Korotoumou Mariko

Korotoumou Mariko (Mali), 2024-25 Humphrey Fellow at Cornell. Photo by Heather Ainsworth.

Hubert H. Humphrey Fellow, 2024-25

Home country: Mali
Specialization: Agricultural economics and management; agribusiness value chain development; VSLAs Advisor
Current role: Market Gardening Project Coordinator
Education: College of Economics and Management; Master's degree in Agricultural Economics and Management
Connect: km2235 [at] cornell.edu (Email)
Pronouns: she/her

Korotoumou is a dedicated and enterprising professional with over five years of experience in Public Private Partnership (PPP) project coordination in Mali. She has successfully managed projects focused on food security, value chain development, and agribusiness cluster capacity building. Her current role involves coordinating a market gardening project aimed at delivering 1,000 tons of fresh, high-quality vegetables to local markets, building the capacity of 15,000 small-scale vegetable farmers, and meeting the needs of 15,000 Bops consumers.

Korotoumou has made significant contributions by introducing Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLA) among vegetable farmer groups and is actively involved in the sesame sector, linking producers with buyers and facilitating connections within the value chain. She volunteers as a VSLA advisor, empowering women’s groups in both the vegetable and sesame sectors by improving their access to financial services and supporting income-generating activities.

Additionally, Korotoumou is the founder of KORO FRAÎCHE, an agribusiness startup specializing in the marketing and distribution of fresh vegetables in Mali. Her academic background includes a Bachelor’s degree in Management Science from the University of Bamako and a Master’s degree in Agricultural Economics and Management from the Agricultural University of Nanjing, China.