We cannot have a solid democracy unless there is a good flow of information reaching the people.

The communication professional Mariama Keïta was born in Niamey, capital of Niger, in 1946. She is a well-known personality in the annals of the African press. She has been a member of the Superior Communication Council of Niger and received national recognition for a long and brilliant career in her country.

Madame Mariama Keïta is the leader of the Association for Democracy, Liberty and Development where she has worked since the creation of good governance in a democratic Niger. She is also president of the Commission on Information, Communication and Training. She was general manager of Radio Niger. Mariama Keïta is the first journalist of Niger to be awarded a degree from Maisons Laffitte France. She has around 15 certificates of professional training as well as a license in English from the Faculty of Letters at the University of Abdou Moumouni in Niamey. From 1992 to 1993, she was in charge of broadening and executing a project for creating awareness among the people on issues of the constitution, legislative and presidential elections, thus preparing them for the first democratic elections in Niger. From 1993 to 1994, she ran a project to form the Association of Democracy, Liberty and Development to reinforce the institutional capacities of NGOs for a democratic culture. This is just to name a few of her projects. Being part of the Nigerian intelligentsia, Mariama is active in the media, businesses, non-governmental organizations, and associations. She also served as a trainer for the National Center of Improvement managing courses on business communication, and as the president (1994–1997) of the Coordination of Niger Women’s NGOs and Associations. This structure, known as Congafen, is the first collective of NGOs and women’s association dealing with grouping and coordinating the activities of these NGO in a transparent, democratic way.

Coordination des Organisations Non Gouvernementale et Associations Féminines Nigériennes (Congafen) Association for Democracy, Liberty and Development