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Communications

Broadcast media [time series]

national public TV broadcaster; 2 privately-owned companies provide subscription services to foreign multi-channel TV packages; national public radio broadcaster supplemented by a large number of privately-owned and community broadcast stations; transmissions of multiple international broadcasters are available (2007)

Internet country code [time series]

.ml

Internet users (Internet hosts) [time series]

524 (2010) country comparison to the world: 179

Internet users [time series]

249,800 (2009) country comparison to the world: 135

Telecommunication systems (Telephone system) [time series]

general assessment: domestic system unreliable but improving; increasing use of local radio loops to extend network coverage to remote areas domestic: fixed-line subscribership remains less than 1 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular subscribership has increased sharply to nearly 30 per 100 persons international: country code - 223; satellite communications center and fiber-optic links to neighboring countries; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean, 1 Indian Ocean) (2008)

Telephones - fixed lines (Telephones - main lines in use) [time series]

114,400 (2010) country comparison to the world: 144

Telephones - mobile cellular [time series]

7.326 million (2010) country comparison to the world: 85

Economy

Agricultural products (Agriculture - products) [time series]

cotton, millet, rice, corn, vegetables, peanuts; cattle, sheep, goats

Budget [time series]

revenues: $1.898 billion expenditures: $2.143 billion (2010 est.)

Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-) [time series]

-2.6% of GDP (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 89

Central bank discount rate [time series]

16% (31 December 2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 83 4.25% (31 December 2009 est.)

Commercial bank prime lending rate [time series]

9.2% (31 December 2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 111 9.5% (31 December 2009 est.)

Current account balance [time series]

-$704.6 million (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 122 -$645.4 million (2009 est.)

Debt - external [time series]

$3.024 billion (31 December 2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 129 $2.667 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

Gini Index coefficient - distribution of family income (Distribution of family income - Gini index) [time series]

40.1 (2001) country comparison to the world: 62 50.5 (1994)

Economic overview (Economy - overview) [time series]

Among the 25 poorest countries in the world, Mali is a landlocked country highly dependent on gold mining and agricultural exports for revenue. The country's fiscal status fluctuates with gold and agricultural commodity prices and the harvest. Mali remains dependent on foreign aid. Economic activity is largely confined to the riverine area irrigated by the Niger River and about 65% of its land area is desert or semidesert. 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. The government has continued an IMF-recommended structural adjustment program that has helped the economy grow, diversify, and attract foreign investment. Mali is developing its cotton and iron ore extraction industries to diversify its revenue sources because gold production has started to fall. Mali has invested in tourism but security issues are hurting the industry. Mali's adherence to economic reform and the 50% devaluation of the CFA franc in January 1994 have pushed up economic growth to a 5% average in 1996-2010. Worker remittances and external trade routes for the landlocked country have been jeopardized by continued unrest in neighboring Cote d'Ivoire. However, Mali is building a road network that will connect it to all adjacent countries and it has a railway line to Senegal. In 2010, Mali experienced a regional drought that hurt livestock and livelihoods.

Electricity - consumption [time series]

455.7 million kWh (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 166

Electricity - exports [time series]

0 kWh note: Mali may be providing electricity to Senegal and Mauritania (2009 est.)

Electricity - imports [time series]

0 kWh (2009 est.)

Electricity - production [time series]

490 million kWh (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 160

Exchange rates [time series]

Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 495.28 (2010) 472.19 (2009) 493.51 (2007) 522.59 (2006)

Exports [time series]

$2.071 billion (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 132 $1.889 billion (2009 est.)

Exports - commodities [time series]

cotton, gold, livestock

Exports - partners [time series]

China 27.2%, Indonesia 8.2%, Thailand 5.3%, Burkina Faso 5.2%, Morocco 5%, South Korea 4.9% (2010)

GDP (official exchange rate) [time series]

$9.268 billion (2010 est.)

