegal (Organisation de la Mise en Valeur du fleuve Sénégal) et its objectives are:
- To establish the principles and the details of dividing the river Senegal into sectors for different uses. The uses of the river water include agriculture, the raising of livestock, fishing, fish-breeding, forestry, preserving wild animals, hydroelectric energy; the provision of water to rural and urban populations, health, industry, navigation and the environment, as well as domestic use.
- To determine the regulation concerning the preservation and protection of the environment, particularly regarding fauna, flora and the ecosystems of flooded plains and humid zones;
- To define the framework and the regulations governing the participation of those using the water in the taking of decisions about the management of water from the river Senegal.
Convention on the protection of world cultural and natural heritage
Signed by Mali on 5 April 1977, the objectives of this convention are:
- To insure as effective a protection and conservation and as active a development as possible of the cultural and natural heritage,
- To establish a system of international cooperation and assistance aimed at helping the signatory States in their efforts to identify and preserve this heritage.
Convention establishing an inter-state committee for the fight against drought in the Sahel (CILSS)
Revised at the 11th conference at the Praia summit in 1994 its mandate is:
to invest in research into assuring enough food and in the fight against the effects of drought and desertification for a new environmental balance. This convention includes Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal and Chad.
United Nations convention on the fight against desertification
The convention was signed by Mali on 15 October 1994 and ratified on the 31 October 1995. Its general objective is to fight against desertification and to alleviate the effects of drought and/or desertification, particularly in Africa, by means of effective measures at all levels, supported by international cooperation and partnerships, under the framework of an integrated approach compatible with action 21 programme, with the aim of contributing to the establishment of sustainable development in the affected areas.
Implementation
Since signing the convention, several actions have been carried out:
- The drawing up of a national environmental action plan (PNAE/PAN-CID),
- The drawing up of a new National Plan of Action (PAN)
- The holding of a round table of fund-donors for the financing of the implementation of the National Action Plans.
The Bamako Convention on the movement of dangerous waste across Africa
The Bamako Convention relates to the ban on importing dangerous waste materials into Africa, the monitoring of cross-border movements and the management of dangerous waste material produced in Africa. This convention was adopted by the conference of the Environment Ministers of 50 African countries in Bamako on 30 January 1991.
Mali ratified this convention on 21 February 1996. The objectives of the convention are as follows:
- Overall objective:
To ban the importation into Africa of dangerous waste materials and to introduce the monitoring of cross-border movements of and management of dangerous waste materials in Africa.
- Specific objectives:
o To define and identify dangerous wastes and products
o To draw up national and international plans for the management of the cross-border movements of dangerous products and the management of dangerous waste;
o To draw up a judicial and regulatory framework
o To protect the human population and the environment against the harmful effects of dangerous wastes and products.
Vienna Convention/Montreal Protocol on substances harmful to the ozone layer
Actions carried out by the government of Mali
- Ratification of the Vienna Convention (October 1994)
- Ratification of the Montreal Protocol (October 1994)
- Evaluation of the national energy consumption
- The drawing up of a national programme consisting of:
o Creation of an ozone office
o A management plan for refrigerator fluid
o A SAO reduction timetable
- Ratification of the London, Copenhagen and Montreal amendments (January 2001)
- Ratification of the Beijing amendments in progress.
State of progress of the national programme
There are two centres in Bamako, dealing with the recuperation of CFC-12 from the regions of Kayes, Koulikoro, Sikasso, Ségou and the Bamako area and one in Mopti dealing with CFC-12 recuperation from the North of the country.
o Ministerial order no 01 2708/MEATEU- MEF-MICT ( Ministries of the Environment, of Territorial Development, of Housing and Town-Planning, of the Economy and Finance, of Industry, Commerce and Transport) of 16 October 2001 regulating the importation and use of substances harmful to the ozone layer, as well as products and equipment containing such substances.
o Order no 012699/MICT-SG detailing a list of products which are not permitted to be exported or imported taking into account the SAO, effective from 16 October 2001.
o Decision no 02-0033 MEATEU-SG fixing the annual quota of importation of substances harmful to the ozone layer.
Revised complementary agreement concerning the provision of technical assistance by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to the government of Mali
This agreement has as its objectives:
- The application of the peaceful use of radio-isotopic science and techniques to aid sustainable social and economic development in Mali.
- Ensuring safe management of radioactive material and ionising radiation generators so that they do not harm humans or the environment.
Activities carried out
- Hydrology (Sedimentology and water quality laboratories, DNH):
o Measuring water flow (Plateau Dogon)
o Evaluation of subterranean water resources (Séno, Northern regions)
o Studying the dynamic of the sediment in water reserves (Sélingué)
o Studies to detect holes in dams (Touba, Diama)
- Human health
o Radiodiagnostics (thyroid pathology) at the HPG
o Medical imagery (radiographie, scanning at the HPG and the HGT
o Study of the pharmaco-resistance of pathogenic agents (malaria, TB) to MRTC/FMPOS at the INRSP.
- Animal resources
o Diagnosing sick animals (LCV)
o Epidemiological surveillance (LCV)
o Production of vaccines (LCV)
- Agriculture and food production (IPR phytogenetic lab; IER radio-isotopic lab)
o Production and diffusion of improved cultures (sorghum, rice)
o Study into the efficiency of the absorption of fertilisers
o Mining prospection (DNGM laboratory for the analysis of uranium)
o Energy planning (DNE)
o Modelling projected national demand (MAED)
- Radioprotection
o First legal and regulatory texts (June 2002)
o Launch of AMARAP (May 2002)
Biological and chemical weapons convention
This convention was signed into effect in London, Moscow and Washington on 10 April 1972.
The states that have signed this convention are resolved to work towards general and complete disarmament, including the banning and suppressing of all types of weapons of mass destruction, being convinced that the banning of the development, the production and the stockpiling of biological and chemical weapons as well as their destruction by effective means, will contribute to the realisation of general and complete disarmament under strict and effective international monitoring. Mali is a signatory to this convention.
