Republic Of Mali Research Articles

Draft genome sequences of four plant-associated free-living diazotrophs isolated from the rhizosphere of Malian tomato.

This announcement reports the draft genome sequences of two Azospirillum argentinense and two Azotobacter salinestris isolated from the rhizosphere of a tomato plant grown in a village in the Republic of Mali. These strains are plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria and are highly valuable to agriculture for their ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen.

Sexual Assault of the Female Gender Admitted to the "One Stop Centre" Unit in Commune I of the District of Bamako: Epidemiological, Clinical and Legal Management Aspects

Sexual violence is an all-encompassing expression that designates "any sexual act, attempt to obtain a sexual act, comment or advance of a sexual nature directed against a person's sexuality using coercion. The general objective was to study sexual assaults based on the female gender in the "One Stop Center" unit of the reference health center in commune I of the district of Bamako, Republic of Mali. Methodology: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study of sexual assaults on women admitted to the commune I One Stop Center. All survivors of sexual assault admitted to the One Stop Center during the study period were included; confidentiality and anonymity were respected. Results: We recorded 224 cases of victims of gender-based violence out of 10,924 gynaecological consultations received at the department, a frequency of 2.05%. Of the 224 victims of gender-based violence admitted to the One Stop Centre, 109 (48.66%) were victims of sexual assault. The average age of the patients was 14.12 ± 5.06 years, with extremes of 2 and 36 years. The victims were all female. The majority of survivors (94%) were single. More than half of the victims (55%) were pupils. More than half of the assaults (57.8%) took place between 7pm and midnight. 60.6% of the assaults took place at the survivors' homes. In 8% of cases, weapons were threatened. We found that hymenal lesions were predominant in 76.2% of cases. HIV serology was positive in 1% of victims. Antibiotic prophylaxis was the predominant medical treatment in 69.7% of cases. Suture of the vulvo-perineal tear was the surgical treatment in 2.8% of cases. Out-of-court settlements were the solution in the majority of cases (20.18% of cases), followed by withdrawal of the complaint to the court (6.4% of victims). Conclusion: This study has shown that sexual violence against women is increasing in scale and severity despite the regulatory and legislative framework

The Role of Ventriculocisternostomy in the Management of Hydrocephalus in Mali and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Hydrocephaluscontinues to pose significant clinical challenges in neurosurgery. The primary goal of this study is to assess the feasibility of ventriculocisternostomy (VCS) within the provincial city of Kinshasa and Mali to optimize the management of patients afflicted with hydrocephalus. This investigation was hosted at two major urban healthcare facilities: the Initiative Plus Hospital Center, positioned in the bustling metropolis of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and the Bamako Hospital, Republic of Mali. A prospective, analytical cohort study was executed from December 2022 to June 2023. In the Mali group, seven patients underwent VCS,four patients were treated withVCS and spinalsurgery, and one case was treated with VCS and biopsy. Similarly, in the Kinshasa group, 25 patients underwent VCS, whereas four patients were treated with VCS and spinal surgery. The median hospital stay was eight and 10 days for the Mali and theKinshasa groups, respectively. VCS emerges as a formidable alternative for hydrocephalus management in Mali and DRC, showcasing the potential to markedly ameliorate patient outcomes, economize healthcare expenditures, and fortify the local neurosurgical capacity.

Obstetric Evacuations Received At the "Major Moussa Diakite" Referral Health Centre in Kati, Republic of Mali

