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This paper examines how the Czech press reported on EUTM in Mali in 2012-2018, how it was reported by responsible political institutions and how the communicated content differed. In both cases, the predominance of episodic framing was confirmed. Concerning the generic frames, conflict and responsibility frames prevailed. While there have been some characteristics of peace journalism in the press, it is not enough to qualify the media as performing peace journalism in general. In the communication of the Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic and the Army of the Czech Republic, it was possible to observe a tendency to "humanize" some of the stories, especially by describing the everyday activities of soldiers. The Czech Republic's participation in the EU mission was most often associated with the Common Foreign and Security Policy and with general security aspects. In addition to the media and institutional agenda of the conflict in Mali, the work also reflects on the analytical usefulness of the concept of peace journalism.

The UN Security Council established on the 25th of April, 2013; The United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) to support political processes in that country and carry out a number of security-related tasks. The mission was authorized a strong mandate by the Security Council to carry out its tasks and to protects its mandate. Despite the mission’s strong mandate, violence on civilians has not reduced which has led to a debate on whether the UN can handle the situation in Mali. This study tries to examine whether MINUSMA can be described according to David Kilcullens conceptualisation of a COIN-operation in three pillars of counterinsurgency, by doing so this study hopes to give theoretical insight and enable a way of understanding the goals and means of the mission in Mali more than the stabilizing mandate does. The result of the analysis shows that MINUSMA can be described as a COIN-operation in large extent, mainly in the areas of cooperation, information and security. The result also shows that even if MINUSMA doesn´t work directly in the area of politics & economics they support both direct and indirect other agencies that does, thereby giving theoretical insight to the mission in Mali.

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Mali, a poor country in the West African Sahel region, has been at war since 2012. What began as an uprising in its sparsely developed northern half has spread to the rest of the country and enveloped large parts of neighbouring countries. Several outside militaries and a UN peace-keeping mission have been deployed to the country, making the Malian government dependent on outside support to maintain territorial control. This thesis analyses speeches delivered in 2012-2023 by Malian state representatives at the United Nations General Debate and United Nations Security Council. Narrative method and theory are used to identify strategic narratives in these speeches, i.e., narratives employed by an actor in international affairs to gain a favourable outcome for that actor. These narratives are identified and contextualised to understand what Mali’s ultimate strategic objectives with deploying them could be. They are put in the context of already existing master narratives, dominant stories told about the country and the region. The thesis identifies two major strategic narratives, one covering 2012-2020, when Mali portrays itself as a democratic country under assault from terrorists, it latches on to dominant narratives on fears of state collapse and the Sahel region as a front line in the war on terror, ultimately seeking to portray its civil war as a matter that should concern the entire world. In late 2020, the military takes control in Mali and a new strategic narrative is employed at the UN. The military regime breaks ties with France, the old colonial master, and employs a narrative that casts Mali as a post-colonial victim of a nefarious French plot to subjugate the Malian state.