Real GDP (purchasing power parity) (GDP (purchasing power parity)) [time series]

$16.77 billion (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 134 $16.06 billion (2009 est.) $15.37 billion (2008 est.) note: data are in 2010 US dollars

GDP - composition, by sector of origin (GDP - composition by sector) [time series]

agriculture: 38.9% industry: 21.5% services: 39.6% (2010 est.)

Real GDP per capita (GDP - per capita (PPP)) [time series]

$1,200 (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 205 $1,200 (2009 est.) $1,200 (2008 est.) note: data are in 2010 US dollars

Real GDP growth rate (GDP - real growth rate) [time series]

4.5% (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 84 4.5% (2009 est.) 5% (2008 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share [time series]

lowest 10%: 2.7% highest 10%: 30.5% (2006)

Imports [time series]

$2.38 billion (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 150 $2.082 billion (2009 est.)

Imports - commodities [time series]

petroleum, machinery and equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs, textiles

Imports - partners [time series]

Senegal 13.6%, France 11%, Cote dIvoire 10%, China 6.8%, South Korea 5.2% (2010)

Industrial production growth rate [time series]

NA%

Industries [time series]

food processing; construction; phosphate and gold mining

Inflation rate (consumer prices) [time series]

1.1% (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 28 2.2% (2009 est.)

Investment (gross fixed) [time series]

25.4% of GDP (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 55

Labor force [time series]

3.241 million (2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 99

Labor force - by occupation [time series]

agriculture: 80% industry and services: 20% (2005 est.)

Market value of publicly traded shares [time series]

$NA

Natural gas - consumption [time series]

0 cu m (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 202

Natural gas - exports [time series]

0 cu m (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 143

Natural gas - imports [time series]

0 cu m (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 151

Natural gas - production [time series]

0 cu m (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 99

Natural gas - proved reserves [time series]

0 cu m (1 January 2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 167

Oil - consumption [time series]

6,000 bbl/day (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 163

Oil - exports [time series]

0 bbl/day (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 177

Oil - imports [time series]

4,507 bbl/day (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 163

Oil - production [time series]

0 bbl/day (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 198

Oil - proved reserves [time series]

0 bbl (1 January 2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 165

Population below poverty line [time series]

36.1% (2005 est.)

Public debt [time series]

30.5% of GDP (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 90 24.3% of GDP (2009 est.)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold [time series]

$1.292 billion (31 December 2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 129 $1.605 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

Stock of broad money [time series]

$2.522 billion (31 December 2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 141 $2.514 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

Stock of domestic credit [time series]

$1.181 billion (31 December 2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 149 $994.9 million (31 December 2009 est.)

Stock of narrow money [time series]

$1.783 billion (31 December 2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 124 $1.758 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

Taxes and other revenues [time series]

20.5% of GDP (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 155

Unemployment rate [time series]

30% (2004 est.) country comparison to the world: 177

Geography

Area [time series]

total: 1,240,192 sq km country comparison to the world: 24 land: 1,220,190 sq km water: 20,002 sq km

Area - comparative [time series]

slightly less than twice the size of Texas

Climate [time series]

subtropical to arid; hot and dry (February to June); rainy, humid, and mild (June to November); cool and dry (November to February)

Coastline [time series]

0 km (landlocked)

Elevation (Elevation extremes) [time series]

lowest point: Senegal River 23 m highest point: Hombori Tondo 1,155 m

Environment - current issues [time series]

deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching

International environmental agreements (Environment - international agreements) [time series]

party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Total water withdrawal (Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)) [time series]

total: 6.55 cu km/yr (9%/1%/90%) per capita: 484 cu m/yr (2000)

Geographic coordinates [time series]

17 00 N, 4 00 W

Geography - note [time series]

landlocked; divided into three natural zones: the southern, cultivated Sudanese; the central, semiarid Sahelian; and the northern, arid Saharan

Irrigated land [time series]

2,360 sq km (2008)

