The Telecommunications Company of Mali (SOTELMA), or Sotelma-Malitel, has been privatised. It operates under the brand Moov Africa Malitel, whose services are landline, mobile, Internet and electronic money (Mobicash). The supplier (Maroc Telecom Group) holds 51% and the Malian State (49%) of participation.

It is reported that Mali mandates functional and accounting separation for operators with significant market power (SMP) in the telecom market.

Mali has not appended the World Trade Organization (WTO) Telecom Reference Paper to its schedule of commitments.

It is reported that the Malian Authority for the Regulation of Telecommunications and Posts (AMRTP), the executive authority for the supervision and administration of services in the telecommunications sector, is independent from the government in the decision-making process.

According to Art. 11 of Law No. 2013-015, Mali authorises the transfer of personal data to a foreign State when:
- The receiving State ensures a sufficient level of protection of individuals, indicated by the Authority in charge of the protection of personal data, due to its domestic legislation or commitments made at the international level and that these measures are effectively implemented.
- By decision of the Authority in charge of the protection of personal data, when the transfer and processing by the recipient of the personal data ensures a sufficient level of protection of privacy, as well as of the fundamental rights and freedoms of individuals, in particular, due to the contractual clauses or internal rules to which it is subject.

Mali has not joined any free trade agreement committing to open cross-border data flow transfers.

Law No. 2013/015 provides a comprehensive regime of data protection in Mali. The Law addresses matters such as data subject rights, data transfers, legal bases for processing, and the establishment of the Malian Data Protection Authority (APDP).

The Revised Bangui Agreement is a regional intellectual property law that is not only a regional convention applicable in all member states but also serves as a national intellectual property law in Mali and each of the other member states. The Revised Bangui Agreement contains provisions on copyright in Annex VII: Chapter IV (Limitations to Economic Rights) and establishes a regime of copyright exceptions. However, the exceptions do not follow the fair use or fair dealing model, therefore limiting the lawful use of copyrighted work by others. In addition, Chapter IV of Title I of Law No. 2017-012 also provides for limitations on copyrights.

Mali is not a signatory of the 1996 World Trade Organization (WTO) Information Technology Agreement (ITA) nor the 2015 expansion (ITA II).

According to Art. 76 of Decree No. 2015-604/P-RM, a preference shall be given to the tender submitted by a community company. A community company is defined as a company whose head office is located in a member state of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU). This preference must be quantified in the form of a percentage of the bid amount up to 15%. The terms and conditions of the application of community preference, particularly with regard to the types of acquisition concerned and their beneficiaries, are determined by the WAEMU Commission.

Art. 5.2 of Decree No. 2018-0473/PM-RM provides that in the case of a contract awarded by a decentralised authority or one of its public establishments, a contract applicant who plans to subcontract at least 30% of the overall value of the contract to a Malian company, a Malian artisan or a Malian artisanal company, may benefit from a margin of preference not exceeding 5%, which may be added to the Community's right of preference under public procurement regulations. Also, the Decree states that the contracting authorities must ensure that a proportion of public contracts are subject to competition between Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (Art. 5.4). On the other hand, according to Art. 11.1, a margin of preference of 25% is granted to products of Malian origin and/or to companies under Malian law whose capital is majority-owned by nationals for all types of contracts whose amounts do not reach the thresholds of public procurement. Furthermore, according to Art. 11.3, without prejudice to the provisions relating to national preference, when awarding a public contract or a public service delegation, a preference of 5% is given to the bid submitted by a craftsman or craft company with a fixed base or permanent establishment in Mali. This artisanal preference rate is cumulative, with a national preference rate of 15%, as referred to in Art. 11.1.

Mali is not a party to the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA), nor does it have observer status.

Art. 6 of Law No. 2012-016 provides that foreign investors receive the same treatment as investors of Malian nationality subject to provisions contrary to the laws or treaties and agreements concluded by the Republic of Mali with the States of which they are nationals. They may freely any share of equity of the company they plan to create, subject to the provisions applicable to the sectors of activity which are subject to specific regulations.