1. Introduction -- 2. The geographic and historical setting -- 3. Drivers of democratization -- 4. The formative phase -- 5. Threats to democracy: Malian perceptions -- 6. Threats to democracy: problems less clearly seen by Malians, including radical Islam and desert unrest -- 7. Women in the new democracy -- 8. Freedom is ringing: the joy of political liberty and the new role of the military -- 9. Decentralization: the heart of the matter -- 10. The Niger authority: democratization vs. hydraulic despotism? -- 11. Malian democracy in regional perspective -- 12. Recommendations and conclusion