MALI'S RESPONSE TO THE PRESIDENT'S GLOBAL FOOD

UNCLAS BAMAKO 000469 SIPDIS EEB/TPP/MTA FOR CHEVER VOLTMER EEB/TPP/ABT GARY A CLEMENTS EEB/TPP MIKAEL LURIE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ETRD EAGR EAID ECON TBIO ML SUBJECT: MALI'S RESPONSE TO THE PRESIDENT'S GLOBAL FOOD SECURITY INITIATIVE REF: STATE 052628 In response to reftel, Embassy officials met with Sekouba Cisse, Director of Political Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on May 20. Cisse welcomed the President's global food security initiative and praised continued cooperation between the U.S. and Mali. He also welcomed the U.S. offer to reduce agricultural subsidies in order to ensure the success of the Doha development round. Cisse did not directly address the issue of food export restrictions beyond noting that every country must make its own policy decisions. Concerning agriculture biotechnology, Cisse said the Malian government was still discussing the pros and cons of biotechnology and said the need to purchase new seeds each year would pose a significant obstacle for Malian farmers. Cisse's Deputy, Amadou Toure, added that anti-globalization actives in Mali were currently guiding the national debate over biotechnology due to their ability to "yell louder" than biotech proponents. MCCULLEY