Law enforcement in Mali

Law enforcement in Mali is the responsibility of the National Police Force (French: Police Nationale du Mali), which is subordinate to the Ministry of Internal Security and Civil Protection.[1][2] The National Police Force shares responsibility for internal security with the Gendarmerie, a paramilitary organization; the police are responsible exclusively for urban areas, while the Gendarmerie's primary responsibility is for rural areas, though it may also reinforce the police when needed.[1][2] According to The Wall Street Journal, each organization has approximately 5,000 personnel,[3] while Interpol gives a figure of over 7,000 for the police.[4]

In October 2015, Moussa Ag Infahi replaced Hamidou Kansaye as Director General of the National Police, while Colonel-Major Satigui Dit Moro Sidibé became the new Director General of the Gendarmerie, succeeding Colonel-Major Mody Bérété.[5] Local police districts are headed by commissioners, who report to regional directors at national police headquarters.[2]

The police are poorly trained, equipped and led, and suffer from low morale.[1][3] Corruption is also a problem.[6] Following the 2013 national elections, Mali's new government made improving the police a priority and accepted the assistance of various countries and external organizations,[3][7] including Japan;[8] the United Nations Development Programme;[8] the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, through the Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA);[9] and a European Union Training Mission.[3]

Mali has been a member of Interpol since 1969.[4]

Being a former French colony, Mali has a civil law system based on the French model.[10]

  1. ^ a b c "Mali 2014 Crime and Safety Report". Bureau of Diplomatic Security, United States Department of State.
  2. ^ a b c "Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2011" (PDF). Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, United States Department of State.
  3. ^ a b c d Naftali Bendavid (22 September 2014). "Mali's Police Restructuring Will Take Years". The Wall Street Journal.
  4. ^ a b "Mali: La Police nationale du Mali". Interpol. Archived from the original on 2017-04-24. Retrieved 2016-11-12.
  5. ^ "Handover ceremonies at the Gendarmerie and the National Police". EUCAP Sahel Mali. 28 October 2015. Archived from the original on 3 August 2016. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  6. ^ Lansana Gberie (July 2016). "Crime, Violence, and Politics: Drug Trafficking and Counternarcotics Policies in Mali and Guinea" (PDF). Brookings Institution.
  7. ^ "EUCAP Sahel Mali: Gendarmerie". European Union External Action. Archived from the original on 2016-11-12. Retrieved 2016-11-12.
  8. ^ a b "Japan and UNDP team up for the rehabilitation of Mali's National Police Academy". United Nations Development Programme. 3 March 2015. Archived from the original on 12 November 2016. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  9. ^ "UNODC and DPKO collaborate to strengthen law enforcement in Mali". United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Archived from the original on 2016-11-12. Retrieved 2016-11-12.
  10. ^ "Africa:: Mali". World Factbook. 13 June 2023.