The organisation of the evacuation referral system is an important strategy for reducing maternal and perinatal mortality in Mali. Objective: To study obstetric evacuations received in the gynaecology and obstetrics department of the "Major Moussa DIAKITE" referral health centre in Kati. Method: We conducted a cross-sectional, descriptive and analytical study. Data were collected retrospectively and prospectively over a 12-month period (from 1 January to 31 December 2020). Sampling was exhaustive and included all cases of obstetric evacuation received and managed on site during the study period. Results: Out of a total of 3050 deliveries, we received and managed 352 cases of obstetric evacuation, representing a frequency of 11.5%. The average age of the patients was 25 years, with extremes of 15 and 44 years, although the 20-34 age group was dominant, accounting for 73.6% of cases. The majority of evacuees were housewives (86.4%), married (92%), nulliparous and primiparous (52%). Dystocic labour was the most common reason for evacuation (51.1%), followed by ante-partum haemorrhage (13.4%). Nearly nine out of ten women evacuated came from Community Health Centres (89.8%) and the most common means of evacuation was by ambulance (52.1%). The average time from admission to the start of care was 26.5 minutes, with extremes of 3 and 50 minutes. Delivery by the vaginal route was carried out in almost eight out of ten cases (79%). Newborns were resuscitated alive (7.9%); stillbirths were fresh (3.7%) and stillbirths were macerated (06%). We recorded 2 cases of maternal death (0.6%) and the causes of maternal death were haemorrhage due to uterine rupture and eclampsia. Conclusion: The improved organisation of the evacuation referral system in our facility has improved the maternal and, above all, foetal prognosis of obstetric evacuations, but more needs to be done.

Study of Macrosomic Deliveries in the Gynaecology and Obstetrics Department of the "Major Moussa Diakite" Reference Health Center in Kati, Koulikoro, Republic of Mali

The delivery of a macrosomic baby remains a concern for obstetricians and neonatologists, especially when the delivery is vaginal, because of the risk of maternal and perinatal complications. The aim of this article is to study macrosomic deliveries in the gynaecology and obstetrics department of the Kati reference health center. Method: This was a prospective, cross-sectional study which ran from 1 November 2020 to 31 October 2022, a period of 24 months. It concerned all deliveries in which the birth weight of the newborn was greater than or equal to 4000 grams, excluding cases of foetal malformations. Results: Out of a total of 4676 deliveries, we recorded 127 cases of macrosomia, a frequency of 2.7%. The average age of the women was 28.5 years, ranging from 16 to 47 years. The main risk factors identified were high multiparity (29.1%), maternal obesity (28.4%), overdue delivery (19.7%), previous delivery with the presentation was cephalic in 93.7% of cases, and delivery was by vaginal route in 63.8% of cases, compared with caesarean section in 36.2%. Maternal complications were dominated by perineal tears in thirteen cases (10.2%), cervical tears in two cases (1.6%), endometritis in two cases (1.6%), vaginal tears in one case (0.8) and haemorrhage during delivery in one case (0.8%). However, no complications were found in 108 out of 127 deliveries (85%). The Apgar score was less than eight at 1 minute in 12.6% of newborns. We observed serosanguineous hump (8.7%), brachial plexus paralysis (4.7%), clavicle fracture (1.6%) and early neonatal death (2.4%) due to neonatal distress. Conclusion: Macrosomic delivery carries very real risks, and the indications for vaginal delivery must be restricted in order to improve maternal and foetal prognosis.

War in Mali: Destruction of Timbuktu Monuments

The historical and cultural heritage of the region contains a powerful potential for its preservation and development. The more vividly colored the cultural specificity of the region, more precisely, the cultural peculiarity (and isolation) of the people living in the territory of this region, the greater the historical depth of the cultural tradition that determines the specifics of the population of the region, the more stable the local subculture (in this context, the totality of people having common features of culture and corresponding identity), the more cohesive, more stable the social group.
 The destruction of the historical cultural heritage, the discrediting of culture, the destruction of the cultural symbols of a particular social community inevitably entails the blurring of its boundaries, the destruction of stable social ties, and the loss of collectively shared values. During the armed confrontation between government troops and jihadist gangs in the Republic of Mali, jihadists captured the ancient cultural capital of the Sahel, the city of Timbuktu.
 Islamists destroyed ancient mosques and mausoleums, burned ancient manuscripts and libraries in which they were stored. It was an attempt to prevent the formation of a single national community and to prevent the creation of a multicultural nation-state.

