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Mali gained independence from France in 1960. Yet, even today French is the language of government business, used on road signs and in state TV broadcasts. But on Bamako’s streets, French is seldom spoken by the common man, though the constitution says that French is the official language
Mali gained independence from France in 1960. Yet, even today French is the language of government business, used on road signs and in state TV broadcasts. But on Bamako’s streets, French is seldom spoken by the common man, though the constitution says that French is the official language.
Mali has scores of its own indigenous languages. People are asking why then French is the only official language, despite it being more than 60 years since the country gained independence from the colonial powers. They feel that such an approach is making their own languages obscure and less important.
The language issue has come to the fore in the midst of a debate on the new draft constitution, pushed by the ruling junta. More than 70 languages are spoken in Mali, having a fast-growing population of some 21 million. Of these, 13 are recognised as “national” languages but French is the only official one and is used for government and regulatory business, although there are major local languages, such as Songhay and Tamashek, widely spoken in the north; Fulfulde in central areas by the Fulani; Bambara is the predominant language in Bamako and in Senufo, Soninke is widely spoken.
There are different issues that have cropped up now. Foremost is the basic question: is it time to elevate vernacular languages to the status of official tongues; If so, which language should be accorded that status, and the pathway to make that the official language. But these issues cannot be resolved that easily; there are a few imponderables. Important among them is Mali’s relationship with France, although it has hit rock bottom since the junta came to power in August 2020.
Many believe that the new article likely to be inserted in the constitution- Article 31- is a ploy to phase out French and make Bambara, the most-used language in Bamako, the official one instead. But, that would be a sensitive issue to people who speak other local languages. They feel that it would be an imposition of one language over the others resulting in advantages to one section over others in government jobs.
The other problem is more basic; how to teach children to read and write in their local languages, which are rooted mostly in oral traditions. Also, people who speak one language may not be savvy with the other languages. Often, they have to use a dictionary to translate and understand the meaning and nuances of a language other than theirs. The third issue emanated from a lack of funding from the government to teach the vernacular languages.
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These issues still haunt the promotion of local languages, leading to the domination of French, despite the avowed objective of promoting local languages. Many feel that changing the constitution will not by itself alter language habits. There should be a proactive policy to implement the language policy with adequate investments in teaching. Otherwise, such pious wishes will remain only in papers.
