Ségou Region
Encyclopedia
Mali
Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...
, whose capital is the town of Ségou
Ségou
Ségou is a city in south-central Mali, lying northeast of Bamako on the River Niger, in the region of Ségou. It was founded by the Bozo people, on a site about from the present town...
.
Geography
Situated at the center of Mali, Ségou Region covers 64,947 km² (around 5% of Mali). The region is bordered by Sikasso RegionSikasso Region
Sikasso is the southern-most region of Mali. The capital city of the same name is the 3rd-largest city and is growing rapidly due to people fleeing the violence in Côte d'Ivoire to the south. Major ethnic groups include the Senoufo, known for masks and reverence for animals, the Samago, known for...
on the south, Tombouctou and Mopti
Mopti Region
Mopti is the fifth administrative region of Mali, covering 79,017 km². Its capital is the city of Mopti.-Geography:Mopti Region is bordered by Tombouctou Region to the north, Ségou Region to the southwest, and Burkina Faso to the southeast....
on the east, Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso – also known by its short-form name Burkina – is a landlocked country in west Africa. It is surrounded by six countries: Mali to the north, Niger to the east, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Côte d'Ivoire to the southwest.Its size is with an estimated...
to the southeast and the Koulikoro Region
Koulikoro Region
Koulikoro is a region in Mali. It is the second administrative area of Mali and covers an area of 90,120 km². Its capital is the city of Koulikoro.- Geography :...
to the west.
Climate
The Ségou region is characterized by a semi-arid climate (average yearly rainfall: 513 mm) and irrigated by two important waterways: the Niger and the Bani RiverBani River
The Bani River is the principal tributary of the Niger River in Mali. Its length is about 1100 km. The Bani is formed from the confluence of the Baoulé and Bagoé rivers some 160 km east of Bamako and merges with the Niger near Mopti.-Geography:...
, allowing allow irrigation
Irrigation
Irrigation may be defined as the science of artificial application of water to the land or soil. It is used to assist in the growing of agricultural crops, maintenance of landscapes, and revegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas and during periods of inadequate rainfall...
for agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
. Ségou has two seasons: a rainy season and a dry season. The rainy season starts in June and lasts about four months until September. On the other hand, the dry season includes a cold period and a period of heat. The average yearly rainfall is about 513 mm. The harmattan
Harmattan
The Harmattan is a dry and dusty West African trade wind. It blows south from the Sahara into the Gulf of Guinea between the end of November and the middle of March...
is the dominant wind in the dry season and it blows from north to south. The monsoon blowing from south to north-west is more frequent during rainy season (hivernage).
Demography
With a rural population that is largely nomadic semi-sedentary or sedentary, the population consists of many ethnic groups such as Bambara, Bozo, Soninke, MalinkéMandinka people
The Mandinka, Malinke are one of the largest ethnic groups in West Africa with an estimated population of eleven million ....
and Toucouleur
Toucouleur
The Toucouleurs are a Fula agricultural people who live primarily in West Africa: the north of Senegal in the Senegal River valley, Mauritania, and Mali.-History:...
. Bambaras are mostly farmers and are the most numerous ethnic group. Their language is Bambara or Djoula. The Bozos are the second most populous ethnic group. They live in the borders of Niger, in small towns constituted of small houses. The Bozos economy is based on fishing. Bozo people have a monopoly on the transport system because of their knowledge in the river by Niger, and are regarded as the masters of water. The Somono, also fisherman, are not a distinct ethnic group but a mixture of Bambara, Bozo and Soninke. The Malinké, Maninka, and Mandinka are closely related to Bambaras. They have the same costumes, beliefs and religious practices as Bambaras. The Marka
Marka people
The Marka people are a Soninke people of northwest Mali. They speak the Manding Marka language.-History:...
, Saracollé or Soninke are merchants and warriors.
Economy
Today, Ségou is known for its potteryPottery
Pottery is the material from which the potteryware is made, of which major types include earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. The place where such wares are made is also called a pottery . Pottery also refers to the art or craft of the potter or the manufacture of pottery...
, its market
Market
A market is one of many varieties of systems, institutions, procedures, social relations and infrastructures whereby parties engage in exchange. While parties may exchange goods and services by barter, most markets rely on sellers offering their goods or services in exchange for money from buyers...
and its fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
industry. Attractions in the old town of Ségou-Koro included a mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
, Coulibaly's tomb and an ancient tree. In the city center, the main landmark is the water tower
Water tower
A water tower or elevated water tower is a large elevated drinking water storage container constructed to hold a water supply at a height sufficient to pressurize a water distribution system....
.
The main economic activities of the Ségou region are agri-business, cattle farming and fishing. The Ségou people apply essential traditional farming methods. Ségou produces the major part of Mali
Mali
Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...
’s national food including sedentary cattle farming. The economy is essentially informal as it is oriented towards the populations' primary needs, while industrial production is weak and based in the food industry. Large scale agribusiness consists of three factories, COMATEX, CMDT and SUKALA. Commerce consists mostly of the small scale exchange and sale by of products from the primary sector, sold weekly at the large Ségou market, drawing customers from far outside of the city. The main products sold are vegetables, pottery, cotton, gold, leather, fruits, ovens, cattle and cereals.