Energy Transition Policy and Forest Protection in the Republic of Mali and Azerbaijan: Analysis of Potentialities and Assets for Sustainable Development

The energy transition is a challenge and an urgency for the world facing the scarcity of fossil fuels and their impacts in the ecosystems by climate change. Through this study, we wanted to assess the potential of new and renewable energies in the Republic of Mali and Azerbaijan in view of their promotion for the preservation of forest areas, in a world facing the challenges of global warming. The methodology was based on documentary collection and documentary exploitation and analysis of cartographic data, tables and other figures. The study revealed to us the high frequency of the potential of these so-called energies, especially solar in Mali and hydraulic, wind and solar in Azerbaijan and the commitment of the authorities of these States to promote the energy transition but also the dependence of these States on fossils such as: oil and gas. The Republic of Azerbaijan exports fossil fuels and Mali depends on imports. The transition to alternative energy resources will undeniably make it possible to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at the global level and to preserve forest ecosystems in both countries.

A contribution to the aphid fauna (Hemiptera, Aphidoidea) of Republic of Mali.

The first study of the aphid fauna from the Republic of Mali has been made. Ten species are reported and keyed from this territory. The diagnostic key and the list of host plants of the species found are given. In total, only 69 colonies of aphids were found during the research, which indicates a very low population density of aphids in the territory of Mali. There is a significant difference between the number of aphid colonies found in the dry and rainy seasons. Aphids in Mali, both in the dry and in the rainy season, were found more often in biotopes along rivers, on artificially irrigated areas. About 70% of all colonies in both the dry and rainy seasons were very small or small. It is very likely that originally aphids were absent in the territory of West Africa to the south of the Sahara. They probably penetrated the Sahel zone and the surrounding territories from the Mediterranean coast along the Red Sea coast and from the Arabian Peninsula through Ethiopia and then later they moved further to the west. The progress of crop production could lead to the introduction of a small number of species into this territory only in a relatively recent time.

Distribution and accumulation of mercury in pot-grown African rice cultivars (Oryza glaberrima Steud. and Oryza sativa L.) determined via LA-ICP-MS.

There is limited information concerning the distribution of mercury in rice, particularly in African rice. The objective was to compare the distribution of total mercury (THg) and methylmercury (MeHg) in African rice (Oryza glaberrima Steud.) and Asian rice (O. sativa L.). It is hypothesized that increased mineral accumulation and greater stress tolerance in O. glaberrima will affect the uptake and distribution of THg and MeHg, compared to O. sativa. Rice varieties from the Republic of Mali, including O. glaberrima (n =1) and O. sativa (n = 2), were cultivated in a greenhouse, in mercury-spiked soil (50 mg/kg) (n =3 replicates/variety). THg and MeHg concentrations were analyzed in the grain (brown rice), and the THg distribution was analyzed using laser ablation inductively coupled-plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). THg and MeHg concentrations did not differ between O. glaberrima and O. sativa grain. However, in both O. sativa varieties, THg was highly concentrated in the scutellum, which surrounds the embryo and is removed during polishing. Conversely, in O. glaberrima grain, THg was widely distributed throughout the endosperm, the edible portion of the grain. Differences in the THg distribution in O. glaberrima grain, compared to O. sativa, may elevate the risk of mercury exposure through ingestion of polished rice. The novelty of this study includes the investigation of a less-studied rice species (O. glaberrima), the use of a highly sensitive elemental imaging technique (LA-ICP-MS), and its finding of a different grain THg distribution in O. glaberrima than has been observed in O. sativa.

AГАШЕРСКАЯ ВОЙНА МЕЖДУ МАЛИ И БУРКИНА-ФАСО 1985 ГОДА: ИТОГИ И ВЫВОДЫ

The purpose of the article is to identify the features of the course of action and the results of the Agasher war between Mali and Burkina Faso in 1985. The author outlined the causes of the Agasher war between the Republic of Mali and the Republic of Burkina Faso in 1985 based on research methods such as observation and comparison. The author analyzes the intentions of the parties, gives a comparative characteristic of the forces and means used by the opponents. As a result of the research, the authors evaluates the effectiveness of the forms and methods of military operations used during the conflict, presents the military-political results of the conflict and examines post-conflict settlement activities.

