Baker Island (2004) | Mali (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | - | 8 regions (regions, singular - region); Gao, Kayes, Kidal, Koulikoro, Mopti, Segou, Sikasso, Tombouctou |
Age structure | - | 0-14 years: 48.2% (male 2,921,914/female 2,853,976)
15-64 years: 48.8% (male 2,891,494/female 2,959,142) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 149,301/female 219,575) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | - | cotton, millet, rice, corn, vegetables, peanuts; cattle, sheep, goats |
Airports | 1 abandoned World War II runway of 1,665 m, completely covered with vegetation and unusable (2003 est.) | 29 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | - | total: 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 21
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 8 (2007) |
Area | total: 1.4 sq km
land: 1.4 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 1.24 million sq km
land: 1.22 million sq km water: 20,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 2.5 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC | slightly less than twice the size of Texas |
Background | The US took possession of the island in 1857, and its guano deposits were mined by US and British companies during the second half of the 19th century. In 1935, a short-lived attempt at colonization was begun on this island - as well as on nearby Howland Island - but was disrupted by World War II and thereafter abandoned. Presently the island is a National Wildlife Refuge run by the US Department of the Interior; a day beacon is situated near the middle of the west coast. | 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. |
Birth rate | - | 49.61 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | - | revenues: $764 million
expenditures: $828 million (2002 est.) |
Capital | - | name: Bamako
geographic coordinates: 12 39 N, 8 00 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | equatorial; scant rainfall, constant wind, burning sun | subtropical to arid; hot and dry (February to June); rainy, humid, and mild (June to November); cool and dry (November to February) |
Coastline | 4.8 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | - | adopted 12 January 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Baker Island |
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 |
Death rate | - | 16.51 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | - | $2.8 billion (2002) |
Dependency status | unincorporated territory of the US; administered from Washington, DC, by the Fish and Wildlife Service of the US Department of the Interior as part of the National Wildlife Refuge system | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | - | chief of mission: Ambassador Terrence P. MCCULLEY
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 | - | chief of mission: Ambassador Abdoulaye DIOP
chancery: 2130 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-2249, 939-8950 FAX: [1] (202) 332-6603 |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $691.5 million (2005) |
Economy - overview | no economic activity | Mali is among the poorest countries in the world, with 65% of its land area desert or semidesert and with a highly unequal distribution of income. Economic activity is largely confined to the riverine area irrigated by the Niger. 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, along with gold. The government has 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 CFA franc in January 1994 have pushed up economic growth to a 5% average in 1996-2007. Worker remittances and external trade routes for the landlocked country have been jeopardized by continued unrest in neighboring Cote d'Ivoire. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 412.9 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | - | 0 kWh; note - recent hydropower developments may be providing electricity to Senegal and Mauritania (2005) |
Electricity - imports | - | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | - | 444 million kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 8 m |
lowest point: Senegal River 23 m
highest point: Hombori Tondo 1,155 m |
Environment - current issues | no natural fresh water resources | deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching |
Environment - international agreements | - | 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 |
Ethnic groups | - | Mande 50% (Bambara, Malinke, Soninke), Peul 17%, Voltaic 12%, Songhai 6%, Tuareg and Moor 10%, other 5% |
Exchange rates | - | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 493.51 (2007), 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003) |
Executive branch | - | chief of state: President Amadou Toumani TOURE (since 8 June 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Modibo SIDIBE (since 28 September 2007) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 29 April 2007 (next to be held April in 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% |
Exports | - | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | - | cotton, gold, livestock |
Exports - partners | - | China 26.8%, Germany 24.9%, Thailand 7.1%, Taiwan 4.9%, Bangladesh 4% (2006) |
Fiscal year | - | calendar year |
Flag description | the flag of the US is used | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), yellow, and red; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia |
GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture: 45%
industry: 17% services: 38% (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | - | 4.3% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 0 13 N, 176 31 W | 17 00 N, 4 00 W |
Geography - note | treeless, sparse, and scattered vegetation consisting of grasses, prostrate vines, and low growing shrubs; primarily a nesting, roosting, and foraging habitat for seabirds, shorebirds, and marine wildlife | landlocked; divided into three natural zones: the southern, cultivated Sudanese; the central, semiarid Sahelian; and the northern, arid Saharan |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%: 2.4%
highest 10%: 30.2% (2001) |
Imports | - | 4,369 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | - | petroleum, machinery and equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs, textiles |