Administrative subdivisions
The region is divided into 7 CerclesCercles of Mali
A cercle is the second level administrative unit in Mali. Mali is divided into eight regions and one capital district . These subdivisions bear the name of their principal city. The regions are divided into 49 cercles....
encompassing 118 communes and 2166 villages:
- Bla CercleBla CercleBla Cercle is an administrative subdivision of the Ségou Region of Mali. The administrative center is the town of Bla.The cercle is divided into 17 communes:*Beguené*Bla*Diaramana*Diena*Dougouolo*Falo*Fani*Kazangasso*Kemeni...
- Barouéli CercleBarouéli CercleBarouéli Cercle is an administrative subdivision of the Ségou Region of Mali. The administrative center is the town of Barouéli.The Cercle is divided into 11 communes:*Barouéli*Boidié*Dougoufié*Gouendo*Kalaké*Konobougou*N'Gassola...
- Macina CercleMacina CercleMacina Cercle is an administrative subdivision of the Ségou Region of Mali. The administrative center is the town of Macina.The cercle is divided into 11 communes:*Boky Were*Folomana*Kokry Centre*Kolongo*Macina*Matomo*Monimpebougou...
- Niono CercleNiono CercleNiono Cercle is an administrative subdivision of the Ségou Region of Mali. The administrative center is the town of Niono.The cercle is divided into 12 communes:*Diabaly*Dogofry*Kala Siguida*Mariko*Nampalari*Niono*Pogo*Siribala...
- Ségou CercleSégou CercleSégou Cercle is an administrative subdivision of the Ségou Region of Mali. The administrative center is the town of Ségou.The cercle is divided into 30 communes:*Baguindadougou*Bellen*Boussin*Cinzana*Diédougou*Diganibougou*Dioro...
- San CercleSan CercleSan Cercle is an administrative subdivision of the Ségou Region of Mali. The administrative center is the town of San.The cercle is divided into 25 communes:*Baramandougou*Dah*Diakourouna*Diéli*Djéguena*Fion*Kaniegué*Karaba*Kassorola...
- Tominian CercleTominian CercleTominian Cercle is an administrative subdivision of the Ségou Region of Mali. The administrative center of the local government is in the town of Tominian. The Cercle is divided into Communes, and below this, quarters/villages...
Towns
The major towns are SégouSégou
Ségou is a city in south-central Mali, lying northeast of Bamako on the River Niger, in the region of Ségou. It was founded by the Bozo people, on a site about from the present town...
, San
San, Mali
San is a town and commune and capital of the Cercle of San in the Ségou Region of Mali. As of 1998 the commune had a population of 26,744.San is the center of bògòlanfini production, a traditional Malian fabric.-References:...
, Niono
Niono
Niono is a town and commune located in the Ségou Region of Mali. It is the seat of the Niono Cercle. As of 2004 there are approximately 50,000 inhabitants in the commune, while the town itself measures some 4,900 people. The town is the capital of Niono Cercle, one of six subdivisions of Segou...
, Dioro, and Markala
Markala
Markala is a city in Mali's Ségou Region on the Niger River, 35 km downriver from the city of Ségou. Markala is the site of Mali's primary irrigation dam....
, the latter of which has Mali's principal hydroelectric dam.
History
See also History of Ségou and Bambara EmpireBambara Empire
The Bamana Empire was a large pre-colonial West African state based at Ségou, now in Mali. It was ruled by the Kulubali or Coulibaly dynasty established circa 1640 by Kaladian Coulibaly also known as Fa Sine or Biton-si-u...
.
The region was the home of the Bambara Empire
Bambara Empire
The Bamana Empire was a large pre-colonial West African state based at Ségou, now in Mali. It was ruled by the Kulubali or Coulibaly dynasty established circa 1640 by Kaladian Coulibaly also known as Fa Sine or Biton-si-u...
of the early eighteenth century; it was later conquered by the Toucouleur Empire
Toucouleur Empire
The Toucouleur Empire was founded in the nineteenth century by El Hadj Umar Tall of the Toucouleur people, in part of present-day Mali....
(1860s) and the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
colonial
Colonialism
Colonialism is the establishment, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. It is a process whereby the metropole claims sovereignty over the colony and the social structure, government, and economics of the colony are changed by...
army (1890s).
In 2009, Renzo Rosso
Renzo Rosso
Renzo Rosso is an Italian fashion entrepreneur. Referred to as the "Jeans Genius" by Suzy Menkes, he is the founder and President of fashion brand Diesel...
, the founder and President of Diesel and the OTB-Group (Only The Brave), together with Millennium Promise
Millennium Promise
Millennium Promise, or The Millennium Promise Alliance, Inc., is a non-profit organization incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware, dedicated to ending extreme poverty within our lifetime...
, the Earth Institute at Columbia University, and UNDP, launched the Only The Brave Millennium Village, in Dioro of the Ségou region of Mali
Mali
Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...
. Following the model of the Millennium Villages, which helps communities lift themselves out of extreme poverty, the first steps in Mali included distributing seeds and fertilizers to boost agriculture, providing bed nets to decrease malaria, and the constructing a new health clinics. Additionally, a new primary school, equipped and run with solar panels, was built with expanded classrooms, latrines for boys and girls and a new school kitchen. In the spring of 2010 Rosso visited the village to personally oversee the development. At a press conference in September, the CEO of Millennium Promise, John McArthur, said "Renzo and the Only the Brave Foundation bring an extraordinary spirit of creativity and entrepreneurship to this collaboration, all driven by passion to end extreme poverty."