Mali’s participation in the West Africa’s integration processes

The first ever integration bloc in Africa was formed back in the colonial era in 1910, when a number of British colonies were integrated. Modern integration processes in the African countries in the south of the Sahara began much later, from the early 1960s, when most of the former colonies gained independence, and it was during this period that the construction of a number of economic blocks began. The article reveals integration processes in West Africa and sub-Saharan African countries features. Integration as such is viewed as a complex procedure, with the success way which depends on many factors. On the experience of the Republic of Mali, the authors demonstrated how an irrational socio-economic policy can lead to deformation of integration processes, which inevitably threatens with deep financial and socio-political crises.

Germany's Approach to Resolving the Conflict in Mali.

In this century the nature of many conflicts has changed: instead of common interstate feuds, the world has faced intrastate conflicts but with an international background. The active participation of nonstate actors in modern conflicts has made them much less manageable and their resolution much more complicated, including the efforts undertaken by international intermediaries. In the middle and the second half of the 2010s, the countries of the West, first of all, France and Germany, focused enormous efforts on resolving an armed conflict in the Republic of Mali. At first glimpse, these efforts contradict the uprising of Mali’s military in August 2020 which removed from power the national civil government headed by the incoming president. The questions raised in this article concern what new elements appeared in the course of relaunching the peace settlement in Mali in 2020 and to what extent nonstandard practices meet the interests of the members of the Euroatlantic Community represented by Germany. This country is chosen as an example due to the long-term trend for the growth of its influence in Africa and the World in general.

Azawad As a Self-proclaimed Tuareg State

The author was set to find out the fundamental reasons for the separatism of the Tuareg community in the Republic of Mali. The article examines the evolution of the political identity of the Tuaregs and the consolidation of scatted nomadic tribes into a community, which aims for sovereignty within their own state. It is known that the desire for state self-determination of nomads within the self-proclaimed state of Azavad is a factor that has a serious impact on the internal political situation in the country throughout its history, starting from the time of gaining independence in the early of 60s years of last century and to the present. The study showed that the confrontation between the black majority of the population of the country and in comparison with small number of “white people of the desert” (Tuaregs, Moors, Arabs) is primarily due to the parallel existence of various “life necessities cultures” in the territory of Sahel. Relatively peaceful farmers, fishermen and hunters coexist here with the warlike nomadic cattle herders. The lands cultivated by some are considered by others to be their original pasture - lands. The author substantiates the conclusion that all acute conflict situations arising in the northern territories of Mali are ultimately conditioned by the influence of this determining factor. This determines the essence of the discriminatory policy against the Tuaregs on the part of the authorities protecting the interests of the majority, Bamako’s mistakes associated with attempts to accelerate the modernization of archaic nomadic communities. The author comes to the conclusion that the situation is complicated by the reluctance of the Elysee Palace to abandon political and economic preferences in Mali and withdraw its troops from the territory of this sovereign state, from the territory that the Tuaregs consider their ancestral lands. In his opinion, in the conditions of an acute political crisis in this country, the Tuareg’s desire for state self-determination will grow.

Моделирование водной эрозии почв в провинциях Сикассо и Коуликоро (Республика Мали)

Soil along water is arguably the most precious resource on the planet. In addition to its economic benefits, soil provides critical biological services [7]. Despite its pillar functions for society, soil is often overlooked and thus is subjected to degradation and erosion. Soil erosion represents a serious global threat to land, freshwater, and oceans [3]. In Western Africa, erosion is perceived as a critical threat to the livelihoods of millions of people. This study attempts to assess and map the potential annual soil loss in the provinces of Sikasso and Koulikoro (republic of Mali). Spatial modeling of soil loss by rainfall for the year 2018 was provided using rainfall data derived from the European Joint Re-search Center, the Soil Map of the World (FAO), digital elevation model (SRTM), vegetation activity (MODIS / Terra). Methods of calculation were based on the Remote Sensing and the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE). The Geoinformation processing of the RUSLE subcomponents involved the use of the LS-factor algorithm of the Sys-tem for Automated Geoscientific Analyses (SAGA) and the Raster calculator of the ArcGIS tool box. The potential soil loss within the area ranged from 0.02 ton/ha/year to 98.87 tons/ha/year with a mean of 1.63 ton/ha/year. The spatial pattern of the erosion showed a rate of 0.02 to 1 ton/ha/year for 39% of the territory, 1 to 3 tons/ha/year for 47.58%, while 0.01% experienced a rate of more than 50 tons/ha/year. This study despite its match with the result of the global soil loss by water established by Borreli et al (2020) [3], needs to be verified by direct measurements.

