Our study aimed at assessing passive and active surveillance of notifiable avian diseases (NAD) in Mali by respectively following avian disease events and reporting practices during six months in 32 randomly selected villages, and by compiling active surveillance data from reports produced by the veterinary services. The percentage of notified NAD events was low (ranging between 0 and 28.6%) and did not significantly vary over time, illustrating a certain fatality of poultry owners towards avian diseases and a faulty awareness of the risks linked with under-reporting of NAD. About 14% of the total number of villages in Mali was investigated every month within the frame of active surveillance but it was not possible to assess how representative or well-targeted the investigated villages were. These results provide preliminary data that will be useful for the future construction of scenario tree models aimed at evaluating the sensitivity of NAD surveillance in Mali.