Land boundaries [time series]

total: 7,243 km border countries: Algeria 1,376 km, Burkina Faso 1,000 km, Guinea 858 km, Cote d'Ivoire 532 km, Mauritania 2,237 km, Niger 821 km, Senegal 419 km

Land use [time series]

arable land: 3.76% permanent crops: 0.03% other: 96.21% (2005)

Location [time series]

interior Western Africa, southwest of Algeria, north of Guinea, Cote d'Ivoire, and Burkina Faso, west of Niger

Map references [time series]

Africa

Maritime claims [time series]

none (landlocked)

Natural hazards [time series]

hot, dust-laden harmattan haze common during dry seasons; recurring droughts; occasional Niger River flooding

Natural resources [time series]

gold, phosphates, kaolin, salt, limestone, uranium, gypsum, granite, hydropower note: bauxite, iron ore, manganese, tin, and copper deposits are known but not exploited

Terrain [time series]

mostly flat to rolling northern plains covered by sand; savanna in south, rugged hills in northeast

Total renewable water resources [time series]

100 cu km (2001)

Government

Administrative divisions [time series]

8 regions (regions, singular - region); Gao, Kayes, Kidal, Koulikoro, Mopti, Segou, Sikasso, Tombouctou

Capital [time series]

name: Bamako geographic coordinates: 12 39 N, 8 00 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

Constitution [time series]

adopted 12 January 1992

Country name [time series]

conventional long form: Republic of Mali conventional short form: Mali local long form: Republique de Mali local short form: Mali former: French Sudan and Sudanese Republic

Diplomatic representation from the US [time series]

chief of mission: Ambassador Gillian A. MILOVANOVIC embassy: located just off the Roi Bin Fahad Aziz Bridge just west of the Bamako central district mailing address: ACI 2000, Rue 243, Porte 297, Bamako telephone: [223] 270-2300 FAX: [223] 270-2479

Diplomatic representation in the US [time series]

chief of mission: Ambassador Mamadou TRAORE chancery: 2130 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-2249, 939-8950 FAX: [1] (202) 332-6603

Executive branch [time series]

chief of state: President Amadou Toumani TOURE (since 8 June 2002) head of government: Prime Minister CISSE Mariam Kaidama Sidibe (since 3 April 2011) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister (For more information visit theWorld Leaders website) elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 29 April 2007 (next to be held in April 2012); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Amadou Toumani TOURE reelected president; percent of vote - Amadou Toumani TOURE 71.2%, Ibrahim Boubacar KEITA 19.2%, other 9.6%

Flag (Flag description) [time series]

three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), yellow, and red note: uses the popular Pan-African colors of Ethiopia; the colors from left to right are the same as those of neighboring Senegal (which has an additional green central star) and the reverse of those on the flag of neighboring Guinea

Government type [time series]

republic

Independence [time series]

22 September 1960 (from France)

International law organization participation [time series]

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

International organization participation [time series]

ACP, AfDB, AU, CD, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MONUSCO, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Judicial branch [time series]

Supreme Court or Cour Supreme

Legal system [time series]

civil law system based on the French civil law model and influenced by customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional Court

Legislative branch [time series]

unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (147 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held on 1 and 22 July 2007 (next to be held in July 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ADP coalition 113 (ADEMA 51, URD 34, MPR 8, CNID 7, UDD 3, and other 10), FDR coalition 15 (RPM 11, PARENA 4), SADI 4, independent 15

National anthem(s) (National anthem) [time series]

name: "Le Mali" (Mali) lyrics/music: Seydou Badian KOUYATE/Banzoumana SISSOKO note: adopted 1962; the anthem is also known as "Pour L'Afrique et pour toi, Mali" (For Africa and for You, Mali) and "A ton appel Mali" (At Your Call, Mali)

National holiday [time series]

Independence Day, 22 September (1960)

Political parties (Political parties and leaders) [time series]

