HEADLINES
The second round of Presidential elections took place on 11 August without incident. Ibrahim Boubacar Keita won the presidential runoff with 78 per cent of the vote and is due to be sworn in by Mali's Supreme Court on 4 September. Legislative elections are to be held in the near future though the precise date remains unclear.
UNICEF continues to engage with the government as well as technical and financial partners in the planning and development for Early Recovery and long-term development strategies to help Mali build back better.
UNICEF is playing a key role in the return of basic social services in the North and is supporting a mapping exercise to better understand access and functionality of basic social services in 36 priority commune areas where high numbers of displaced people or refugees are expected to return.
Addressing the needs of teachers and students and improving the quality of teaching are fundamental investments on which UNICEF continues to focus for the 2013 – 2014 Back to School initiative to build a better education system across Mali. Providing hardware such as desks, books and teaching manuals remains a central component of UNICEF’s support for Back to School. Training on peace building, psychosocial support and pedagogy of large groups are included in Ministry of Education’ strategy.
SMART methodology nutrition surveys are nearing completion in all regions of southern Mali, with results expected to be made available in September.
A donor conference in Bamako is being planned for mid-September, and will follow-up the progress made since the donors’ conference in Brussels in May.
UNICEF requires $91.9 million to provide urgent assistance to children in Mali. So far, only $32.7 million or 36 per cent of the required funding has been received. The sectors that are most under-funded are WASH and Child Protection, requiring $17.7 million and $7.1 million respectively. (See page 14 of this report for details on funding needs for all sectors)