Mali'''Mali''' is a landlocked country in West Africa, bordered by Algeria, Niger, Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, Guinea, Senegal and Mauritania. Mali is a developing nation, and remains ones of the poorest countries in the world. However, it encompasses some incredible sights, including three UNESCO World-Heritage sites. And, of course, there's Timbuktu!  <div style="float: right; margin: 0 0 1em 1em"> <table cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" style="border: 1px solid #9866FF; background-color: #f3f3ff" width="200"> <tr><td colspan="2" style="text-align: center; border-bottom: 1px solid #C9AFFF; background-color: #ddddff">Flag</td></tr> <tr><td colspan="2" style="text-align: center; padding: 2px">Image:ml-flag.png</td></tr> <tr><td colspan="2" style="text-align: center; border-bottom: 1px solid #C9AFFF; border-top: 1px solid #C9AFFF; background-color: #ddddff">Quick Facts</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Capital'''</td><td>Bamako</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Government'''</td><td>Republic<br/></td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Currency'''</td><td>Communauté Financière Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Area'''</td><td>''total:'' 1.24 million sq km <br>''water:'' 20,000 sq km <br>''land:'' 1.22 million sq km</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Population'''</td><td>11,340,480 (July 2002 est.)</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Language'''</td><td>French (official), Bambara 80%, numerous African languages</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Religion'''</td><td>Muslim 90%, indigenous beliefs 9%, Christian 1%</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Independence'''</td><td>22 September 1960 (from France)</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Country calling code'''</td><td>223</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Internet TLD'''</td><td>.ml</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Time Zone'''</td><td>UTC</td></tr> </table> </div>  Image:ml-map.png|frame|Map of Mali WikiPedia:{{PAGENAME}} ==Regions== Mali is divided into eight official regions: *Gao *Kayes *Kidal *Koulikoro-- The capital, Bamako, is located here. *Mopti *Segou *Sikasso *Timbuktu (''Tombouctou'') ==Cities== The capital is Bamako. ==Other destinations== Mali has four UNESCO World Heritage List|UNESCO World Heritage Sites: Cliffs of Bandiagara, Djenne, Timbuktu and Tomb of Askia. Sibi is a town at a one hour drive (with a 4WD) from Bamako, and has very nice scenery, rocks to climb and the Saturday market. ==Understand== The Sudanese Republic and Senegal became independent of France in 1960 as the Mali Federation. Senegal withdrew after only a few months, and the Sudanese Republic was renamed Mali. The country was then governed by dictatorship until 1991. In 1992 the country's first democratic presidential elections were held. Just under half the population is less than 15 years old. The great majority of Malians are Muslim, some also practice indigenous beliefs, and a tiny number are Christian. Around 10% of the population is nomadic. Most Malians work in agriculture and fishing. ==Get in== ===By plane=== Air France flies daily from Paris-Charles de Gaulle to Bamako (and return). Royal Air Maroc fly less often - though more cheaply - than Air France, however they generally require you to connect in Casablanca in Morocco. There are also smaller companies, such as [http://www.point-afrique.com Point Afrique], who fly cheaply to & from Mali in the busy tourist season. Many African and pan-African airlines fly into Mali, for example: [http://www.air-senegal-international.com Air Senegal], Air Mauritania, Air Tunisia, [http://www.afriqiyah.aero Air Afriqiyah] and numerous others. Some of these airlines also have feature connections to Mopti. The airport is about twenty minutes drive from the centre of Bamako. There are fixed rates for taxis to different parts of town: to find them, cross the roadway in front of the airport and go the the right-hand end of the block of kiosks. You will see a group of taxi drivers and a board with prices. As at December 2004, the price was 7500 CFA Francs (around USD$15). There is even well-hidden restaurant: follow the exit road past the barrier and you'll see it on the right, surrounded by trees, about 50 metres from the terminal building. They're very friendly and serve basic but filling and tasty snacks. ===By train=== There's just one train line between Bamako and Dakar (capital of Senegal), running once a week. See also [http://www.seat61.com/Senegal.htm this page] for more info. ===By car=== There are several ways to get to Mali by car. From Europe one has to cross the straits of Gibraltar, Morocco, Western Sahara and Mauritania. The problem is, the region of Western Sahara is not secure. A military convoy is the only safe way to cross it. The next problem is the minefields, so maps that show where are the mines are indicated are ''strongly'' recommended. Another option is to ship the car a nearby seaport, for example Dakar in Senegal. There are no asphalted roads into Mali from Senegal so a 4x4 is strongly recommended. In the past the most-used road route was the asphalted road from the port of Abidjan in Ivory Coast. But since a rebellion in September 2002 the north of that country has been in rebel control. In April 2004, the road was in poor repair, and frequent rebel roadblocks made the journey risky. Most roadblocks could be passed with good humour and a 100F CFA "present", but the dangers of unsupervised young men with automatic weapons far from authority are obvious. It is also possible to ship to Ghana and then drive up through Burkina Faso. ===By bus=== It is possible to reach Mali by bus, from a variety of African cities. These include, but are not limited to: Abidjan in Cote d'Ivoire, Accra in Ghana, Lomé in Togo, and Dakar in Senegal. ===By boat=== Mali has no coastline. ==Get around== ===By bus=== The main cities along the asphalted road into the north are connected via bus (Bamako, San, Segou, Mopti, Gao). There are several different companies but they all do have the same prices. Normally a ride to Mopti (600km, half the way up), endures approximately seven hours, a ride to Gao up to 12. It is not improbable that the bus brakes down and needs an repair or stops to help another bus out. It's possible to make a reservation several days before, which is recommended during the tourist season. ===By taxi brousse=== To get around one can take the "Taxi - Brousse", the bush taxis. They are the main connections between the towns which aren't connected via bus. They are very slow and they sometimes brake down or stop to help an other broken down taxi out. So sometimes the ride takes longer than expected. ===By car=== To get around by car, a 4x4 is strongly recommended. There few asphalt roads, and all are single-carriageway outside towns, though most are in good condition. One leads into the North of the country (Bamako, Kayes, Segou, San, Mopti, Gao), another branches off after Segou to cross the Niger at the Markala dama and goes as far as Niono, while another goes from Bamako to Sikasso and on into Ivory Coast. There are private persons who rent their 4x4 cars for a ride. Take care you've got insurance and a ''carnet de passage'', and plenty of petrol. ===By plane=== It is possible to travel across Mali by plane, as numerous companies have sprung up in recent years. It is possible to fly (usually from Bamako) to cities such as: Mopti, Timbuktu, Kayes, Yelimané, Gao, Kidal, Sadiola, and others. The planes, typically, are Czech turboprops (LET-410s) and small Russian jetliners (Yakovlev YAK-40s). Air travel in Mali is fast but, compared to a bus ride, expensive. It is not, however, foolproof - often you are at the mercy of the carrier, who may choose not to fly on a certain day if too few passengers show up! You can generally get tickets at the airport before flights, however the best bet is to book a ticket in advance. Société Transport Aerienne (STA) and Société Avion Express (SAE) are the two most popular, and most reliable, carriers. ===By boat=== It is possible to travel around Mali by boat, however this is very seasonal. The most common option, only really possible in the wet season, is a barge to/from Timbuktu. There are also very small boats, "pirogues" in French, which are available to be hired almost anywhere - they are essentially large canoes. ==Talk== French is the official language, but Bambara (or Bamanakan in the language itself) is spoken by 80% of the population, along with numerous other African languages (Peulh/Fula, Dogon, and Tamashek, the language of the Tuareg people). Outside the bigger towns few people speak French, and even Bambara gets rare in some regions. Very few people speak English. ==Buy== ==Eat== ==Drink== Treat tap water with suspicion. It is often so heavily chlorinated that one suspects few bugs could possibly survive in it. But short-term visitors will be safer with bottled water. There are several cheap local brands, but be warned that they are only drunk by foreigners and wealthy Malians: don't rely on finding bottled water in shops patronised by "ordinary" Malians. Soft drinks such as Coca-Cola or Fanta are more widely available and safe. But remember that Coke will make you want to go to the toilet, and so may leave you more dehydrated than before you drank it - a serious problem in this stunningly hot country. Street vendors sell water and home-made ginger and berry drinks in little plastic bags. The latter are usually very sweet but tasty. Hygiene risks are evident. Also widely sold in this way is sweet milk, which is also "bottled". The advantage of the milk is that it is normally clean because the bags are industrially filled. Fresh milk can also be bought from buckets at the roadside in some villages. ==Sleep== ==Learn== ==Work== ==Stay safe== In Mali you have a high chance of encountering the police. You should always at least carry a copy of your passport and visa. Only carrying a driving license is not sufficient and might lead to a ride to the police office - if you're not prepared to bribe your way out. Notice that the police in Bamako often stops taxis. ==Stay healthy== ===Vaccinations=== You should have an international vaccination card showing immunization against yellow fever. ===Food and water=== Stay away from dirty food and water. To the rule "cook it peel it or forget it" should be paid attention. Also water should only be drunk out of sealed bottles or after it is sterilized through boiling or chemical utensils. The food is another issue. It's sometimes difficult to know if it's cooked long enough. Also the, to Westerners, unusual spices are sometimes the cause for sickness, especially diarrhea. Also expect little stones in the meal (teeth!). For the traveller the main danger is diarrhea. If diarrhea is acute, the best medicine is to rest and to eat and drink much. During the illness the body loose a lot of water and salt. With Coca Cola (sugar and water) and pretzel sticks (salt), which are available everywhere, usually one is after one or two days again on top. There are also instant powders available which have the amount of glucose and salts which are needed. ==Respect== The greetings are very important. One should learn the greetings in French, better Bambara. Even if one wants to buy fruits or a bread, the vendors should be greeted in a proper way. It's very important to show a general interest in the other person, so it should be asked after the family, the work, kids, and so on. The answer is simple: always "ça va" (everything is okay). The other must not answer in a negative way! Example: "Bonjour (good morning), ça va (how are you)?" "Et la famille?" (...and the family?) "Et les enfants?" (...and the kids?) "Et le travail?" (...and your job?) ... ==Contact== ==External links== *The Mali Embassy in the United States http://www.maliembassy.us/new_site/index.htm seems to have more consistent connectivity than actual government sites in Mali. {{msg:stub}} de:Mali fr:Mali First page | Prev | Next | Last page |

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