What drives Mali’s young ‘jihadists’?

This closed seminar presents research findings that question conventional wisdom about why young people join jihadist groups.

Date: 2016-10-27

Time: 09:30 to 12:30

Venue: JICA Conference Room, Ouakam Road, Atryum Center Building, Ouakam, Dakar

Unemployed, idle and fanatical – this is how youngsters in Mali’s jihadist groups are portrayed. However, there is little evidence to support this characterisation.

New research based on interviews with more than 60 youths previously involved in jihadist groups assessed the role that religion and unemployment play in encouraging them to join the groups. The research findings question conventional wisdom on an issue that is crucial to stability in Mali and its neighbours.

Chair: Yuji Moriya, Resident Representative, JICA Senegal

Speakers: 

Lori-Anne Théroux-Bénoni, Office Director, ISS Dakar

Ibrahim Maïga, Consultant Researcher, ISS Dakar