Bah Ndaw
Ndaw in 2021
Interim President of Mali
In office
25 September 2020 – 24 May 2021
Prime MinisterMoctar Ouane (acting)
Vice PresidentAssimi Goïta
Preceded byAssimi Goïta (Chairman)
Succeeded byAssimi Goïta (acting)
Minister of Defense and Veterans Affairs
In office
28 May 2014 – 10 January 2015
PresidentIbrahim Boubacar Keïta
Prime MinisterMoussa Mara
Preceded bySoumeylou Boubèye Maïga
Succeeded byTiéman Hubert Coulibaly
Personal details
Born (1950-08-23) 23 August 1950
San, French Sudan (now Mali)
Military career
AllegianceMali
Service/branchMalian Air Force
Years of service1973–2012
RankColonel
Alma materÉcole Militaire Interarmes, Koulikoro
École de guerre[1]

Bah Ndaw (also spelled N'Daw, N'Dah, and N'Daou; born 23 August 1950) is a Malian retired military officer and politician who served as the president of Mali between 25 September 2020 and 24 May 2021 when he was overthrown during the 2021 Malian coup d'état. Between May 2014 and January 2015 he was Minister of Defense.

Early life and education

Ndaw was born on 23 August 1950 in San, Mali.[2] He joined the Malian Armed Forces as a volunteer in 1973 and graduated from the Joint Military School (EMIA) in Koulikoro the same year. In 1974 he was sent to the Soviet Union to receive helicopter training.[2]

Military and political career

In 1977, Ndaw became a member of the Malian Air Force.[2] At one point Ndaw served as an aide-de-camp to Malian President Moussa Traoré.[3] He resigned from this position in 1990 in protest of interference by Traoré's wife with government affairs.[1] Under President Alpha Oumar Konaré Ndaw served as deputy chief of staff of the Malian Air Force between 1992 and 2002.[1] In 1994 he graduated from the École de guerre in Paris, France.[2] In 2003 Ndaw became chief of staff of the Malian Air Force.[1] During his career he also served as deputy chief of staff of the Malian National Guard.[2] From 2008 until his retirement in 2012 he was head of the Bureau for veterans' affairs and war victims.[4] He retired with the rank of Colonel-major.[5]

On 28 May 2014 Ndaw succeeded Soumeylou Boubèye Maïga as Minister of Defense under President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta.[5][6][7] During his time in office he signed a defense agreement with France. He also worked on a reorganization of the Malian Armed Forces.[5] When Prime Minister Modibo Keita took over from Moussa Mara in January 2015 Ndaw left office, supposedly for disagreeing with some conditions regarding the integration of deserting former combatants stipulated by the Treaty of Algiers (2015).[1][5]

Transitional interim president

On 21 September 2020, after the coup d'état a few weeks before, Ndaw was named president by a group of 17 electors. Assimi Goïta was appointed vice president. Their interim government was scheduled to preside over a period of 18 months after the 2020 Malian coup d'état.[3] A spokesperson for political-religious leader Mahmoud Dicko praised his nomination as president.[3] Leaders of the M5-RFP, active since the 2020 Malian protests, also signalled support.[6]

Ndaw was inaugurated on 25 September.[8] Upon becoming president, he refused to grant his wife the title of First Lady to prevent family members from being involved in public affairs.[9] After officially assuming office Ndaw stated he would fight against corruption, electoral fraud and to respect previously made international agreements.[8] He also indicated that he would continue the fight against terrorist forces and prevent abuse of civilians by the Malian armed forces.[10][11]

A transition cannot do everything. It must set priorities. Public money is sacred and I will ensure that it is spent, in a traceable and reasonable way. I can't promise zero corruption but I will do everything to make zero impunity the norm. The proper management of our resources, of our meagre resources is, in fact, an obligation. This will be a project of the transition.

