Mali (2001) | British Virgin Islands (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | 8 regions (regions, singular - region); Gao, Kayes, Kidal, Koulikoro, Mopti, Segou, Sikasso, Tombouctou | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
47.2% (male 2,612,215; female 2,583,370) 15-64 years: 49.73% (male 2,610,142; female 2,864,127) 65 years and over: 3.07% (male 158,486; female 180,178) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 20.5% (male 2,403/female 2,331)
15-64 years: 74.3% (male 8,811/female 8,340) 65 years and over: 5.3% (male 636/female 577) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, millet, rice, corn, vegetables, peanuts; cattle, sheep, goats | fruits, vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish |
Airports | 27 (2000 est.) | 3 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
7 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
20 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 9 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2006) |
Area | total:
1.24 million sq km land: 1.22 million sq km water: 20,000 sq km |
total: 153 sq km
land: 153 sq km water: 0 sq km note: comprised of 16 inhabited and more than 20 uninhabited islands; includes the islands of Tortola, Anegada, Virgin Gorda, Jost van Dyke |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Texas | about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | The Sudanese Republic and Senegal became independent of France in 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. Since his reelection in 1997, President KONARE has continued to push through political and economic reforms and to fight corruption. In 1999 he indicated he would not run for a third term. | First inhabited by Arawak and later by Carib Indians, the Virgin Islands were settled by the Dutch in 1648 and then annexed by the English in 1672. The islands were part of the British colony of the Leeward Islands from 1872-1960; they were granted autonomy in 1967. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency. |
Birth rate | 48.79 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 14.89 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$730 million expenditures: $770 million, including capital expenditures of $320 million (1997 est.) |
revenues: $204.7 million
expenditures: $180.4 million; including capital expenditures of $33.8 million (1997) |
Capital | Bamako | name: Road Town
geographic coordinates: 18 27 N, 64 37 W time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | subtropical to arid; hot and dry February to June; rainy, humid, and mild June to November; cool and dry November to February | subtropical; humid; temperatures moderated by trade winds |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 80 km |
Constitution | adopted 12 January 1992 | 1 June 1977, amended in 2000 |
Country name | 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 |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: British Virgin Islands abbreviation: BVI |
Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States | - |
Death rate | 18.71 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 4.42 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $3 billion (1999) | $36.1 million (1997) |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK; internal self-governing |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Michael RANNEBERGER embassy: Rue Rochester NY and Rue Mohamed V, Bamako mailing address: B. P. 34, Bamako telephone: [223] 22 54 70 FAX: [223] 22 37 12 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Cheick Oumar DIARRAH chancery: 2130 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-2249, 939-8950 FAX: [1] (202) 332-6603 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $596.4 million (1995) | $NA |
Economy - overview | 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. 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 have pushed up economic growth to a sturdy 5% average in 1996-2000. Growth should remain around 5% in 2001-02, and inflation should stay less than 2%. | The economy, one of the most stable and prosperous in the Caribbean, is highly dependent on tourism, generating an estimated 45% of the national income. An estimated 350,000 tourists, mainly from the US, visited the islands in 1998. Tourism suffered in 2002 because of the lackluster US economy. In the mid-1980s, the government began offering offshore registration to companies wishing to incorporate in the islands, and incorporation fees now generate substantial revenues. Roughly 400,000 companies were on the offshore registry by yearend 2000. The adoption of a comprehensive insurance law in late 1994, which provides a blanket of confidentiality with regulated statutory gateways for investigation of criminal offenses, made the British Virgin Islands even more attractive to international business. Livestock raising is the most important agricultural activity; poor soils limit the islands' ability to meet domestic food requirements. Because of traditionally close links with the US Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands has used the US dollar as its currency since 1959. |
Electricity - consumption | 413.9 million kWh (1999) | 32.13 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 445 million kWh (1999) | 34.55 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
44.94% hydro: 55.06% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Senegal River 23 m highest point: Hombori Tondo 1,155 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Sage 521 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching | limited natural fresh water resources (except for a few seasonal streams and springs on Tortola, most of the islands' water supply comes from wells and rainwater catchments) |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Nuclear Test Ban |
- |
Ethnic groups | Mande 50% (Bambara, Malinke, Soninke), Peul 17%, Voltaic 12%, Songhai 6%, Tuareg and Moor 10%, other 5% | black 83%, white, Indian, Asian and mixed |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 699.21 (January 2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997), 511.55 (1996); note - from 1 January 1999, the XOF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF per euro | the US dollar is used |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Alpha Oumar KONARE (since 8 June 1992) head of government: Prime Minister Mande SIDIBE (since September 2000) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 11 May 1997 (next to be held NA May 2002); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Alpha Oumar KONARE reelected president; percent of vote - Alpha Oumar KONARE 95.9%, Mamadou DIABY 4.1% |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor David PEAREY (since 18 April 2006)
head of government: Chief Minister Dr. Orlando D. SMITH (since 17 June 2003) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed chief minister by the governor |
Exports | $480 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | cotton 50%, gold, livestock (1999 est.) | rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals; gravel, sand |
Exports - partners | Italy 18%, Thailand 15%, Germany 7%, Portugal 4% (1999) | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), yellow, and red; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Virgin Islander coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms depicts a woman flanked on either side by a vertical column of six oil lamps above a scroll bearing the Latin word VIGILATE (Be Watchful) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $9.1 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
46% industry: 21% services: 33% (1998) |
agriculture: 1.8%
industry: 6.2% services: 92% (1996 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $850 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.8% (2000 est.) | 1% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 17 00 N, 4 00 W | 18 30 N, 64 30 W |
Geography - note | landlocked | strong ties to nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico |
Highways | total:
15,100 km paved: 1,827 km unpaved: 13,273 km (1996) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
