Mali

In Mali in early 2019, the education ministry established a technical committee for operationalization of the Declaration, including two representatives from the defence ministry In March 2020, the Safe Schools Declaration Technical Committee launched an Action Plan with concrete activities to disseminate the Guidelines for Protecting Schools and Universities from Military Use during Armed Conflict, and incorporate protection of schools and universities into national legislation. In May 2020, the Ministry of Education and the Technical Committee issued a letter to the Ministry of Defence asking them to respect the spirit of the Guidelines while schools were closed due to the pandemic, and not use schools for military purposes. In October 2020, the Technical Committee held a capacity-building workshop on implementing the Safe Schools Declaration and the Guidelines. In 2021 - Mali is working on a draft law on Protecting Schools and Universities during the Armed Conflicts in Mali - not yet adopted On 21-22 June, in Kidal, MINUSMA CPU co-facilitated a regional capacity building workshop on the protection of education from attacks organized by the National Safe Schools Declaration Monitoring Committee. The workshop brought together 27 participants (24 men, 3 women) and helped popularize the Declaration and the Guidelines for Protecting Schools and Universities from Military Use During Armed Conflict, reinforce the capacities of participants on the six grave violations against children (focusing on attacks on schools), and review and update the annual action plan of the Committee.