WASHINGTON, D.C. — MaliWatch held its 2026 Annual Meeting on Sunday, May 24, at the Embassy of Mali in Washington, D.C., with additional participants joining by Zoom. The meeting brought together members, partners and guests for a day of discussion on youth training, public health and the urgent environmental challenges facing Mali.

A meeting grounded in partnership

President Harouna Abdoulaye Maiga opened the meeting at 9:15 a.m. by videoconference and welcomed participants. He noted that health concerns prevented him from attending in person. Professor Diola Bagayoko moderated the online discussions, while Maliwatch's first president, Bakary Sylla, moderated the session at the Embassy. Greetings were offered by Mahamadou Nassirou Ba, president of the Club des Doyens de Washington, and Sow Aminata Traore, vice-president of the Haut Conseil des Maliens d'Amérique. Minister-Counselor Noel Diarra welcomed participants on behalf of Ambassador Sekou Berthe and the Embassy staff, emphasizing the close collaboration between the Embassy and Maliwatch since the organization's founding in 1997.

Investing in Malian talent in artificial intelligence

Amadou Kane and Mamadou Konate, representing the Maliwatch Youth Group, presented a proposal to work with the Centre d'Intelligence Artificielle et Robotique du Mali (CIAR Mali). The initiative would create training opportunities in artificial intelligence for Malian youth. The Youth Group plans to develop a detailed project for review and approval by Maliwatch.

Building collaboration for women's and children's health

Tara Hopkins presented MaliHealth, a U.S.-based 501(c)(3) organization that works with women's associations in Bamako to improve maternal and child health. Since its creation in 2006, MaliHealth has focused on primary care, pregnancy and vaccination education, nutrition, and the prevention of maternal and infant mortality. Children under five remain especially vulnerable to malnutrition, malaria, diarrhea and respiratory disease.

Hopkins outlined several opportunities for collaboration with Maliwatch: joint projects, including responses to cross-border health threats; recruitment of board members and volunteers; and fundraising through donations, tontines, peer-to-peer efforts and solidarity-based income-generating activities. President Maiga said Maliwatch would follow up to explore these proposals.

An urgent call to protect the Niger River

Dr. Sidy Ba, Ing., Ph.D., specialist in environmental engineering, delivered a presentation on pollution of the Niger River. He described a worsening combination of untreated wastewater, solid waste, industrial effluents, agricultural runoff, artisanal dyeing and the impacts of uncontrolled mining and gold dredging. These pressures threaten water quality, aquatic biodiversity and the health and livelihoods of communities that depend on the river for fishing, agriculture and navigation.

Dr. Ba warned that mercury and other heavy metals, waterborne diseases and the degradation of river ecosystems require urgent action. He called for stronger integrated water-resource management, modern waste-treatment systems, enforcement of mining and artisanal-activity laws, and more responsible industrial and agricultural practices. Participants proposed that he prepare an urgent letter to the Government of Mali to draw attention to the crisis and call for immediate measures.

A productive meeting cut short

Participants found all three presentations relevant and informative, and the presentations were made available on the Maliwatch website. A planned update on Maliwatch's activities and budget could not be delivered after a power outage at the Embassy interrupted internet access, lighting and ventilation.

In closing, Minister-Counselor Noel Diarra, Harouna Abdoulaye Maiga, Mahamadou Nassirou Ba and Diola Bagayoko described the meeting as productive and successful. They thanked Ambassador Sekou Berthe and the Embassy staff for hosting the event, Mrs. Adam Ouologuem for the meal, and all participants for their thoughtful contributions. The meeting was adjourned at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time (20:30 GMT).