Festival sur le Niger (Ségou'Art) — Ségou
The Festival sur le Niger, or Ségou'Art, is Mali's largest music and art festival, held every February in Ségou since 2005, about 235 km from Bamako.
The **Festival sur le Niger**, also known as **Ségou'Art**, is one of Mali's largest cultural events. It does not take place in Bamako but in **Ségou**, a town about 235 km northeast of the capital — worth stating clearly, since the event's national reach sometimes leads people to associate it, incorrectly, with Bamako.
## A festival launched in 2005 by local organizers
The festival's first edition took place in **2005**, driven by cultural and tourism entrepreneurs from Ségou, led by **Mamou Daffé**. The event is now run by the **Fondation Festival sur le Niger**, which also organizes a crafts and agricultural fair alongside the festival.
## An annual February gathering
The festival is held every year, traditionally in **February**, along the banks of the Niger River in Ségou. The 21st edition, for example, ran from February 4 to 9, 2025. The program combines large-scale concerts, a contemporary art fair, theater, dance, workshops, master classes, and conferences, with a different theme each year, often centered on culture, employment, or development.
## Why it belongs in Bamako's regional agenda
Although based in Ségou, the Festival sur le Niger draws many visitors from Bamako every year, about a 3-4 hour drive away. It is one of the most common cultural trips for Bamako residents in February, which is why it appears in the capital's regional event listings — with the understanding that the host city remains Ségou, not Bamako.
Sources: [Wikipedia — Festival sur le Niger de Ségou](https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Festival_sur_le_Niger_de_S%C3%A9gou), [Fondation Festival sur le Niger — Ségou'Art 2025](https://www.fondationfestivalsurleniger.org/segouart-festival-sur-le-niger-2025/), [Maliweb — Ségou'Art Festival sur le Niger 2023](https://www.maliweb.net/art-culture/segouart-festival-sur-le-niger-2023-du-31-au-5-fevrier-tous-a-segou-pour-celebrer-le-patrimoine-et-la-creativite-3008945.html), [Routard — Ségou'Art, festival sur le Niger](https://www.routard.com/guide_agenda_detail/6647/segou_art_festival_sur_le_niger_a_segou.htm)