CARIAA-WorkingPaper11_AdaptationAction-Mali

Mali is highly vulnerable to climate change due to its economic dependence on agriculture, political fragility, and low development levels. While the government has developed a comprehensive suite of climate policies and a pioneering national climate fund, actual integration into sectoral and sub-national planning remains weak. Adaptation efforts are heavily skewed toward agriculture, leaving other vulnerable sectors like fishing and specific groups like northern pastoralists underserved.

• Mali is highly vulnerable to climate change due to its dependence on climate-sensitive sectors, low development levels, and a history of resource-based conflicts, despite projections suggesting it may not experience dramatic climatic changes in the coming decades.
• Projected temperature increases for West Africa under a high warming scenario are 0.9°C by 2035, 2.1°C by 2065, and 4.0°C by 2100, with the most significant warming expected in Mali's north and northwest regions.
• Rainfall patterns in Mali are characterized by low predictability, with a tendency toward delayed onset and later retreat of rainy seasons, which may reduce the overall growing period.
• Agriculture is the most vulnerable sector and the primary focus of adaptation efforts, with 64% of identified discrete adaptation projects targeting this sector. In contrast, the fishing sector, despite being identified as vulnerable, has 0% of identified projects.
• Mali has established a comprehensive set of climate governance documents, including the National Adaptation Programme of Action (2007), National Climate Change Policy (2011), National Climate Change Strategy (2011), and National Climate Action Plan (2011), though formal integration into sectoral policies remains weak.
• The Mali Climate Fund, established in 2012, is a pioneering financial instrument in the region; it received US$46 million in 2014 against an estimated need of US$250 million for the 2012–2017 period.
• Sub-national adaptation is hindered by a gap between formal decentralization laws and actual capacity; while local authorities are responsible for natural resource management, they lack the institutional, technological, and financial capacity to implement strategies.
• Climate risks are expected to exacerbate social instability in Mali, specifically by increasing conflicts between nomadic pastoralists and sedentary farmers over dwindling resources.
• Climate change is projected to significantly impact Mali's energy sector, with the Ministry of Environment and Sanitation predicting reductions in hydroelectricity of up to 22% by 2025.

APA

International Institute for Sustainable Development (n.d.). CARIAA-WorkingPaper11_AdaptationAction-Mali. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/idl-55867-mali.pdf

Chicago

International Institute for Sustainable Development. CARIAA-WorkingPaper11_AdaptationAction-Mali. n.d. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/idl-55867-mali.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=International Institute for Sustainable Development |title=CARIAA-WorkingPaper11_AdaptationAction-Mali |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/idl-55867-mali.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{internationalinstituteforsustainabledevelopmentndcariaaworkingpaper11adaptationactionmali, author = {{International Institute for Sustainable Development}}, title = {{CARIAA-WorkingPaper11\_AdaptationAction-Mali}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/idl-55867-mali.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }