Mali (2001) | Seychelles (2008) | |
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Administrative divisions | 8 regions (regions, singular - region); Gao, Kayes, Kidal, Koulikoro, Mopti, Segou, Sikasso, Tombouctou | 23 administrative districts; Anse aux Pins, Anse Boileau, Anse Etoile, Anse Louis, Anse Royale, Baie Lazare, Baie Sainte Anne, Beau Vallon, Bel Air, Bel Ombre, Cascade, Glacis, Grand' Anse (on Mahe), Grand' Anse (on Praslin), La Digue, La Riviere Anglaise, Mont Buxton, Mont Fleuri, Plaisance, Pointe La Rue, Port Glaud, Saint Louis, Takamaka |
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: 25.4% (male 10,504/female 10,272)
15-64 years: 68.5% (male 27,405/female 28,706) 65 years and over: 6.1% (male 1,590/female 3,418) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, millet, rice, corn, vegetables, peanuts; cattle, sheep, goats | coconuts, cinnamon, vanilla, sweet potatoes, cassava (tapioca), bananas; poultry; tuna |
Airports | 27 (2000 est.) | 15 (2007) |
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: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
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: 6
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 4 (2007) |
Area | total:
1.24 million sq km land: 1.22 million sq km water: 20,000 sq km |
total: 455 sq km
land: 455 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Texas | 2.5 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. | A lengthy struggle between France and Great Britain for the islands ended in 1814, when they were ceded to the latter. Independence came in 1976. Socialist rule was brought to a close with a new constitution and free elections in 1993. President France-Albert RENE, who had served since 1977, was re-elected in 2001, but stepped down in 2004. Vice President James MICHEL took over the presidency and in July 2006 was elected to a new five-year term. |
Birth rate | 48.79 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 15.83 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$730 million expenditures: $770 million, including capital expenditures of $320 million (1997 est.) |
revenues: $380.9 million
expenditures: $361.2 million (2007 est.) |
Capital | Bamako | name: Victoria
geographic coordinates: 4 38 S, 55 27 E time difference: UTC+4 (9 hours 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 | tropical marine; humid; cooler season during southeast monsoon (late May to September); warmer season during northwest monsoon (March to May) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 491 km |
Constitution | adopted 12 January 1992 | 18 June 1993 |
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: Republic of Seychelles
conventional short form: Seychelles local long form: Republic of Seychelles local short form: Seychelles |
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.) | 6.25 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $3 billion (1999) | $957 million (31 December 2007 est.) |
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 |
the US does not have an embassy in Seychelles; the ambassador to Mauritius is accredited to Seychelles |
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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Jean Ronald JUMEAU
chancery: 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400C, New York, NY 10017 telephone: [1] (212) 972-1785 FAX: [1] (212) 972-1786 |
Disputes - international | none | together with Mauritius, Seychelles claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory) |
Economic aid - recipient | $596.4 million (1995) | $18.81 million (2005) |
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%. | Since independence in 1976, per capita output in this Indian Ocean archipelago has expanded to roughly seven times the pre-independence, near-subsistence level, moving the island into the upper-middle income group of countries. Growth has been led by the tourist sector, which employs about 30% of the labor force and provides more than 70% of hard currency earnings, and by tuna fishing. In recent years, the government has encouraged foreign investment to upgrade hotels and other services. At the same time, the government has moved to reduce the dependence on tourism by promoting the development of farming, fishing, and small-scale manufacturing. Sharp drops illustrated the vulnerability of the tourist sector in 1991-92 due largely to the Gulf War and once again following the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on the US. Economic growth slowed in 1998-2002 and fell in 2003-04, due to sluggish tourist and tuna sectors, but resumed in 2005-07. Real GDP grew by 5.8% in 2007, driven by tourism and a boom in tourism-related construction. The Seychelles rupee was allowed to depreciate in 2006 after being overvalued for years and fell by 10% in the first 9 months of 2007. |
Electricity - consumption | 413.9 million kWh (1999) | 193.4 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 445 million kWh (1999) | 208 million kWh (2005) |
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: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Morne Seychellois 905 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching | water supply depends on catchments to collect rainwater |
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 |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
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% | mixed French, African, Indian, Chinese, and Arab |
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 | Seychelles rupees per US dollar - 6.5 (2007), 5.5 (2006), 5.5 (2005), 5.5 (2004), 5.4007 (2003) |
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: President James Alix MICHEL (since 14 April 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President James MICHEL (since 14 April 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for two more terms); election last held 28-30 July 2006 (next to be held in 2011) election results: President James MICHEL elected president; percent of vote - James MICHEL 53.73%, Wavel RAMKALAWAN 45.71%, Philippe BOULLE 0.56%; note - this was the first election in which President James MICHEL participated; he was originally sworn in as president after former president France Albert RENE stepped down in April 2004 |
Exports | $480 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | cotton 50%, gold, livestock (1999 est.) | canned tuna, frozen fish, cinnamon bark, copra, petroleum products (reexports) |
Exports - partners | Italy 18%, Thailand 15%, Germany 7%, Portugal 4% (1999) | UK 25.5%, France 17.5%, Italy 11.9%, Mauritius 8.5%, Japan 8.3%, Spain 8.2%, Netherlands 4.3% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), yellow, and red; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia | five oblique bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, red, white, and green (bottom) radiating from the bottom of the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $9.1 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
