SECTOR 4 Scores: Individual scores: 1 Country does not meet indicator 2 Country meets only a few aspects of indicator 3 Country meets some aspects of indicator 4 Country meets most aspects of indicator 5 Country meets all aspects of the indicator Average score: 1.8 (2008 = n/a ; 2006 = n/a) 4.8 Salary levels and general working conditions for journalists and other media practitioners are adequate. Overall, working conditions in the media sector in Mali are extremely difficult, with very basic equipment and limited editing capabilities. In general, salary levels are very low compared to the cost of living. There is also an inequality of salaries between the public sector, which start from FCFA 80 000 (about Euro 120) and private, where the maximum salary is about FCFA 100 000 (Euro 150) and where some only get the minimum inter-professional guarantee salary (MIGS), equivalent to less than FCFA 30 000 (Euro 45). Only a few privileged people have Social Security. The ORTM, the sector’s biggest employer, employs trainees (about 30 per cent of its staff ) who are not salaried and thus fall below the basic legal provisions. Some have been there for years and do not even have the status of free-lance journalists. “It’s the only profession that is widely open despite legal provisions; many come to gain experience before getting a better opportunity elsewhere.” In 2009, a collective convention was signed in an attempt to unify media practitioners. Unfortunately media practitioners remain divided on the validity of such a union. Some feel that this convention was not the result of wider consultations and say it was signed by associations that are not representative of the media sector as a whole. There are also questions regarding its legal validity. It was suggested that an agreement around this convention should be promoted among all media practitioners, as, once implemented, it could help to uplift the standard of living of all those working in the media sector, as well as the quality of the media. AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER MALI 2010 123