Skip to main content

Mali is a vast, land-locked country in the heart of the Sahel region. With social indicators among the lowest in the world, the country ranks 188 out of 193 in UNDP’s 2023 Human Development Index. It faces serious challenges in achieving Sustainable Development Goal 2 on Zero Hunger and improving nutrition.

The cumulative effects of armed conflict, widespread insecurity and periodic floods and drought have contributed to a progressive deterioration of livelihoods in the country.

Agriculture – mainly in the form of subsistence production – represents 80 percent of employment. However, land degradation, lack of fertilizers, post-harvest losses due to poor storage and processing capacity, and limited access to markets contribute to smallholder farmers suffering from higher-than-average poverty rates. 

Northern and central regions of Mali are grappling with high levels of hunger as the country strains under the impact of conflict, high food prices, energy challenges and the climate crisis. Around 1.5 million people face acute food insecurity, including over 2,600 people at high risk of facing catastrophic hunger (Phase 5 under the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification for measuring food insecurity). 

As of September 2024, Mali hosted over 378,000 people displaced from their homes due to violence. More than half of these (58 percent) are children for whom humanitarian food assistance is a lifeline. Already stretched thin, local communities are further strained by the arrival of 220,000 refugees.

The World Food Programme works in partnership with the Government, UN agencies and civil society organizations to provide an integrated assistance package of emergency life-saving aid and long-term resilience activities, in northern and central regions. 

What the World Food Programme is doing in Mali

Crisis response
WFP reaches shock and crisis-affected populations with food or cash emergency assistance to save lives and protect livelihoods. WFP responds to large-scale crises, mainly linked to climate and conflict, but also to seasonal shocks.
School feeding
WFP supports the Government’s National School Meal Programme by providing nutritious school meals and reinforcing the capacities of national counterparts. The provision of school meals improves access to education, enhancing learning and avoiding marginalization, especially for young girls.
Nutrition
WFP provides supplementary feeding and other nutrition support to several vulnerable groups, including underweight children suffering from chronic and moderate-to-acute malnutrition, and children under 5 who are acutely malnourished. WFP also provides nutrition assistance to pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers, as well as supporting nutrition awareness activities at the community level.
Resilience
In a country where humanitarian and development agendas increasingly intersect, WFP is scaling up complement long-term programmes that reduces the need for a humanitarian response. This integrated approach to resilience includes the creation of assets (roads, dams and water ponds) alongside school feeding and nutrition activities in the same communities over a defined period of time.
Capacity strengthening
WFP provides a package of capacity-strengthening support to national institutions and entities in analysis, planning, coordination, policy coherence, implementation and monitoring. The development of capacities in these areas is key to sustaining improvements in well-being achieved through other activities.
Logistics
Due to long distances, poor road conditions and security constraints in central and northern Mali, the WFP-managed United Nations Humanitarian Air Service plays a key role in providing safe, reliable and cost-effective air transport for humanitarian workers. It delivers vital supplies to hard-to-reach areas, serving hundreds of thousands of people.

Partners and donors

Achieving Zero Hunger is the work of many. Our work in Mali is made possible by the support and collaboration of our partners and donors, including:
Belgium Denmark Finland Mali Republic of Korea

Contacts

Office

Badalabougou Est, Rue 31, Porte 26 – BP120 – Bamako – Mali
Bamako
Mali

Phone
+223 20 79 20 45
Fax
+223 222 6865
For media inquiries