‘We can talk through our art': the Malian festival uniting the Sahel's people

The Guardian

27-03-2025

A group of Tuareg musicians dressed in light blue robes were playing by a campfire that cast dancing shadows on the red sand. A drum and violin accompanied the electric guitars as more people came to watch the band, called Aitma.
Every February, the city of Ségou, 140 miles (230km) north of the capital, Bamako, is transformed into Mali's cultural hub as tens of thousands of people come to enjoy a week-long arts and music festival, Ségou'Art, on the banks of the Niger River.
'We are here to meet each other,' said Aitma's band manager, Mohamed Mitta. 'When we share our culture, we remember that we are one people, even if politics divides us.'
In 2012, Mitta's band members fled the northern desert city of Timbuktu with their families to escape the advancing jihadists. Part of the Tuareg population had taken up arms alongside groups linked to al-Qaida to fight for an independent state in northern Mali, as several jihadist groups spread throughout Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, pitting different communities against each other.
'When we arrived in Bamako, we met people who had not met people like us – the Tuareg from the north – before,' said Mitta. 'That was more than 10 years ago. The conflict brought northern and southern Malians into contact with each other.'
Although Timbuktu is still under a jihadist blockade, most of the band's family members have returned to the city. But Mitta and his band dare not leave Bamako. 'If the jihadists ever occupy the city again, artists will be among the first victims,' he said.
In the past four years, three military regimes have come to power in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso through coups born out of frustration with the failure of the French-led military campaign, Operation Barkhane, to contain the spread of jihadist groups in the Sahel. The French withdrew their forces in 2022 after nine years of fighting the Islamists.
When the Economic Community of West and Central Africa (Ecowas) imposed economic and monetary sanctions, and threatened to intervene militarily in Niger to force the juntas to hold elections and restore civilian rule, the three countries came together to form their own bloc: the Alliance of Sahel States (AES).
In January, the AES states withdrew from Ecowas, aiming for greater military, economic and cultural sovereignty.
The political backdrop added weight to the theme of this year's festival of 'cultural diversity, peace and unity'.
The military regimes of the AES states sent a senior delegation of ministers and envoys to the festival, where Col Maj Ismaël Wagué, one of the Malian junta members, told the crowd: 'From Mauritania to Chad, our shared culture and diversity can be a binding force if we choose to embrace it.'
Mali's foreign minister, Abdoulaye Diop, told visitors at the opening of the new Kôrè museum in Ségou: 'Just as the European Union works toward a common identity to prevent disintegration, we too see the importance of this for the alliance of our countries.'
After the ministers left, visitors crowded round Abdoulaye Konaté, an artist whose internationally acclaimed canvases are on display at the museum. 'For me, this festival is like a library, a place and yearly event where we can share knowledge and dialogue about what matters to us. We can talk through our art. It is important,' he said.
Ky Siriki, a Burkinabé artist whose bronze statues reflecting on Africa's oral history are part of the museum's collection, said: 'From Mauritania to Sudan, we share a common culture in the Sahel region due to our nomadic past and our empires. That shared culture, a rich tapestry of diversity, can unite us. Even in our differences.'
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Beverly Ochieng, an analyst at the consultancy Control Risks, which monitors the political and security situation in the Sahel, said there was widespread support among people in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso for the idea of a shared identity.
'Ecowas sanctions have caused a lot of resentment among the population in the three Sahel countries,' said Ochieng, adding that it was one reason why, despite the resulting economic downturn, a large portion of the population still backed the junta.
She said the Malian regime's pursuit of economic and monetary sovereignty, with access to its own resources and food security as key goals, 'enjoys widespread support'.
The Malian junta, led by Gen Assimi Goïta, has improved the security situation by making territorial gains in the central and northern regions of the country, earning it the trust of the population, according to Wouter van den Hazel, the Dutch defence attaché for Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso and Chad in Bamako. This is despite the heavy repression of any form of opposition and the abolition of press freedom.
In the heart of a market near the festival, a music vendor selling traditional Malian blues leant in, lowering his voice as he spoke of his country's future. 'For me, sovereignty and security are the most important. After that, a return to democracy – but not too soon,' he said.
'The junta of Assimi Goïta is cleaning up the old corrupt elite, the politicians who filled their pockets. If they come back to power after elections, it's like starting from scratch.'
As the sun's last rays deepened the red hues of Ségou's terracotta buildings, designers from five Malian cities prepared for a fashion show.
Models showcased a fusion of modern styles and traditional, bright patterns and woven fabrics. 'This is a perfect example of the cultural synergy we're aiming to build within the AES,' said Niger's young crafts and tourism minister, Aghaichata Guichene Atta.
'We must work together to ensure that the products we make, the crafts we create, can be shared across the Sahel and beyond. This is how we strengthen our identity and our ties with one another.'