Mali: The Forgotten Crisis

Many families in central Mali share similar stories. After armed groups attacked their villages, they sought refuge in several localities in Bandiagara and Mopti regions.

Many arrived empty-handed and are now staying in displacement sites or with host families. Their villages remain under threat from armed groups; returning home is not an option.

Dado Diagayete and her family have lived in the Diaba Peulh displacement site for more than a year. She explains: “The site is growing with the arrival of new displaced people, putting more pressure on the limited resources we have.”

According to the 2025 Humanitarian Response Plan for Mali, 4.7 million people – 78 per cent of whom are women and children – desperately need assistance and protection.

They’ve received assistance from humanitarian partners, but the aid is only temporary. As they struggle to get back on their feet, they continue to hope for peace and the chance to return home.

Daouda Arama is the head of a family of 10 displaced in Bandiagara. He says: “I’m a farmer; I only know how to work the land. I can’t do that here. There’s no place like home. I would really like to go back to my village as soon as I can.”

Last year more than 378,000 people were internally displaced in Mali, driven by devastating floods and the worsening security situation in northern and central regions.

While Mali faces its own crisis, escalating violence in central Sahel is driving thousands of refugees from neighbouring countries, adding to already immense humanitarian needs.

Fatimata, 38, shared her horrific experience in Burkina Faso:

“I went into the bush to collect firewood. When I returned, I found the lifeless bodies of my husband and three children in the courtyard of our house.” Devastated, she fled to Koro, the closest Malian town. 

Mali is currently home to more than 191,000 refugees and asylum-seekers fleeing violence in central Sahel. This is a 115 per cent increase compared to 2023.

Most refugees are from Burkina Faso and Niger. The needs are immense and urgent, especially for women and children, who show clear signs of distress and psychological trauma upon arrival.

Vulnerability to climate shocks

Ouleymatou Konaté, 56, sits on the steps of her house in Kayes, western Mali. A widow and mother of four, she struggles to rebuild her life after her home was flooded during the rainy season.

“Despite our efforts to counter the water with sandbags, it wasn’t enough,” she explained.

Desperate to protect her home, she used her savings to buy cement and construct barriers: “We built walls with cement, but the water still flooded our home. We had to redo all the floors inside the house. Now I don’t have any money left.”

Ouleymatou received 60,000 FCFA (nearly US$100) and two tarpaulins from humanitarian partners. She is grateful, but she admits that the funds will cover only a few days of expenses and will not address all of her family’s needs.

Six hundred miles from Kayes, in the Ségou region, Awa Diarra stands in the middle of what used to be her family courtyard in Sirebougou village.

“Our village was flooded. We lost everything, our house and food,” she says.

During last year’s rainy season, severe flooding across Mali affected nearly 450,000 people, mostly women and children.

The Government declared a national disaster, and thousands of already vulnerable people were forced to move, losing their homes, livestock, fields and livelihoods. Some flood survivors received emergency shelter, while others were temporarily hosted in classrooms.

Sustaining hope

Last year 1.8 million people received humanitarian assistance in Mali, thanks to the contributions of donors, including the United States and the European Union which provided more than 60 per cent of the funds raised.

But funding and access constraints forced humanitarian partners to make difficult choices, occasionally reducing the amount of aid to support only the most vulnerable people, such as those living in the most remote areas.

In addition, entire communities have been deprived of life-saving assistance due to armed hostilities, explosive devices, blockades, and the destruction of transport and civilian infrastructure.

This year humanitarian partners are seeking $771.3 million to provide emergency assistance to people most in need.

People in Mali have endured waves of crisis for more than a decade, with conflict, displacement and climate disasters disrupting daily life.

But despite these shocks, they find ways to rebuild, holding onto hope for a better future.

Flexible, long-term funding is essential to help families in Mali and the wider Sahel to rebuild their lives, provide children with education and nutrition, and offer hope to those who need it most.

Since 2021, the Regional Humanitarian Pooled Fund for West and Central Africa provides vital funding to tackle humanitarian needs and emergencies in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger.

Support for this Regional Fund enables humanitarian partners to reach the most vulnerable populations in remote areas and deliver life-saving assistance while also focusing on resilience-building efforts.