What is "wateni"

Wateni (or Waténi) is a rural commune in the Cercle of Sikasso in the Sikasso Region of southern Mali. The commune covers an area of 211 square kilometers and includes ten villages. In the 2009 census it had a population of 6,701. The village of N'Tjila, the administrative center ( chef-lieu) of the commune, is 94 km west-northwest of Sikasso.