Mali’s transitional president, also President of the confederation of Alliance of Sahel States (AES), Colonel Assimi Goïta, has urged parliamentarians to work together to launch the Confederal Parliament of the AES.
Goïta expressed this position while receiving a delegation from the Transitional Legislative Assembly led by its President, Dr. Ousmane Bougouma, on Tuesday, October 8, 2024.
This comes amidst calls by Burkina Faso’s president, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, for the three AES member-states to move towards a unified military force with one command centre and a single Chief of Staff for the entire confederation.
The Malian Head of State called for the establishment of the confederal parliament, an instrument that will consolidate the AES confederation.
Goïta’s proposal followed the visit of the head of the Burkinabe Parliament to Bamako, Mali, as part of the opening of the 2nd ordinary session of the National Transitional Council (CNT), the local Transitional Parliament.
The country commenced its October 2024 National Transitional Council (NTC), chaired by Prime Minister Dr. Choguel K. Maïga, which was marked by the presence of many political and administrative figures as well as distinguished guests from different countries, including representatives of Burkina Faso, Türkiye and Niger
On the integration of the military command, Troaré said that it is expected to be finalised within a few months, paving the way for a more cohesive and efficient military structure.
He pointed out that they recruited 30,000 soldiers, that the police force and the gendarmerie also did the same, but he didn’t give any details. By his statement, Burkina Faso’s military has witnessed a significant enlargement from an 11,000-strong force when he first took over.
Mali has also increased the number of its military personnel from 41, 000 in 2020 to 65,000 as of 2023. Niger, as of 2022, had 33000 soldiers. It has set a goal of reaching 50,000 troops next year, and 100,000 by 2030.
Several commentators say the boost in military personnel comes as part of a revision of government defence policies, which had restrictions imposed on the number of personnel while France provided military support, limiting the capabilities of the local armed forces.