African Solidarity for Democracy and Independence or SADI [Oumar MARIKO, secretary general]; Alliance for Democracy or ADEMA [Diounconda TRAORE]; Alliance for Democracy and Progress or ADP (a coalition of political parties including ADEMA and URD formed in December 2006 to support the presidential candidacy of Amadou TOURE); Alliance for Democratic Change (political group comprised mainly of Tuareg from Mali's northern region); Convergence 2007 [Soumeylou Boubeye MAIGA]; Front for Democracy and the Republic or FDR (a coalition of political parties including RPM and PARENA formed to oppose the presidential candidacy of Amadou TOURE); National Congress for Democratic Initiative or CNID [Mountaga TALL]; Party for Democracy and Progress or PDP [Mady KONATE]; Party for National Renewal or PARENA [Tiebile DRAME]; Patriotic Movement for Renewal or MPR [Choguel MAIGA]; Rally for Democracy and Labor or RDT [Amadou Ali NIANGADOU]; Rally for Mali or RPM [Ibrahim Boubacar KEITA]; Sudanese Union/African Democratic Rally or US/RDA [Mamadou Basir GOLOGO]; Union for Democracy and Development or UDD [Moussa Balla COULIBALY]; Union for Republic and Democracy or URD [Soumaila CISSE]

Political parties (Political pressure groups and leaders) [time series]

other: the army; Islamic authorities; rebels in the northern region; state-run cotton company CMDT; tuaregs

Suffrage [time series]

18 years of age; universal

Introduction

Background [time series]

The Sudanese Republic and Senegal became independent of France in 1960 as the Mali Federation. When Senegal withdrew after only a few months, what formerly made up the Sudanese Republic was renamed Mali. Rule by dictatorship was brought to a close in 1991 by a military coup - led by the current president Amadou TOURE - enabling Mali's emergence as one of the strongest democracies on the continent. President Alpha KONARE won Mali's first democratic presidential election in 1992 and was reelected in 1997. In keeping with Mali's two-term constitutional limit, KONARE stepped down in 2002 and was succeeded by Amadou TOURE, who was subsequently elected to a second term in 2007. The elections were widely judged to be free and fair.

Military

Manpower available for military service [time series]

males age 16-49: 2,848,412 females age 16-49: 2,981,106 (2010 est.)

Manpower fit for military service [time series]

males age 16-49: 1,825,779 females age 16-49: 1,968,563 (2010 est.)

Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually [time series]

male: 158,031 female: 159,733 (2010 est.)

Military and security forces (Military branches) [time series]

Malian Armed Forces: Army, Republic of Mali Air Force (Force Aerienne de la Republique du Mali, FARM), National Guard (2008)

Military expenditures [time series]

1.9% of GDP (2006) country comparison to the world: 75

Military service age and obligation [time series]

18 years of age for selective compulsory and voluntary military service; conscript service obligation - 2 years (2011)

People and Society

Age structure [time series]

0-14 years: 47.3% (male 3,372,717/female 3,325,188) 15-64 years: 49.7% (male 3,438,687/female 3,605,143) 65 years and over: 3% (male 199,862/female 218,307) (2011 est.)

Birth rate [time series]

45.62 births/1,000 population (2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 3

Children under the age of 5 years underweight [time series]

27.9% (2006) country comparison to the world: 22

Death rate [time series]

14.29 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 14

Drinking water source [time series]

improved: urban: 81% of population rural: 44% of population total: 56% of population unimproved: urban: 19% of population rural: 56% of population total: 44% of population (2008)

Education expenditure (Education expenditures) [time series]

4.4% of GDP (2009) country comparison to the world: 86

Ethnic groups [time series]

Mande 50% (Bambara, Malinke, Soninke), Peul 17%, Voltaic 12%, Songhai 6%, Tuareg and Moor 10%, other 5%

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate [time series]

1% (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 48

HIV/AIDS - deaths [time series]

4,400 (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 41

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS [time series]

76,000 (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 47

Health expenditure (Health expenditures) [time series]

7.5% of GDP (2009) country comparison to the world: 65

Hospital bed density [time series]

0.57 beds/1,000 population (2008) country comparison to the world: 167

Infant mortality rate [time series]

total: 111.35 deaths/1,000 live births country comparison to the world: 4 male: 118.15 deaths/1,000 live births female: 104.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2011 est.)