46% industry: 21% services: 33% (1998) |
agriculture: 2.4%
industry: 25.6% services: 72% (2007 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $850 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.8% (2000 est.) | 5.8% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 17 00 N, 4 00 W | 4 35 S, 55 40 E |
Geography - note | landlocked | 41 granitic and about 75 coralline islands |
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% |
Imports | $575 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | 5,800 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, construction materials, petroleum, foodstuffs, textiles | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals |
Imports - partners | Cote d'Ivoire 19%, France 19%, Senegal 4%, Benelux 3% (1999) | Saudi Arabia 17.7%, South Africa 9.7%, Spain 8.1%, France 7.8%, Singapore 7.2%, Italy 4.8%, UK 4% (2006) |
Independence | 22 September 1960 (from France) | 29 June 1976 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | 1% (2007 est.) |
Industries | minor local consumer goods production and food processing; construction; phosphate and gold mining | fishing, tourism, processing of coconuts and vanilla, coir (coconut fiber) rope, boat building, printing, furniture; beverages |
Infant mortality rate | 121.44 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 14.75 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 18.67 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 0.8% (2000 est.) | 2.9% (2007 est.) |
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 | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, C, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 780 sq km (1993 est.) | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme | Court of Appeal; Supreme Court; judges for both courts are appointed by the president |
Labor force | NA | 30,900 (1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture and fishing 80% (1998 est.) | agriculture: 10%
industry: 19% services: 71% (1989) |
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: 2.17%
permanent crops: 13.04% other: 84.79% (2005) |
Languages | French (official), Bambara 80%, numerous African languages | Creole 91.8%, English 4.9% (official), other 3.1%, unspecified 0.2% (2002 census) |
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 | based on English common law, French civil law, and customary 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 National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (34 seats; 25 members elected by popular vote, 9 allocated on a proportional basis to parties winning at least 10% of the vote; to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 10-12 May 2007 (next to be held in 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - SPPF 56.2%, SNP 43.8%; seats by party - SPPF 23, SNP 11 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
47.02 years male: 45.84 years female: 48.24 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 72.34 years
male: 66.98 years female: 77.86 years (2007 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: 91.8% male: 91.4% female: 92.3% (2002 census) |
Location | Western Africa, southwest of Algeria | archipelago in the Indian Ocean, northeast of Madagascar |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | - | total: 6 ships (1000 GRT or over) 108,348 GRT/165,593 DWT
by type: cargo 1, carrier 1, chemical tanker 4 foreign-owned: 3 (Hong Kong 1, Nigeria 1, South Africa 1) (2007) |
Military branches | Army, Air Force, Gendarmerie, Republican Guard, National Guard, National Police (Surete Nationale) | Seychelles Defense Force: Army, Coast Guard (includes Naval Wing, Air Wing), National Guard (2005) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $49 million (FY96) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2% (FY96) | 2% (2006 est.) |
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) | Constitution Day (National Day), 18 June (1993) |
Nationality | noun:
Malian(s) adjective: Malian |
noun: Seychellois (singular and plural)
adjective: Seychellois |
Natural hazards | hot, dust-laden harmattan haze common during dry seasons; recurring droughts | lies outside the cyclone belt, so severe storms are rare; short droughts possible |
Natural resources | gold, phosphates, kaolin, salt, limestone, uranium, hydropower
note: bauxite, iron ore, manganese, tin, and copper deposits are known but not exploited |
fish, copra, cinnamon trees |
Net migration rate | -0.36 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -5.25 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 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] | Democratic Party or DP [James MANCHAM, Paul CHOW]; Seychelles National Party or SNP [Wavel RAMKALAWAN] (formerly the United Opposition or UO); Seychelles People's Progressive Front or SPPF [France Albert RENE, James MICHEL] (the governing party) |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Patriotic Movement of the Ghanda Koye or MPGK; United Movement and Fronts of Azawad or MFUA | Roman Catholic Church; trade unions |
Population | 11,008,518 (July 2001 est.) | 81,895 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.97% (2001 est.) | 0.432% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Koulikoro | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 14, shortwave 7 (1998) | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 2 (2001) |
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% | Roman Catholic 82.3%, Anglican 6.4%, Seventh Day Adventist 1.1%, other Christian 3.4%, Hindu 2.1%, Muslim 1.1%, other non-Christian 1.5%, unspecified 1.5%, none 0.6% (2002 census) |
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: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.023 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.955 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.465 male(s)/female total population: 0.932 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 21 years of age; universal | 17 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: effective system
domestic: combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular teledensity is roughly 110 telephones per 100 persons; radiotelephone communications between islands in the archipelago international: country code - 248; direct radiotelephone communications with adjacent island countries and African coastal countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 23,000 (1997) | 20,700 (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,842 (1997) | 70,300 (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus two repeaters) (1997) | 2 (plus 9 repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly flat to rolling northern plains covered by sand; savanna in south, rugged hills in northeast | Mahe Group is granitic, narrow coastal strip, rocky, hilly; others are coral, flat, elevated reefs |
Total fertility rate | 6.81 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.74 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | NA% |
Waterways | 1,815 km | - |