Imports - partners | - | France 12.8%, Senegal 12.2%, Cote d'Ivoire 10.5% (2006) |
Independence | - | 22 September 1960 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | - | NA% |
Industries | - | food processing; construction; phosphate and gold mining |
Infant mortality rate | - | total: 105.65 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 115.29 deaths/1,000 live births female: 95.72 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 4.5% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | - | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 0 sq km (1998 est.) | 2,360 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme |
Labor force | - | 3.93 million (2001 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture: 80%
industry and services: 20% (2001 est.) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 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 | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
arable land: 3.76%
permanent crops: 0.03% other: 96.21% (2005) |
Languages | - | French (official), Bambara 80%, numerous African languages |
Legal system | the laws of the US, where applicable, apply | based on French civil law system and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | - | unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (147 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 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 (including ADEMA 51, URD 34, MPR 8, CNID 7, UDD 3, and other 10), FDR coalition 15 (including RPM 11, PARENA 4), SADI 4, independent 15 |
Life expectancy at birth | - | total population: 49.51 years
male: 47.6 years female: 51.46 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | - | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 46.4% male: 53.5% female: 39.6% (2003 est.) |
Location | Oceania, atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, about half way between Hawaii and Australia | Western Africa, southwest of Algeria |
Map references | Oceania | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
none (landlocked) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US; visited annually by the US Coast Guard | - |
Military branches | - | Malian Armed Forces: Army, Republic of Mali Air Force (Force Aerienne de la Republique du Mali, FARM), National Guard (2007) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.9% (2006) |
National holiday | - | Independence Day, 22 September (1960) |
Nationality | - | noun: Malian(s)
adjective: Malian |
Natural hazards | the narrow fringing reef surrounding the island can be a maritime hazard | hot, dust-laden harmattan haze common during dry seasons; recurring droughts; occasional Niger River flooding |
Natural resources | guano (deposits worked until 1891), terrestrial and aquatic wildlife | gold, phosphates, kaolin, salt, limestone, uranium, gypsum, granite, hydropower
note: bauxite, iron ore, manganese, tin, and copper deposits are known but not exploited |
Net migration rate | - | -6.28 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | - | Alliance for Democratic Change (political group comprised mainly of Tuareg from Mali's northern region); African Solidarity for Democracy and Independence or SADI [Oumar MARIKO, secretary general]; 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 Democracy or ADEMA [Diounconda TRAORE]; 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 [Me Idrissa TRAORE]; Party for National Renewal or PARENA [Tiebile DRAME]; Patriotic Movement for Renewal or MPR [Choguel MAIGA]; Rally for Democracy and Labor or RDT; Rally for Mali or RPM [Ibrahim Boubacar KEITA]; Sudanese Union/African Democratic Rally or US/RDA [Mamadou Bamou TOURE]; Union for Democracy and Development or UDD [Moussa Balla COULIBALY]; Union for Republic and Democracy or URD [Soumaila CISSE] |
Population | uninhabited
note: American civilians evacuated in 1942 after Japanese air and naval attacks during World War II; occupied by US military during World War II, but abandoned after the war; public entry is by special-use permit from US Fish and Wildlife Service only and generally restricted to scientists and educators; a cemetery and remnants of structures from early settlement are located near the middle of the west coast; visited annually by US Fish and Wildlife Service (2004 est.) |
11,995,402 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | 64% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | - | 2.681% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none; offshore anchorage only; note - there is one small boat landing area along the middle of the west coast | - |
Radio broadcast stations | - | AM 1, FM 230 (27 regional and government stations, and 203 private stations), shortwave 1 (2001) |
Railways | - | total: 729 km
narrow gauge: 729 km 1.000-m gauge (2006) |
Religions | - | Muslim 90%, Christian 1%, indigenous beliefs 9% |
Sex ratio | - | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.024 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.977 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.988 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | - | general assessment: domestic system unreliable but improving; provides only minimal service
domestic: fixed-line availability is gradually increasing, but subscribership remains less than 1 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular subscribership has increased sharply to 13 per 100 persons international: country code - 223; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean, 1 Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | - | 82,500 (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 1.513 million (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | - | 2 (plus repeaters) (2007) |
Terrain | low, nearly level coral island surrounded by a narrow fringing reef | mostly flat to rolling northern plains covered by sand; savanna in south, rugged hills in northeast |
Total fertility rate | - | 7.38 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Transportation - note | there is a day beacon near the middle of the west coast | - |
Unemployment rate | - | 14.6% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | - | 1,800 km (2007) |