Languages [time series]

French (official), Bambara 80%, numerous African languages

Life expectancy at birth [time series]

total population: 52.61 years country comparison to the world: 205 male: 51.01 years female: 54.26 years (2011 est.)

Literacy [time series]

definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 46.4% male: 53.5% female: 39.6% (2003 est.)

Major urban areas - population (Major cities - population) [time series]

BAMAKO (capital) 1.628 million (2009)

Major infectious diseases [time series]

degree of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne disease: malaria water contact disease: schistosomiasis respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis (2009)

Maternal mortality ratio (Maternal mortality rate) [time series]

830 deaths/100,000 live births (2008) country comparison to the world: 10

Median age [time series]

total: 16.3 years male: 15.9 years female: 16.7 years (2011 est.)

Nationality [time series]

noun: Malian(s) adjective: Malian

Net migration rate [time series]

-5.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 194

Physician density (Physicians density) [time series]

0.049 physicians/1,000 population (2008) country comparison to the world: 178

Population [time series]

14,159,904 (July 2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 67

Population growth rate [time series]

2.61% (2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 25

Religions [time series]

Muslim 90%, Christian 1%, indigenous beliefs 9%

Sanitation facility access [time series]

improved: urban: 54% of population rural: 32% of population total: 36% of population unimproved: urban: 46% of population rural: 68% of population total: 54% of population (2008)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education) [time series]

total: 8 years male: 9 years female: 7 years (2009)

Sex ratio [time series]

at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.92 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2011 est.)

Total fertility rate [time series]

6.44 children born/woman (2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 3

Urbanization [time series]

urban population: 36% of total population (2010) rate of urbanization: 4.4% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)

Transnational Issues

Disputes - international [time series]

demarcation is currently underway with Burkina Faso

Refugees and internally displaced persons [time series]

refugees (country of origin): 6,300 (Mauritania) (2007)

Trafficking in persons [time series]

current situation: Mali is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children subjected to forced labor and sex trafficking; within Mali, women and girls are forced into domestic servitude, agricultural labor, and support roles in gold mines, as well as subjected to sex trafficking; Malian boys are found in conditions of forced labor in agricultural settings, gold mines, and the informal commercial sector, as well as forced begging both within Mali and neighboring countries; boys from Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Niger, and other countries are forced into begging and exploited for labor; adult men and boys, primarily of Songhai ethnicity, are subjected to the longstanding practice of debt bondage in the salt mines of Taoudenni in northern Mali; some members of Mali's black Tamachek community are subjected to traditional slavery-related practices rooted in hereditary master-slave relationships, and this involuntary servitude reportedly has extended to their children tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - the government acknowledged that human trafficking is a problem in Mali, but it did not demonstrate significant efforts to prosecute and convict trafficking offenders; although the government identified at least 198 trafficking victims during the year - 152 of whom were Malian children in prostitution - it prosecuted only three trafficking cases and convicted two trafficking offenders (2011)

Transportation

Airports [time series]

20 (2010) country comparison to the world: 136

Airports - with paved runways [time series]

total: 8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2010)

Airports - with unpaved runways [time series]

total: 12 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 3 (2010)

Ports (Ports and terminals) [time series]

Koulikoro

Railways [time series]

total: 593 km country comparison to the world: 109 narrow gauge: 593 km 1.000-m gauge (2010)

Roadways [time series]

total: 18,912 km country comparison to the world: 114 paved: 3,597 km unpaved: 15,315 km (2005)

Waterways [time series]

1,800 km (downstream of Koulikoro; low water levels on the River Niger cause problems in dry years; in the months before the rainy season the river is not navigable by commercial vessels) (2010) country comparison to the world: 45