Lack of antibiotic knowledge and misuse of antibiotics by medical students in Mali: a cross-sectional study

ABSTRACT Objectives: Misuse of antibiotics, especially in low-and-middle-income countries is a major contributor to antimicrobial resistance. Medical students are antibiotic consumers and prescribers in the future. This study aimed to assess antibiotic knowledge and utilization among medical students in the Republic of Mali, and to determine the relationship between knowledge and health-seeking behavior in relation to antibiotic use. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in the only public medical university in Mali. The questionnaire explored knowledge about antibiotics of medical students, and health behaviors for self-limiting illness. Data were analyzed in SPSS. Results: A total of 446 medical students completed the questionnaire. The average knowledge score was 4.12 out of 10. Students with clinical experience performed higher (4.79 vs 3.74, p< 0.01); 391(87.7%) medical students reported experience of self-limiting diseases in the past year. Of these 197(50.4%) went to see a doctor, 160 (81.2%) of whom were prescribed antibiotics: 151 medical students self-treated, with 121(80.1%) using antibiotics. Conclusions: This study shows poor knowledge and massive misuse of antibiotics among medical students in Mali. Promoting education on the mechanism of antibiotics, antimicrobial resistance and rational antibiotic use among medical students should be a priority in the medical school curriculum.

The Questioned Legality of Foreign Military Intervention in Members’ state in the Economic Community of West African States!

A military coup in the Republic of Mali, a West African nation, leading to the resignation, arrest and detention of the democratically elected sitting president in August, 2020. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) sent an envoy demanding for restoration of constitutionally order and democracy. It was in the same direction that, on the 19th January 2017, ECOWAS, launched operation ‘Restore Democracy in Gambia’ and mobilized a standby force - from six nations - to militarily intervene in a member state, if diplomacy failed to persuade former President Yayah Jammeh to step down and accept presidential elections result. This is not the first time that ECOWAS has intervened in a member country to restore democracy and provide humanitarian protection for civilians. In 1999, led by Nigeria, ECOWAS restored the democratically elected government of ex-President Tejan Kabbah of Sierra Leone, who had been illegally toppled by his military. This article looks at whether there is any legal basis in international law for such military intervention. Is ECOWAS acting in accordance with the African Union (AU) Treaty and its Peace and Security Protocol to restore peace and avoid grave consequences? If not, is then ECOWAS undertaking pre-emptive self-defense to avoid a spill of conflict in the region? Or yet, is ECOWAS tired of waiting for the United Nations’ (UN) permission and intervention, taking its own business seriously by enforcing democratic change of government? This article points out the very convoluted maize of international law on military intervention, rights to self-defense, humanitarian interventions and the principles of sovereignty in the wake of enforcement of the rules of jus cogens.

ПРОБЛЕМА СОХРАНЕНИЯ КУЛЬТУРНОГО НАСЛЕДИЯ В РЕСПУБЛИКЕ МАЛИ В МЕЖДУНАРОДНО- ПОЛИТИЧЕСКОМ АСПЕКТЕ

In this paper, the author considers the problem of pre-serving cultural heritage in the zone of armed conflicts. The destruction of cultural values by terrorist groups is a very urgent problem in modern international relations. It is sad to realize that the destruction of historical herit-age of the world is now actively used as a tool of soft power. Thus, the number of cultural heritage sites under threat is increasing year after year. As a prime example, the work considers the situation in the Republic of Mali, where a number of historical and religious heritage sites in the city of Timbuktu were destroyed during the armed conflict that began in 2012. The uniqueness of this exam-ple lies in the decision of the International Criminal Court in 2016, which recognized the destruction of cultural her-itage as a war crime. The emerging positive trend in this issue, however, does not cover all the problems. Preser-vation of cultural heritage sites still requires a compre-hensive approach.

