Our Researchers and Experts

A lecturer-researcher and Head of the Communication and External Relations Department at the École Normale Supérieure de Bamako, Dr Ousmane Dramane is affiliated with the Laboratory of Linguistics and Didactics of National and Foreign Languages (LiDiLang). His research work, dedicated to communication, media and digital transformations, sheds light on the conditions under which an institutional message becomes audible, credible and relatable to its intended audience. This expertise constitutes a strategic lever for the Réseau EnfanceAfrique.org: it helps structure rigorous advocacy with authorities and international partners, while ensuring that awareness messages aimed at families are grounded in a nuanced understanding of the media and digital dynamics specific to the Malian and Sahelian context.

A lecturer-researcher in Language Sciences, specializing in linguistics and didactics, Dr Idrissa Abdou Maiga has served since 2019 as Secretary General of the Private International University of Excellence (UIPE) and works as an adjunct lecturer at the École Normale Supérieure de Bamako. This dual responsibility, both academic and administrative, has allowed him to develop concrete expertise in institutional governance, quality assurance and organizational management — skills directly transferable to structuring and building credibility for a network engaged with international donors. His scientific output, published and presented at national and international conferences, focuses on national languages, didactics, linguistic heritage and digital media. He holds a Master's degree in Digital and Event Marketing, and speaks French, Bamanankan and Songhoy, combining rare institutional rigour with a fine command of digital communication — a strategic asset for the Network in designing training programmes, structuring projects and enhancing the institutional profile of its work.

A sociologist and Social Action Administrator at the General Directorate for Territorial Planning and Attractiveness, Dr Adama Dembélé brings over six years of experience leading Environmental and Social Impact Assessments (ESIA). This rigorous command of evaluation methodologies represents a guarantee of scientific rigour for the Réseau EnfanceAfrique.org: it makes it possible to document, using measurable and verifiable indicators, the real effects of child protection programmes on families and communities — an accountability requirement that is increasingly decisive in the review of applications by institutional donors.

A lecturer-researcher affiliated with the Faculty of Letters, Languages and Language Sciences at Université Yambo Ouologuem in Bamako, as well as the University Institute of Vocational Training at Université de Ségou, Dr Zibrila Maiga — also known as Zibrila Doura Maiga — has established himself as a reference figure in applied linguistics, language didactics and bilingual education in Mali. His work, published notably in the journals Miri and Kurukan Fuga, focuses on pedagogical reformulation in bilingual classrooms and the management of national languages within the education system. This expertise is decisive for the Network: it ensures that awareness-raising and child protection materials are not limited to literal translation, but are genuinely conceived within the languages and cultural frameworks of the families they are intended for — a condition for their real appropriation and lasting effectiveness.

Assistant Professor at the Language Sciences Teaching and Research Department of the Faculty of Letters, Languages and Language Sciences at Université Yambo Ouologuem in Bamako, Dr Abdoulaye Mohamed Haïdara teaches language sciences as well as information and communication sciences. He is also an associate lecturer at the BABEL research unit of Université de Toulon, where his work focuses on political and media discourse as well as argumentation. This dual Malian and international anchoring gives the Réseau EnfanceAfrique.org rare expertise in critical discourse analysis — a decisive skill for decoding the social representations of childhood conveyed by the media and authorities, and for building, on behalf of the Réseau EnfanceAfrique.org, an advocacy whose argumentation withstands scrutiny from the most demanding audiences, academic as well as institutional.

A sociologist specializing in issues of education, tradition and the evolving nature of childhood in the Sahel, Mr Birmahamane Bocar Maiga has led several field studies devoted to street children in Bamako and other Malian localities. An active researcher within the Réseau Sahel, he works to improve child protection policies, particularly for the care of children affected by insecurity and armed conflict in central and northern Mali. A keen expert on the traditions and customs of Timbuktu, he brings this intimate knowledge of local realities to the Réseau EnfanceAfrique.org, supporting action rooted in respect for community dynamics and aimed at restoring the dignity and fundamental rights of children across all countries of intervention.

A trained legal expert and English teacher, Mr Issa Haïdara has, over several years of field engagement, developed recognized expertise in reconciliation and social cohesion dynamics across central and northern Mali, as well as throughout the wider Sahel region. A steadfast advocate for Sahelian traditions and cultures, he has long supported populations affected by insecurity and ongoing conflict, making the protection and empowerment of vulnerable children an unwavering commitment. His dual background — legal and community-based — represents a decisive asset for the Réseau EnfanceAfrique.org: it grounds traditional mediation mechanisms in a framework that is both customarily legitimate and legally sound, while strengthening the technical mastery of the endogenous knowledge essential to child protection that is truly adapted to Sahelian realities.

With solid experience in higher education and academic coordination, Mr Hamed Baba has overseen student pedagogical support and supervision, as well as coordination between teaching staff and administration. His expertise combines a dual mastery: academic and pedagogical management on one hand, and professional practice in accounting, management control and audit on the other — covering notably International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), statutory audit and review, as well as banking and insurance accounting. This dual competency makes him a valuable asset for the financial governance and accountability of the Network's programmes to its partners and donors, as well as for designing training programmes for the Network's teams and partners.

A researcher-lecturer and consultant-trainer across several Malian higher education institutions—including INTEC-SUP, ESG, and ESAM—Mr. Mohamed Malick Dicko is also pursuing a PhD in Communication Sciences at the ED-DESSLA Doctoral School. Grounded in extensive fieldwork conducted in Mali and the Sahel region, his research focuses on institutional communication applied to public health challenges. This dual academic and operational expertise makes him a strategic partner for the Network: he designs and evaluates communication mechanisms capable of translating complex scientific data into accessible, culturally tailored messages. This is an essential condition for transforming the Network's research findings into sustainable behavioral change within communities, as well as into a robust advocacy framework for decision-makers and technical and financial partners.

Mr Souleymane Koné has developed recognized expertise in ethnographic research dedicated to traditional education systems and the customary norms governing children's mobility in the Ségou region and, more broadly, across the Sahel. He has led several field studies among the populations of the villages of N'Gara, Woromana and Tamani, producing rigorous assessments of the situation of children and the customary principles governing fostering and children's social trajectories. This detailed and documented knowledge of community dynamics represents a decisive asset for the Network: it grounds its interventions in a deep understanding of local realities, ensuring effectiveness, legitimacy and accountability toward both populations and technical and financial partners.