At dusk in Bamako, the capital of Mali, a bugler plays and the traffic stops as soldiers lower the Malian national flag. On the monument, banners proclaim Mali's independence from France, fifty years on.

But, as Robin Denselow reports, this is a bittersweet anniversary. Mali is a vast landlocked country on the southern borders of the Sahara and is one of the tenth poorest countries in the world.

It has survived a dictatorial one party system, then corrupt army rule but today this predominantly Muslim state is praised by the west for its democracy and stability.

But Mali faces massive problems as many young and unemployed people from the country risk their lives to cross deserts and oceans, as they desperately try to leave for the west as illegal immigrants.

Robin joins world music star Rokia Traore at an outdoor concert on the banks of the River Niger, as she launches a music foundation to help young people. He meets Malians deported home from overseas, and visits a migration centre, which has been criticized as an outpost of fortress Europe.

And he discovers why farmers who've grown Mali's main cash crop, cotton, are struggling to return a profit.

Producer Liz Carney
A Unique production for BBC Radio 4. Show less