DEVELOPMENT LEADERSHIP TRAINING

The Ministry of Plan and Transportation (MOPT) will implement the project through a Project Steering Committee (PSC). Sixty potential leaders from major public and private institutions will be selected as candidates for advanced training in American universities. Candidates, who will be chosen jointy by the PSC and USAID, will be those who have already received their diplomas with a mark of at least satisfactory and a minimum of 2 years experience in a responsible position. (Candidates will undergo screenings, including testing for language aptitude.) Areas of study will include management, public administration/business administration, finance, economic planning, and educational planning, programming, and evaluation. A four-member Professional Advisory Council comprised of four U.S. professors will review and supervise the academic programs undertaken by the participants (and will thereby become a knowledgable source regarding Malian management problems). The master theses selected by the participants will concern management problems relevant to Mali. Significantly more professional support and time (up to 1 year) than is usual will be alloted to the participants in order that they may return to Mali for field work relating to their theses. After the participants have completed their degrees, USAID will organize five management seminars during which selected theses will be presented and discussed. Ph.D.-level training will be available only in a few cases, and then only after the participant has returned to Mali for a full year.