Election Day!

It's election day in Mali, the first since the military coup that interrupted 20 years of democracy and the rebellion that took over the north of the country. The BBC has excellent coverage here.

Today is about the people of Mali making their voices heard, so here's Robert Berthé, one of our Malian directors:

"People are motivated to vote July 28th. According to polls, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita will be the next president. Everyone expects a big change in Mali in every arena. And I find that this organization is better organized than those that came before."

Robert is serving as the director of a voting center in Niamakoro today. When we heard from him two days ago, he said he was expecting to see many parents of our NEP students and a couple students as well turn out to vote. The hardships of the last two years seem to have motivated many people to come out and try to shape the future of the country. We hope these elections go smoothly and safely for the citizens of Niamakoro and for all Malians.