Background Female Sex Workers (FSW) in Mali are highly vulnerable to HIV. Their prevalence in 2009 was nine times higher (24.2%) than that among pregnant women (2.7%). The aim of this study was to document the effectiveness of HIV prevention programming targeting FSW between 2000 and 2013 funded by the U.S. Government (USG) in Mali. Methods The content, scope and coverage of interventions were assessed through a document review and key informant interviews with FSW peer educators and program managers. Data from the Integrated Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) Prevalence and Behavior Surveys (ISBS) conducted in 2000, 2003, 2006, and 2009 were analyzed to measure changes in outcomes over time. Multivariate logistic regression was used to control for changes in FSW demographics and to analyze sub-groups. Results From 2000 to 2013 the USG was the key partner to the government of Mali (GOM) for HIV testing, surveillance, STI treatment, and behavior change communication (BCC) targeting FSW. The USG spent over $42 million on HIV programming between 2003 and 2013. Since 2001, programming for FSW covered most urban areas and transport hubs in Mali. USG partners exceeded their goals, making over 1.3 million BCC contacts with FSW and their sexual partners. However, outcomes were negatively impacted by frequent stock-outs of medications to treat STIs between 2006 and 2011. Also, evidence suggests that interventions were of insufficient intensity and coverage. Finally, M&E system was rudimentary and inconsistent, which made it impossible to link outcomes with programming with confidence. Nevertheless, important positive changes in outcomes occurred. Between 2003 and 2009, HIV prevalence dropped from 44.14% to 28.49% (P <0.0001) among Malian FSW, from 21.33% to 12.71% (P =0.0082) among Nigerian FSW, and from 43.42% to 33.67% (P =0.0442) among FSW from other countries. Between 2000 and 2009 HIV testing increased (40% to 76% P <0.0001). Consistent condom use with clients improved for Malian FSW (72.3% to 81.5% P =0.0092). Consistent condom use with boyfriends was low and improved only for Nigerian FSW (9.8% to 28.4% P =0.0003). Factors associated with HIV prevalence in the multivariate model were older age, study year (2003 and 2006), nationality, lack of education, mobility, STI symptoms, gonorrhea prevalence, and younger age at first sex. Conclusions This study documents progress in the fight against HIV among FSW in Mali, but coverage and intensity must be increased and the quality and diversity of interventions must be expanded. The different vulnerabilities to HIV of different nationality FSW should be addressed in future programming and research. Program adoption of and adherence to Mali’s new M&E plan for key populations would do much to facilitate the necessary improvements. / 2017-04-02T00:00:00Z

A study was undertaken to obtain information on farmers' knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding pesticide usage and to determine the amount of pesticide in soil and water samples collected at four cotton producing areas of Mali. The results from a survey of 24 farmers identified various concerns regarding personal and environmental safety. Despite their training, sometimes growers did not use pesticides in an appropriate manner. Highly toxic pesticides are used by farmers with insufficient personal protective equipment. Sixty soil samples and eight water samples from four cotton growing areas in Mali were scanned for detectable levels of fifty pesticides in total. Pesticides were detected in 77% of the soil samples and the main pesticides were p,p-DDT and its breakdown products, endosulfan I endosulfan II, endosulfan sulfate and profenofos. Among the pesticides detected, p,p-DDT use in the study area had not been reported during the past ten years. The most common pesticide detected in the soil samples from cotton growing areas studied was endosulfan II constituting 65% of the detections with a maximum amount of 37 ng/g. Residues detected in soil samples were below the quantification limit for the newer cotton production region of Kita and for the intermediate region of San. Eight pesticides were detected in water samples: γ-BHC (lindane), endosulfan I, endosulfan II, endosulfan sulfate, dieldrin, p,p-DDD, p,p-DDE and atrazine. All detected pesticides in water had concentrations below the quantification limit except for atrazine. Even though pesticides were found at low concentrations in ground water samples, the fact that water from these wells is used for human and animal consumption is of concern. Also, soil pesticides may be taken up by plants and passed on to other organisms feeding on those plants. Further residues studies in the cotton growing areas of Mali are in order to monitor pesticides residues in Malian soils, water and living organisms. / Master of Science

