Why make a gift to the Festival on the Niger ? Why would you make a gift to the Festival on the Niger? By making a gift to the Festival on the Niger you would be supporting tourism and Malian culture, and thus contribute to the development of Segou region in the following ways :

- The Festival on the Niger creates indirect jobs for approximately 1500 people, and direct jobs for approximately 120 people every year, the majority of whom are very poor. They are women and men from Ségou town and villages in the region: traditional artists, craftsmen, workmen who build the festival site and offer other services for the festival,

-  Apart from the creation of all these jobs, there is a tremendous impact on the entire local economy as well, as many other people benefit from the market which is created by the arrival of thousands of festival visitors: restaurant owners and their supporting businesses (gardeners, farmers, stockbreeders), hotel owners and all their employees, tradesmen, and the people of Segou who lodge foreigners in their homes during the festival for payment,

- But the benefit is not only economic, because the Festival contributes heavily to the protection of our culture, keeping traditional artistic and cultural expressions alive,

- The festival allows people of different cultures to meet and to interact, which has given birth to friendships and very rich exchanges,

- The festival emphasizes the safeguard of the environment, in particular the cleaning up of the city, and the protection of the river Niger, which is threatened by disappearance. Following the festival forum of 2006 an “Observatory of the River Niger” has been created in Ségou.

In short, the Festival on the Niger is a local initiative, based on the richness of the local culture, which is creating truly sustainable local development. However, the expenses to organize such an event are quite high, and currently exceed our budget. This is why your gift will be greatly appreciated. If we manage to make any profit, a part of it will be reinvested in the organization for future festivals, and part of it will be used in other projects conceived to develop sustainable tourism in Ségou.

If you want to know more about the Festival on the Niger, please visit the remainder of this web site or contact the Director, Mamou Daffé: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , tel: + 223 66 72 65 02.