The Malian government has pleaded with the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) to lift the “inhumane” sanctions.
According to the government, the sanctions being imposed on its government is having a severe consequences on the population.
West Africa’s 15-nation ECOWAS bloc and the UEMOA regional monetary union both imposed sanctions on Mali on 9th January after the military junta that first seized power in a 2020 coup decided to delay a national election.
The UEMOA, which has eight member countries including Mali, instructed all financial institutions under its umbrella to suspend Mali with immediate effect.
The government stated in a statement that it has never been formally notified of the sanctions by UEMOA, which it said constitute a violation of procedure and thus, calling the measures “disproportionate, inhumane, illegitimate and illegal”.
“The Malian government urges UEMOA to comply with community rules and therefore, to lift in a spirit of justice, equity and solidarity, these inappropriate sanctions which is having severe, inevitable socio-economic consequences for the populations of Mali and of the West African sub-region.”
Malian Statement
Sanctions Blamed For Bond Default
The statement further blamed the sanctions for US$31 million in bond defaults last week. It can be recalled that the Finance Ministry and the West African Debt Management Agency of Mali disclosed last week that the country had defaulted on more than US$31 million of bond payments.
Mali’s finance ministry earlier said that the country had failed to meet a debt payment of 2.7 billion CFA francs (US$4.7 million) on Treasury bond coupons, blaming the ECOWAS sanctions and those imposed by the BCEAO Central Bank that administers the CFA franc.
However, the ministry indicated that Mali would pay its debts as soon as the restrictions are lifted. “Because of these restrictions and despite having sufficient reserves in its treasury, the Central Bank did not proceed to meet the bond repayment scheduled for 28 January.”
The 15-member ECOWAS economic bloc and the Union Economique et Monétaire Ouest Africaine (UEMOA) regional monetary union both imposed sanctions on Mali on January 9, 2021, after the military junta that first seized power in a 2020 coup and decided to delay a national election. ECOWAS then acted and froze Malian state assets in its member states’ commercial banks and suspended non-essential financial transactions with Mali.
The junta took power in August 2020, then staged a second coup last year May, 2021, against a transitional government that had been put in place. It indicated it would organise elections in February this year 2022, only to delay them and propose staying in power until 2025.
The European Union also imposed sanctions on Mali’s transitional prime minister and members of interim president Assimi Goita’s inner circle.
Meanwhile some analysts, however, warned that the Malian economy could soon be on its knees as the impact of the sanctions ripple through the economy. It is unknown if the junta will give up due to the effects of the sanctions and return the country to the civilian rule.
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