— Ndaw during his inauguration, Maliweb[9]

Following Ndaw's inauguration, Jean-Claude Brou, the President of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission, stated that ECOWAS would only lift the embargo against Mali if a civilian Prime Minister was appointed by Ndaw.[8][11] On 27 September Ndaw named Moctar Ouane as Prime Minister.[12]

While he was president tensions were high between his government and the military since the handover of power in September. This led to rebel soldiers arresting Keïta and Cissé at gunpoint. The opposition M5 movement, which had spearheaded the 2020 Malian protests against Keïta, publicly called for the interim government to be dissolved and replaced with a "more legitimate" one.[13] On 14 May, the government announced plans for a new, "broad-based" cabinet.[13]

On 24 May 2021, Ndaw and Ouane were detained by the military and taken to Kati military base nearby Malian capital Bamako.[14] The next day, the UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for their immediate release.[15] On 26 May, Ndaw announced his resignation.[16]

Post-presidency (2021-present)

On 27 August 2021, Ndaw was released from house arrest.[17] An international committee, which included representatives of ECOWAS and the African Union, had pushed for the authorities to release Ndaw and Ouane from house arrest, and welcomed the decision to do so in a statement.[17]

Awards and honors

He is an officer of the National Order of Mali.[4] Ndaw is a recipient of the Medal of Military Merit as well as the Medal of National Merit.[4]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Diallo, Aïssatou (25 September 2020). "Mali: Who is Bah N'dah, the new transitional president?". The Africa Report. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Mali : Bah N'DAOU (70 ans) est le nouveau chef de la transition, Assimi Goita, vice président" (in French). Mali.actu.net. 21 September 2020. Archived from the original on 22 September 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 "Bah Ndaw named Mali's interim president, colonel named VP". Al Jazeera. 21 September 2020. Archived from the original on 22 September 2020.
  4. 1 2 3 "Bah N'Daw alias "le grand": qui est le président de la transition du Mali" (in French). BBC News. 21 September 2020. Archived from the original on 22 September 2020.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Mali : Qui est Bah Ndaw, le président de transition ?" (in French). La Tribune Afrique. 21 September 2020. Archived from the original on 22 September 2020.
  6. 1 2 Myers, Paul (21 September 2020). "Ex-Malian defence minister named interim president, junta leader as deputy". RFI. Archived from the original on 22 September 2020.
  7. ↑ "Pierre Buyoya pays a courtesy call to the newly appointed Malian Defence Minister, Mr Bah Ndao". African Union. 6 June 2014. Archived from the original on 3 November 2017.
  8. 1 2 3 Jones, Mayeni (25 September 2020). "Mali coup: Bah Ndaw sworn in as civilian leader". BBC News. Archived from the original on 25 September 2020.
  9. 1 2 A.B. Haidara, El Hadj (11 December 2020). "Pour une gestion transparente de la transition : Bah N'Daw refuse le statut de la 1ère Dame pour son épouse Il renonce à 50 millions Fcfa de son fonds au profit de Assimi Goïta". Maliweb (in French). Archived from the original on 30 December 2020. Retrieved 27 July 2023.
  10. ↑ "Mali swears in interim president Bah Ndaw to lead transitional government". France 24. 25 September 2020. Archived from the original on 25 September 2020.
  11. 1 2 Diallo, Tiemoko (25 September 2020). "Retired colonel sworn in as Mali interim president after coup". Reuters. Archived from the original on 26 September 2020. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
  12. ↑ "Former Mali Foreign Minister Moctar Ouane named transitional PM". Al Jazeera. 27 September 2020. Archived from the original on 28 September 2020.
  13. 1 2 Ogunkeye, Erin (25 May 2021). "Mali junta leader says transitional president, PM have been stripped of duties". France 24. Archived from the original on 25 May 2021.
  14. ↑ "Mali: President, prime minister arrested in 'attempted coup'". Deutsche Welle. 25 May 2021. Archived from the original on 25 May 2021. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  15. ↑ "UN calls for immediate release of Mali President Bah Ndaw". BBC. 25 May 2021. Archived from the original on 24 May 2021. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  16. ↑ "Mali's president, prime minister resign after arrests by military". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  17. 1 2 "Mali's former interim president and PM released from house arrest". Reuters. 27 August 2021. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
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