1.8% highest 10%: 40.4% (1994) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe; large offshore financial center makes it vulnerable to money laundering |
Imports | $575 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, construction materials, petroleum, foodstuffs, textiles | building materials, automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery |
Imports - partners | Cote d'Ivoire 19%, France 19%, Senegal 4%, Benelux 3% (1999) | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US (2004) |
Independence | 22 September 1960 (from France) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | NA% |
Industries | minor local consumer goods production and food processing; construction; phosphate and gold mining | tourism, light industry, construction, rum, concrete block, offshore financial center |
Infant mortality rate | 121.44 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 16.72 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 19.5 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.79 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 0.8% (2000 est.) | 2% (2005) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIPONUH, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB, WAEMU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | Caricom (associate), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, OECS (associate), UNESCO (associate), UPU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 780 sq km (1993 est.) | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal (one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court); Magistrate's Court; Juvenile Court; Court of Summary Jurisdiction |
Labor force | NA | 12,770 (2004) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture and fishing 80% (1998 est.) | agriculture: 0.6%
industry: 40% services: 59.4% |
Land boundaries | 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 |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
2% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 25% forests and woodland: 6% other: 67% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 20%
permanent crops: 6.67% other: 73.33% (2005) |
Languages | French (official), Bambara 80%, numerous African languages | English (official) |
Legal system | based on French civil law system and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional Court (which was formally established on 9 March 1994); has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | English law |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (147 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 20 July and 3 August 1997 (next to be held in two rounds in 2002); note - much of the opposition boycotted the election election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - ADEMA 130, PARENA 8, CDS 4, UDD 3, PDP 2 |
unicameral Legislative Council (13 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote, 1 member from each of nine electoral districts, 4 at-large members; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 16 May 2003 (next to be held in 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NDP 8, VIP 5 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
47.02 years male: 45.84 years female: 48.24 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 76.68 years
male: 75.56 years female: 77.84 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 31% male: 39.4% female: 23.1% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.8% (1991 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Western Africa, southwest of Algeria | Caribbean, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico |
Map references | Africa | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | - | registered in other countries: 1 (North Korea 1) (2006) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Army, Air Force, Gendarmerie, Republican Guard, National Guard, National Police (Surete Nationale) | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $49 million (FY96) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2% (FY96) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
2,284,632 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,309,612 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 22 September (1960) | Territory Day, 1 July |
Nationality | noun:
Malian(s) adjective: Malian |
noun: British Virgin Islander(s)
adjective: British Virgin Islander |
Natural hazards | hot, dust-laden harmattan haze common during dry seasons; recurring droughts | hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October) |
Natural resources | gold, phosphates, kaolin, salt, limestone, uranium, hydropower
note: bauxite, iron ore, manganese, tin, and copper deposits are known but not exploited |
NEGL |
Net migration rate | -0.36 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.22 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Alliance for Democracy or ADEMA [Ibrahim Boubacar KEITA, party chairman]; Block of Alternative for the Renewal of Africa or BARA [Yoro DIAKITE]; Democratic and Social Convention or CDS [Mamadou Bakary SANGARE, chairman]; Movement for the Independence, Renaissance and Integration of Africa or MIRIA [Mohamed Lamine TRAORE, Mouhamedou DICKO]; National Congress for Democratic Initiative or CNID [Mountaga TALL, chairman]; Party for Democracy and Progress or PDP [Me Idrissa TRAORE]; Party for National Renewal or PARENA [Yoro DIAKITE, chairman; Tiebile DRAME, secretary general]; Rally for Democracy and Labor or RDT [Ali GNANGADO]; Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP [Almamy SYLLA, chairman]; Sudanese Union/African Democratic Rally or US/RDA [Mamadou Bamou TOURE, secretary general]; Union of Democratic Forces for Progress or UFDP [Youssouf TOURE, secretary general]; Union for Democracy and Development or UDD [Moussa Balla COULIBALY] | Concerned Citizens Movement or CCM [Ethlyn SMITH]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Orlando SMITH]; United Party or UP [Gregory MADURO]; Virgin Islands Party or VIP [Ralph T. O'NEAL] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Patriotic Movement of the Ghanda Koye or MPGK; United Movement and Fronts of Azawad or MFUA | NA |
Population | 11,008,518 (July 2001 est.) | 23,098 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.97% (2001 est.) | 1.97% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Koulikoro | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 14, shortwave 7 (1998) | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2004) |
Radios | 570,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
729 km (linked to Senegal's rail system through Kayes) narrow gauge: 729 km 1.000-m gauge |
- |
Religions | Muslim 90%, indigenous beliefs 9%, Christian 1% | Protestant 86% (Methodist 33%, Anglican 17%, Church of God 9%, Seventh-Day Adventist 6%, Baptist 4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2%, other 15%), Roman Catholic 10%, none 2%, other 2% (1991) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.1 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 21 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
domestic system poor but improving; provides only minimal service domestic: network consists of microwave radio relay, open wire, and radiotelephone communications stations; expansion of microwave radio relay in progress international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) |
general assessment: worldwide telephone service
domestic: NA international: country code - 1-284; submarine cable to Bermuda |
Telephones - main lines in use | 23,000 (1997) | 11,700 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,842 (1997) | 8,000 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus two repeaters) (1997) | 1 (plus one cable company) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly flat to rolling northern plains covered by sand; savanna in south, rugged hills in northeast | coral islands relatively flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly |
Total fertility rate | 6.81 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.72 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 3.6% (1997) |
Waterways | 1,815 km | - |