This study used secondary data to analyze the Saving for Change (SfC) program of Oxfam America in Mali. SfC uses a model of microfinance that is based on education and savings-led approach and self-help methodology. The program teaches the poorest women how to form and manage a group to handle savings and credit related needs. The group learns to systematically collect savings from its members; lend the money to its members with interest and keep a record of all transactions. SfC has created an oral recordkeeping system which is helpful for groups that have mostly or all illiterate women. The SfC women also learn about other social components such as malaria through their participation in the program. This study, however, focused only on the financial activities of the women. The secondary data analyzed in this study were collected by Oxfam America in two rounds of surveys that used mixed methods instruments. Both surveys were conducted in October and November, one in 2005 and the other in 2006. Most of the data collected from the surveys were quantitative. They were collected for Oxfam America's own purposes and only some of them were used for this study. The study used three aspects of outreach--depth, scope and worth to the user--as the framework to explore the extent to which SfC had reached the poorest women. Three overarching questions were constructed, one to explore each of these aspects of outreach. They were: Were the women served by SfC poorer than other women who were not served? Did the SfC women utilize the program benefits? Did the utilization of the program benefits vary based on the women's economic levels? Each overarching question also had a set of main and specific questions. Some key economic indicators such as the women's literacy and schooling at the individual level and the ratio of school age children in school, food security, assets and the ratio of income contributors at the household level, as well as select program benefits such as savings and loans were used for determining the main and specific questions. Various statistical tests including one-way ANOVA, paired samples t-tests and bivariate correlations were performed to answer those questions. Most of the results of the statistical tests did not provide a clear answer whether or not SfC reached the poorest of the poor. Out of the four indicators, three showed that the women reached by SfC were as poor as the women in the control group. The SfC women were statistically significantly better off, as measured by household assets, compared to the other women in the area. The results of the paired samples t-tests showed that the SfC women utilized the benefits offered by the program, and their utilization was higher in 2006 than in 2005. Except for a few instances, the women's utilization of the program benefits did not appear to have been influenced by their economic levels. None of their saving activities were significantly affected by their household economic levels. Their willingness to take loans also did not appear to be influenced by the difference in their household economic levels in a meaningful way. Although mixed, these findings adequately rejected the notion that Oxfam America had failed to reach the poorest of the poor. However, the results did not show that the women reached by SfC were the poorest. Future studies and collection of additional data may provide more conclusive findings about the level of poverty of the women reached by the program and the extent to which the very poorest benefitted equally from the services. Whether or not the results were statistically significant and all women were the poorest, the experiences gained by the women and the groups from their participation in SfC spoke directly to the core purpose of the program and to the economic benefits for the clients by any international standard. When their context was taken into consideration, poor women of one of the world's poorest countries in the villages where there are very few or no opportunities became economically active in the SfC program. The level of engagement of the women was an important step forward toward reducing poverty. Regardless of their economic levels, those poor women saved a remarkable amount of money; borrowed money from the group; repaid loans with interest; and, most importantly, managed a financial system as a group to serve their financial needs.

In this thesis, I investigate to what extent and how the normative changes in UN peace operations have left an imprint on Swedish foreign policy tradition. Departing from a constructivist point of view, this thesis explores to what extent the changing international norms on UN peace operations translate to the national level. By way of this, the thesis aims to contribute to the theoretical discussion on how international norms and ideas imprint on a national level. The analysis focuses on the heightened threat level, the increased authorisation of the use of force, the inclusion of new military domains and humanitarian and civilian aspects. The Swedish approach is analysed through parliamentary debates and government propositions on MINUSMA between 2021-2022, where MINUSMA represents the normative changes UN peace operations have undergone. The material is analysed through qualitative content analysis. The results of the analysis indicate that Sweden aligns regarding the acceptance of increased military influence over MINUSMA and also accepts the heightened threat level. At the same time, the mission’s own use of force is played down by the government and parliamentarians, instead choosing to emphasise civilian and humanitarian factors. As a result, the alignment regarding the aspect of the use of force is more difficult to draw firm conclusions around.

Russia's renewed interest and involvement in the African continent is reminiscent of a time when the Soviet Union supported various ideologically aligned groups to win a geopolitical power struggle and assert its position as a global superpower. The motives seem to have changed, but the question is whether Russian warfare in Africa has changed as well. In this comparative study, the Soviet Union's support for the MPLA and their takeover in Angola in 1975 is compared with Russia's support for the military junta that seized power in Mali after a military coup in 2020, aiming to determine how Russian/Soviet warfare in Africa has evolved over time. Supported by Thomas Rid and Lars Ulfving's theoretical framework on so-called active measures, three operationalized variables are identified and analyzed as: white, gray, and black. Through qualitative text analysis, reports and literature from the cases are examined. The results of this study provide a deeper understanding of how hybrid warfare has been and is currently used as a means of Russian influence in Africa. The methods for this have rather been reinforced than changed historically by global development trends, especially the spread of information technology and the utilization of private companies and other actors. This study has confirmed that there is a historically rooted common Russian strategy to acquire and exert influence, a strategy based on the Soviet Union's traditional methods, active measures. A dual strategy consisting of both official policies and unofficial means where the unofficial means are driven by private actors, facilitating Russia's plausible deniability.