Op-ed: Mali’s suspended constitutional review provides vital lessons

On 18 August, Mali’s President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta decided to suspend the referendum procedure to revise Mali’s constitution. His decision was taken under pressure from various political and civil society groups rallied under the platform Antè Abana, which means ‘We do not want, it’s over’ in the local Bambara language. The importance of implementing the peace agreement and the resulting reforms cannot be overstated. However without popular support these steps won’t have the expected stabilising effect. To ensure national ownership, the Malian authorities and their partners engaged in the peace process must involve all the relevant stakeholders in the various proposed measures, from the inception phases.
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