Mali: Switzerland welcomes the preliminary peace agreement

In its capacity as a facilitator, Switzerland took an active part in the negotiations that have just been concluded in Ouagadougou thanks to the mediation efforts led by Burkina Faso and the United Nations, working together with the African Union (AU), the European Union (EU), France, and other facilitator countries.

The signing of this preliminary agreement allows, for the first time since the conflict began in January 2012, for the cessation of hostilities between the signatory parties and paves the way for the holding of presidential elections scheduled for 28 July 2013. The agreement makes possible the progressive redeployment of Malian government services along with the security and defense forces throughout the entire territory of Mali

Furthermore, the signatories have pledged to hold inclusive negotiations after the presidential elections on all of the fundamental questions that led to the crisis. An “international follow-up and evaluation committee” led by the UN has been established under the agreement in order to flank the process. Switzerland will be a member of this committee together with the AU, the EU, the ECOWAS the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), France, the United States, Algeria, Mauritania, and Niger.

It is crucial to underline the very strong mobilization of the international community in connection with the Mali peace process. This unprecedented mobilization reflects the concern and the vital importance attached by the international actors to the risk of the situation deteriorating throughout the entire Sahel region, beyond the borders of Mali and the profound crisis currently affecting the country.

Switzerland has been present in Mali and in the Sahel region for several decades in its development cooperation and more recently in its peace-building programme. Despite the difficult situation, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) has never ceased its activities in the south of the country. It now proposes to resume its activities in the north, depending on the political and security situation. As announced on 31 May, Switzerland, together with the World Bank, has already launched the decentralized sectoral budget aid mechanism that enables territorial authorities to obtain direct access to official development assistance.

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