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Mali

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: African Countries;
Countries

   SOS Children works in Mali. For more information see SOS Children in
   Mali, Africa
                République du Mali
   Republic of Mali

   Flag of Mali Coat of arms of Mali
   Flag         Coat of arms
   Motto: "Un peuple, un but, une foi"
   "One people, one goal, one faith"
   Anthem: Pour l'Afrique et pour toi, Mali
   "For Africa and for you, Mali"
   Location of Mali
   Capital
   (and largest city)    Bamako
                         12°39′N 8°0′W
    Official languages   French
   Government            Parliamentary democracy
    - President          Amadou Toumani Touré
    - Prime Minister     Ousmane Issoufi Maïga
       Independence      from France
    - Declared           September 22, 1960
                       Area
    - Total              1,240,192 km² ( 24th)
                         478,839 sq mi
    - Water (%)          1.6
                    Population
    - July 2005 estimate 13,518,000 ( 65th)
    - Density            11/km² ( 207th)
                         28/sq mi
        GDP ( PPP)       2005 estimate
    - Total              $14.400 billion ( 125th)
    - Per capita         $1,154 ( 166th)
        HDI  (2004)      0.338 (low) ( 175th)
         Currency        CFA franc ( XOF)
         Time zone       ( UTC)
       Internet TLD      .ml
       Calling code      +223
   Great Mosque of Djenné
   Enlarge
   Great Mosque of Djenné

   Mali, officially the Republic of Mali (French: République du Mali,
   Amazigh: Image:Mali_tifinagh.JPG ), is a landlocked nation in Western
   Africa. It is the second largest country among West African nations,
   after Nigeria. It borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east,
   Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire 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 and Senegal rivers. Formerly French Sudan, the
   country is named after the Empire of Mali. The name of the country
   comes from the Bambara word for hippopotamus (with the animal appearing
   on the 5 franc coin), the name of its capital city comes from the
   Bambara word meaning "place of crocodiles".

History

   The Mandé peoples settled the Sahel (including present-day Mali), and
   formed a succession of Sahelian kingdoms, including the Ghana Empire,
   the Mali Empire, and the Songhai Empire. Timbuktu was a key city in
   these empires as an outpost for trans-Saharan trade and a centre for
   scholarship. The Songhai Empire declined under a Moroccan invasion in
   1591.

   Mali was invaded by France starting in 1880, which annexed it as an
   overseas department of France. The colony, which at times also included
   neighbouring countries, was known as French Sudan or the Sudanese
   Republic. In early 1959, the union of Mali and Senegal became the Mali
   Federation, which gained independence from France on June 20, 1960.
   Senegal withdrew from the Mali Federation after a few months. The
   Republic of Mali, under Modibo Keïta, withdrew from the French
   Community on September 22, 1960.

   Modibo Keita was victim of a coup in 1968 after which Mali was ruled by
   Moussa Traoré until 1991. Anti-government protests in 1991 led to a
   coup, a transitional government, and a new constitution. In 1992, Alpha
   Oumar Konaré won Mali's first democratic, multi-party presidential
   election. 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, a retired
   General, who had been the leader of the military aspect of 1991
   democratic uprising.

Politics

   Under Mali's 1992 constitution, a president is elected for a five year
   term as chief of state and commander in chief of the armed forces. This
   president appoints the prime minister and chairs the Council of
   Ministers, which adopts proposals for laws submitted to the National
   Assembly for approval. The constitution further defines Mali as being a
   multi-party democracy, and prohibits parties based on ethnic,
   religious, regional, or gender lines.

   The National Assembly is the sole legislative arm of the government,
   and currently consists of 147 members. The term of office for members
   is five years. Eight political parties are currently represented in the
   Assembly, and are aggregated into four parliamentary groups. ADEMA
   currently holds the majority among these groups.

   Mali is divided into eight administrative regions, which are themselves
   further divided into districts. These districts are composed of
   communes, which contain villages. Since decentralization plans began, a
   total of 702 local municipal councils have been formed. These are
   headed by elected mayors.

   The Malian legal system is largely defined by the country's former
   colonial status under France. Moves have been made to change this
   system to closer conform to the actual culture of the country, but many
   laws of the French era remain in effect. The judiciary is defined by
   the constitution as being an independent body. Currently, judges are
   appointed by the Ministry of Justice. Mali has both a constitutional
   court, and a high court of justice. The latter is empowered to try
   government officials in cases of treason.

Administrative divisions

   Map of Mali

   Mali is divided into 8 regions (régions) and 1 district, and subdivided
   into 49 cercles and finally 288 arrondissements.

   The regions and district are:
     * Gao
     * Kayes
     * Kidal
     * Koulikoro
     * Mopti
     * Ségou
     * Sikasso
     * Tombouctou (Timbuktu)
     * Bamako (capital district)

   See also:
     * Regions of Mali
     * Cercles of Mali

Geography

   View over Bamako
   Enlarge
   View over Bamako

   At 478,734 mi² (1,240,000 km² ), Mali is the world's 24th-largest
   country (after Angola). It is comparable in size to South Africa, and
   is nearly twice the size of the US state of Texas.

   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,
   kaolinite, salt and limestone being most widely exploited.

Economy

   Market scene in Kati
   Enlarge
   Market scene in Kati

   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 labour force is engaged in farming and
   fishing. Industrial activity is concentrated on processing farm
   commodities. Pottery is also practised by women whose wares are bought
   by dealers and are transported to markets where they are sold by
   traders. The traditional methods used by the potters are an attraction
   to foreign tourists. 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 implementation of an
   IMF-recommended structural adjustment program. 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

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mali"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
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