Mali’s Constitutional Court has validated the decree establishing increased compensation and benefits for members of the National Transitional Council (CNT), rejecting appeals by several civil society organizations.
The Court ruled that the decree, issued on March 20, 2025, complies with constitutional principles of equality and proportionality, and affirmed its retroactive application to cover payments dating back to January 2024, thereby shielding members from any legal challenges over funds already received.
Under the new decree, CNT members now earn a monthly allowance of 2 million CFA francs, session fees of 500,000 CFA francs, and in-kind benefits such as company vehicles, fuel, housing, and rental allowances — totaling around 1 million CFA francs in extras.
This represents a significant increase from the 2021 structure, which provided 900,000 CFA francs in monthly allowances and 300,000 CFA francs in session fees.
The total annual cost is estimated at 4.3 billion CFA francs for the 121 CNT members. Despite the Court’s backing, civil society groups continue to condemn the scale of the benefits, especially when compared to lower allowances in similar transitional bodies across Burkina Faso, Guinea, and Chad, and have vowed to escalate the issue through political and diplomatic channels.
