The Institute of Cultural and Political Relations (IRCP) is a non-profit association based in Bamako, Mali. The organisation was established by young professionals and aims at focusing on cultural diplomacy in Mali. The association's mission is to facilitate academic education in the field of cultural relations, to encourage public debates, to highlight the importance of discourse and cooperation between different cultures. The IRCP emphasises the importance of protecting human rights and the preservation of cultural diversity. The founders believe that peace and stability in the international environment can only be achieved if we respect those values.
The founders and members of IRCP are young Malians, who aspire to facilitate and participate in social change in Mali and in Western Africa in the context of cultural relations. We believe that culture is not a static entity, but a living and dynamic one, in permanent evolution.
To address its aim, the IRCP has the following objectives:
- Facilitating academic education in the field of cultural relations and diplomacy,
- Encouraging public debates,
- Promoting discourse of different cultures,
- Protection of human rights and the preservation of cultural diversity.
The IRCP was created to serve as a platform, a research institution and a scientific community which invites youth in Mali for the quest for disseminating knowledge and to provide experience in local and international programmes and projects aiming at exploring and enhancing peaceful patterns of international relations.
The Institute of Cultural and Political Relations is a member of an international network that includes non-governmental organisations in various European countries and individual thinkers, diplomats and international relations experts who share similar values and who understand the important role of cultural relations in international political relations and the foreign policy of the 21st century.