Sikasso

Sikasso is one of Mali’s largest secondary cities and a major service centre for the productive south. Its urban role depends on reliable markets, roads, drainage and public facilities that connect the city with surrounding agricultural areas and regional trade routes.

The Urban Local Government Support Project selected Sikasso for performance-based investment grants, allowing the municipality to finance local roads, drainage, street lighting, markets, sanitation and related infrastructure while strengthening its planning and financial capacity. African Development Bank decentralisation programmes have also targeted the Sikasso region as part of wider efforts to strengthen local development. These interventions place municipal institutions at the centre of urban growth. Sikasso’s continued expansion is more sustainable when infrastructure priorities are planned and maintained locally rather than delivered as disconnected projects.