Mali

The Republic of Mali is located in West Africa. It is a landlocked country with half of the country covered by the Sahara Desert. The population is about 23 million, including about 20 different ethnic groups. The languages and cultures of each ethnic group are different, but they coexist peacefully. The vast majority of the population believes in Islam (93.9%), Christianity (2.8%), and Page 3 | 9traditional beliefs (0.7%). After the mid-19th century, it began to be ruled by France and was renamed "French Sudan", which is one of the French West African Federations. In June 1960, the Mali Federation became independent from France, and in September the Republic of Mali was proclaimed. From its independence until 1991, a succession of dictators ruled Mali. Former President Duré came to power in a coup in 1991 and returned to the democratically elected government. He is a key figure in the country's democratic movement. Duré was democratically elected president in 2002 and re-elected in 2007 with a high vote. In January 2012, the Tuagre tribe launched an armed rebellion in the north, and the conflict in northern Mali began. In March 2012, a group of soldiers staged a coup in the capital to overthrow Duré, announcing the suspension of the constitution and the dissolution of state institutions. Under the pressure of the international community, the coup fighters signed an agreement with the Economic Community of West African States on April 6, agreeing to hand over power, and the speaker of the National Assembly will serve as the interim president. Duré resigned on April 8. Later, hard-line Islamic militants took control of northern Mali. More than half of the northern territory was occupied by the "Al-Qaeda" and the radical and separatist rebels in the country. The armed conflict Page 4 | 9caused more than 200,000 refugees to flee to Mali's neighboring countries. In January 2013, Islamic anti-government armed forces marched to the south. France sent troops to assist the Mali government in fighting and quickly recovered all major cities in the north. At present, the north-central part of Mali is still occupied by terrorist organizations, and the crisis has not been resolved. In March and June 2019, there were massacres of more than 100 victims in the village. According to statistics from the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), Mali had 350,000 internally displaced persons in 2021. In August 2020, a military coup took place in Mali, and the president and prime minister were detained by rebels. The president announced his resignation and dissolved parliament, and the former defense minister took over as interim president in September. In May 2021, there was a second coup, and the interim president was arrested by the leader of the military government, Goita, who announced his inauguration as interim president. On January 9, 2022, the member states of the Economic Community of West African States agreed to close the border with Mali and impose a series of economic sanctions. The capital, Bamako, has a population of more than 2 million. Even though Mali has had a GDP growth rate of more than 5%every year for more than a decade, Mali is Page 5 | 9still one of the least developed countries. In 2018, Mali’s per capita income is only about $900. The mainstay of the country's economy is agriculture, with less industry. Pastor Alassane of ROLCC Mali Church was born in Benin in 1981 to Muslim parents in northern Benin. He holds degrees in finance, accounting and auditing. He accepted Christ as his personal Savior in 2001 and joined the newly established ROLCC Benin, and then served as assistant pastor and youth ministry leader in the Cotonou branch of ROLCC Benin under the leadership of Pastor Corneille (the national director of ROLCC Benin). The family moved to Togo in 2014. He then served at the Hedjranawe branch in Lome, Togo, from 2014 to 2017. From February 2018 to 2021, he served as an assistant pastor at the headquarters of ROLCC Togo, and was a highly valued co-worker of Pastor Clement (the national director of ROLCC Togo). From 2016 to 2022, he was also the National Youth Pastor of ROLCC Togo. He and Pastor Clement have always hoped to enter another Muslim-dominated country to preach the gospel and expand branch churches. In early 2022, he visited Bamako, the capital of Mali, and made a prayer march. Then the whole family moved to Bamako in May 2022, started their church in their residency, and successfully obtained the church license in September 2022. By 2024, the church will have a stable gathering of 60 people every Page 6 | 9week, including families, teenagers and children. They also hope to expand the church and have a second branch next year. They pray that God will protect the team of Mali River Bread of Life Church to continue various church ministries and bless the entire community and country.