Mali''See also the Empire of Mali and the town of Mali, Guinea.'' The '''Republic of Mali''' ('''''République du Mali''''') is a land-locked nation in West Africa. It is the second largest country among West African nations. It borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Ivory Coast on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its straight borders on the north stretch into the centre of the Sahara desert, while the country's south, where the majority of inhabitants live, features the Niger river|Niger and Senegal river|Senegal rivers. Formerly French Sudan, the country is named after the Empire of Mali. {| border=1 align=right cellpadding=4 cellspacing=0 width=300 style="margin: 0 0 1em 1em; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 95%;" |+<big><big>'''République du Mali'''</big></big> |- | style="background:#efefef;" align="center" colspan=2 | {| border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" | align="center" width="140px" | Image:Mali flag large.png|125px| | align="center" width="140px" rowspan="2" height="145px" | Image:Maliarms22.PNG|Coat of arms of Mali |- | align="center" width="140px" | (Flag of Mali|In Detail) |} |- | align=center style="vertical-align: top;" colspan=2 | ''National motto: Un peuple, un but, une foi (French language|French: One people, one goal, one faith)'' |- | align=center colspan=2 style="background: #ffffff;" | image:LocationMali.png |- | '''Official language''' | French language|French (official), Bambara language|Bambara, others |- | '''Capital''' | Bamako |- | '''List of Presidents of Mali|President''' | Amadou Toumani Touré |- | '''Prime Minister''' | Ousmane Issoufi Maïga |- | '''Area'''  - Total  - % water | List of countries by area|Ranked 23rd 1,240,000 square kilometre|km² 1.6% |- | '''Population'''  - Total (2002)  - Population density|Density | List of countries by population|Ranked 68th 11,340,480 10.9/km² |- | '''Independence'''  - Date | From France September 22, 1960 |- | '''Currency''' | CFAF|CFA Franc |- | '''Time zone''' | Coordinated Universal Time|UTC 0 |- | '''National anthem''' | ''Pour l'Afrique et pour toi, Mali'' (For Africa and for You, Mali) |- | '''Top-level domain|Internet TLD''' | .ml |- | '''List of country calling codes|Calling Code''' | 223 |} ==History== ''Main article: History of Mali'' The Sudanese Republic and Senegal became independent of France on September 22 1960 as the Mali Federation. When Senegal withdrew after only a few months, the Sudanese Republic was renamed '''Mali'''. Rule by dictatorship was brought to a close in 1991 with a transitional government, and in 1992 when Mali's first democratic presidential election was held. Upon his reelection in 1997, President Konaré pushed through political and economic reforms and fought corruption. In 2002 he was succeeded in democratic elections by Amadou Toumani Touré. ==Politics== {{Politics of Mali}} Mali's constitution provides for a multi-party democracy, with the only restriction being a prohibition against parties based on ethnic, religious, regional, or gender lines. The National Assembly is the sole legislative arm of the government. It currently consists of 147 members. Representation is apportioned according to the population of administrative districts. The government has a 5 year term. ==Regions== ''Main article: Regions of Mali'' Mali is divided into nine regions, including the capital district of Bamako: * Bamako Capital District * Gao Region|Gao * Kayes Region|Kayes * Kidal Region|Kidal * Koulikoro Region|Koulikoro * Mopti Region|Mopti * Ségou Region|Ségou * Sikasso Region|Sikasso * Tombouctou Region|Tombouctou ==Geography== Image:Ml-map.png|thumb|Map of Mali ''Main article: Geography of Mali'' Mali is landlocked and has a subtropical to arid climate. It is mostly flat, rising to rolling northern plains covered by sand, with savanna around the Niger River in the south. The hills of the Air Massif and Djado Plateau lie in the northeast. Most of the country lies in the Sahara Desert, which produces a hot, dust-laden harmattan haze common during dry seasons and leads to recurring droughts. The nation has considerable natural resources, with gold, uranium, phosphates, kaolin, salt and limestone being most widely exploited. ''See'' List of cities in Mali ==Economy== ''Main article: Economy of Mali'' Mali is among the poorest countries in the world, with 65% of its land area desert or semidesert. Economic activity is largely confined to the riverine area irrigated by the Niger River. About 10% of the population is nomadic and some 80% of the labor force is engaged in farming and fishing. Industrial activity is concentrated on processing farm commodities. Mali is heavily dependent on foreign aid and vulnerable to fluctuations in world prices for cotton, its main export. In 1997, the government continued its successful implementation of an IMF-recommended structural adjustment program that is helping the economy grow, diversify, and attract foreign investment. Mali's adherence to economic reform, and the 50% devaluation of the African franc in January 1994, has pushed up economic growth. Several multinational corporations increased gold mining operations in 1996-1998, and the government anticipates that Mali will become a major Sub-Saharan gold exporter in the next few years. ==Demographics== ''Main article: Demographics of Mali'' ==Culture== ''Main article: Culture of Mali'' *Architecture of Mali- Great Mosque of Djenné *List of African writers (by country)#Mali|List of writers from Mali *Music of Mali *Languages of Mali ==Miscellaneous topics== * Communications in Mali * Transportation in Mali * Military of Mali * Foreign relations of Mali * Reporters without borders Worldwide Press Freedom Index 2002: Rank 43 out of 139 countries (2 way tie) == External links == *[http://www.numismondo.com/pm/mli/ Mali Paper Money] - 1960 to 1984 issues. *[http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/ml.html CIA Factbook on Mali] *[http://www.travel-images.com/mali.html Images of Mali] {{Africa}} Category:Mali|* Category:African Union member states bm:Mali ar:مالي bg:Мали ca:Mali cs:Mali da:Mali de:Mali et:Mali es:Malí eo:Malio fr:Mali ko:말리 io:Mali id:Mali it:Mali he:מאלי ks:Mālī lt:Malis li:Mali hu:Mali ms:Mali nl:Mali nds:Mali ja:マリ共和国 no:Mali pl:Mali pt:Mali ru:Мали sa:माली sk:Mali sl:Mali fi:Mali sv:Mali tr:Mali uk:Малі zh:马里 First page | Prev | Next | Last page |

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