Ireland pledges €2.5 million in aid to Mali to contribute to reconstruction

The European Union yesterday pledged an extra €520 million in international aid to Mali over the next two years, with Ireland committing €2.5 million in humanitarian aid to contribute to the reconstruction of the north African country.

Speaking at an international donor conference on Mali yesterday in Brussels, which was attended by French president François Hollande, EU development commissioner Andris Piebalgs said the extra funds would result in "better access to water, sanitation, health, justice, education for hundreds of thousands of Malians".

The conference was the first major gathering of international donors and stakeholders since France intervened in the Sahel country in January to tackle an Islamic insurgency.

With France gradually pulling its personnel out of the region, focus is now turning to reconstruction and recovery, as the country deals with drought, displacement and economic collapse. The interim Malian government yesterday presented the country’s two-year €4.3 billion plan for the reconstruction of the country, which is deemed to be one of the poorest in the world. Some €3.25 billion of the €4.3 billion needed for reconstruction has been pledged by international donors, the conference heard. Mali’s interim president, Dioncounda Traoré, said presidential elections would begin on July 28th.

Speaking at the fringes of the conference, Minister of State Joe Costello said the extra €2.5 million pledged by the State was in addition to €1.8 million already allocated in 2013.

“We are supporting the EU’s comprehensive approach, contributing through humanitarian action and through political and diplomatic engagement and security assistance,” he said.

Ireland provided more than €11 million in humanitarian funding to the Sahel region in north Africa, which includes Mali, between 2009 and 2011. It is also participating in an EU training mission to the country, with eight members of the Irish Defence Forces forming part of the 500-strong EU team.

According to Oxfam, about half a million people have been displaced by the conflict in Mali, while the country's economy has declined dramatically.