The Geography of the Bottom Billion: Rural Isolation and Basic Service Access in the Republic of Mali

This article investigates the challenge of basic service access in one of the world’s poorest regions. Using the Republic of Mali as a case study, the article provides a new perspective on the dominant paradigm of decentralized service provision with a focus on rural areas, where basic services remain persistently inadequate. Service provision in regions such as West Africa will represent one of the most important development challenges in coming decades. This article applies a new geographical framework to decentralized institutions and service provision that is necessary to understand why access to basic services is becoming a more difficult problem to solve. It introduces two new analytical concepts—livelihood extensification and service attenuation—as well as a novel geographic dataset of rural service accessibility to show how rapid population growth and continued dependence on agriculture are putting basic services out of reach for an increasing share of Mali’s population.

Old homes and new homelands: imagining the nation and remembering expulsion in the wake of the Mali Federation's collapse

AbstractThis article examines concepts of ‘home’ and ‘abroad’ for migrants and citizens in the twilight of empire. It focuses on the ‘cheminots refoulés’, railway workers with origins in the former French Sudan (today's Republic of Mali) who were expelled from Senegal shortly after both territories declared independence, and other ‘Sudanese’ settled in Senegal, sometimes for several generations. Using newly available archives in France, Mali and Senegal, and interviews with formercheminotsand ‘Sudanese migrants’ on both sides of the border, this article seeks to historicize memories of autochthony and allochthony that have been constructed and contested in postcolonial nation-building projects. The Mali Federation carried the lingering memory of federalist political projects, but it proved untenable only months after the Federation's June 1960 independence from France. When member states declared independence from each other, the internal boundary between Senegal and the Sudanese Republic became an international border between Senegal and the Republic of Mali. In the wake of the collapse, politicians in Bamako and Dakar clamoured to redefine the ‘nation’ and its ‘nationals’ through selective remembering. Thousands ofcheminotsand ‘Sudanese migrants’ who had moved to Senegal from Sudan years (or decades) earlier were suddenly labelled ‘foreigners’ and ‘expatriates’ and faced two governments eager to see them ‘return’ to a hastily proclaimed nation state. This ‘repatriation’ allowed Republic of Mali officials to ‘perform the nation’ by (re)integrating and (re)membering the migrants in a nascent ‘homeland’. But, having circulated between Senegal and Sudan/Mali for decades, ‘Sudanese migrants’ in both states retained and invoked memories of older political communities, upsetting new national priorities. The loss of the Mali Federation raises questions about local, national and international citizenship and movement in mid-century West Africa. Examining the histories invoked to imagine postcolonial political communities, this article offers an insight into the role that memory has played in constructing and contesting the nation's central place in migration histories within Africa and beyond.

Information about medications in the district of Bamako, Mali.

The aim of our study was to investigate the quality of information about pharmaceutical products in Mali. The study surveyed 98 prescribers, 60 pharmacists, and the package inserts of a basket of 30 generic medicines, compared to those of the corresponding proprietary versions. We made a rational choice of 98 doctors from various specialties and levels of the health system and randomly selected 60 of the 215 pharmacies in the district of Bamako (Mali). A rational sampling of generic medicines provided us with a basket of 30 drug notices for the antimalarial, antibiotic, antalgic, antipyretic, and anti-inflammatory agents used most in the Republic of Mali. This study showed that the pharmaceutical industry, through its sales representatives, are the main sources of drug information and that this information is not always adequate. The study also found that the content provided with generic medicines is sometimes different from the information for the proprietary brand-name drugs.