Well its official !! After two years of Yeah serving as Ambassador of Mali to India and 9 other Asian countries, we have decided to throw Yeah’s hat into the race for the President of Mali.

January 2018 was the last month of Yeah’s terms as Ambassador. During our term as Ambassador, Yeah worked tirelessly to strengthen diplomatic ties between Mali and the nations of India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Brunei Darussalam, and Thailand.

During his tenure he lead a number of successful efforts to build stronger relationships between Mali and the countries he covered, benefiting Malians living at home and abroad. These efforts included:

• Hosting President H.E Ibrahim Boubacar Keita at the Africa India Summit in 2015
• Hosting the first high level visit by the Indian government to Mali by initiating the visit in 2016 of H.E Hamid Ansari, the Vice President of India and also the visit in 2017 of the Indian Minister of External Affairs H.E Mobashar Jawad Akbar;
• Securing a commitment from India to provide resources to help Mali fight terrorism;
• Finalizing an agreement for a $100 million line of credit to construct electrical transmission lines from Sikasso to Bamako, successfully concluding negotiations that had been stalled since 2012;
• Building partnerships with textile organizations to help Mali improve processing and use of cotton—Mali’s main agricultural product and one of the country’s leading exports;
• Obtaining scholarships for Malian military members to train in Bangladesh;
• Obtaining multiple scholarships for Malian students to study in Indian universities;
• Safeguarding Mali’s heritage by acquiring a $500,000 donation from India to restore the ancient Timbuktu manuscripts damaged by jihadists in 2013;
• Garnering a commitment from the Indian government to build an English language center in Bamako;
• Forging an agreement allowing Malian citizens to travel to Indonesia without needing to obtain a visa; and
• Initiating historic visits of high-level Indian officials to Mali, building relationships that will result in improved relationships and cooperation in the future.

When Yeah returned to Mali end January 2018, he was welcomed with great fanfare at the airport. Members of our party turned out in big numbers to welcome him home. As his car made it to Ouelessebougou, a line of supporters followed his car for 40km from the airport to our city. The excitement was palatable.

Yeah Samake welcomed back to his home city of Ouelessebougou where he served as Mayor for 6 years

Last time, we contested the elections under our party PACP-Parti Pour L’Action Civique et Patriotic (Party for Civic and Patriotic Action). Yeah created PACP in 2012 to appeal to the young Malians desire to see a government driven by fresh policies and service driven policies to impact the Malian people.

On February 24, 2018, key party leaders and delegates from the different regions and counties of Mali traveled to the capital Bamako to officially nominate Yeah as the candidate for President at the general elections on July 29, 2018.

We are so excited to head into a new phase of our journey to help bring change to Mali. Conditions  are no better today than when we contested for President 5 years ago. Today, the basic challenges still remain access to quality education and decent jobs, security, electricity, clean water and a lack of governance. We are committed to bring change to Mali. We believe A New Mali is Possible. However, its beginning must be rooted first and foremost in a leadership with Integrity.

We are ready. We are ready to fight for Malians everywhere so that a true democracy may be restored. A democracy that is not in name alone, but one that is demonstrated by a leader who is willing to acknowledge and meet the needs of his people. We are fighting for a Mali where three meals a day and at least a high school degree becomes a norm. We are fighting for a Mali where basic amenities like clean water and electricity become accessible in all regions. It is time to fight for Mali and break her chains of bondage to poverty, illiteracy and poor governance. July is fast approaching and we are giving it all we got for a stable and prosperous Mali.

Can we count on you? Together for Mali!

PLEASE CHECK OUR WEBSITE WWW.YEAHSAMAKE.COM TO LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR JULY 2018 PRESIDENTIAL BID