The Mande Studies Association was officially founded on November 1, 1986 during the annual meeting of the African Studies Association in Madison, Wisconsin. Mansa now has over three hundred members in twenty eight countries including Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Senegal, Zimbabwe, China, Japan, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, Egypt, Canada, United States, and Australia.

MANSA was organized to increase and encourage communication between scholars interested in all topics of study involving the Mande peoples of West Africa, and the neighbors with whom they interact on a regular basis.

MANSA Website: http://www.txstate.edu/anthropology/mansa/