Economy of Segou

The main economic activities of the Sudano-Sahelian region are agribusiness, cattle farming and fishing. The Sudano-Sahelian people apply essential traditional farming methods. The region produces the major part of Mali’s food including sedentary cattle farming. The economy is essentially informal as it is oriented towards the populations' primary needs, while industrial production is weak and based on the food industry. There are two factories processing cotton: Compagnie Malienne des Textiles (COMATEX) and Compagnie Malienne de Development des Textiles (CMDT). Commerce consists mostly of the small scale exchange and sale by of products from the primary sector, sold weekly at the large Sudano-Sahelian market, drawing customers from far outside of the city. The main products sold are vegetables, pottery, cotton, gold, leather, fruits, ovens, cattle and cereals.

The headquarters of the Office du Niger is based in the town. The Office du Niger is a semi-autonomous government agency that administers a large irrigation scheme in the Ségou Region to the north of the Niger River