Sowing Somankidi Coura Archive Documents Malian Farming Collective's Radical Legacy

In 1977, a group of 14 activists with backgrounds as migrant workers established the farming cooperative Somankidi Coura in Mali after meeting in Paris at ACTAF. Following the devastating droughts in the Sahel during 1973 and 1974, they underwent agricultural training in France before acquiring 60 hectares near Kayes. They converted 25 hectares into polyculture gardens, growing their community to 300 residents, and co-founded the free Rural Radio of Kayes. Bouba Touré documented migrant housing in St Denis and partnered with Sidney Sokhona on Nationalité: Immigré (1975). The 2019 archive project Sowing Somankidi Coura, led by Raphaël Grisey and Bouba Touré, seeks to reconstruct a 'ciné-geography' of activist productions. Mali's current situation has deteriorated due to civil war, a military coup, and the effects of COVID-19.