Mali’s government said on October 2 that the Paysan+ initiative was presented in Bamako on October 1 at the National Council of Employers. Producers, cooperatives, agribusinesses, financial institutions and development partners attended discussions on agricultural value chains and rural development.

The initiative aims to support local producer efforts, ease access to training, finance and insurance, promote local processing, and encourage rural jobs and income generation. Discussions also included climate insurance and a rural-bank pilot that could inform any later national expansion. The government statement gives no launch budget, target number of beneficiaries or confirmation that a pilot bank has been established; these were objectives and mechanisms under discussion.