Mali (2007) | Aruba (2004) | |
Administrative divisions | 8 regions (regions, singular - region); Gao, Kayes, Kidal, Koulikoro, Mopti, Segou, Sikasso, Tombouctou | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) |
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.) |
0-14 years: 20.3% (male 7,429; female 7,051)
15-64 years: 68.2% (male 23,587; female 25,007) 65 years and over: 11.4% (male 3,347; female 4,797) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, millet, rice, corn, vegetables, peanuts; cattle, sheep, goats | aloes; livestock; fish |
Airports | 29 (2007) | 1 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2007) |
total: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
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: 1.24 million sq km
land: 1.22 million sq km water: 20,000 sq km |
total: 193 sq km
land: 193 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Texas | slightly larger than 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, what formerly made up the Sudanese Republic was renamed Mali. Rule by dictatorship was brought to a close in 1991 by a coup that ushered in democratic government. 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. | Discovered and claimed for Spain in 1499, Aruba was acquired by the Dutch in 1636. The island's economy has been dominated by three main industries. A 19th century gold rush was followed by prosperity brought on by the opening in 1924 of an oil refinery. The last decades of the 20th century saw a boom in the tourism industry. Aruba seceded from the Netherlands Antilles in 1986 and became a separate, autonomous member of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Movement toward full independence was halted at Aruba's request in 1990. |
Birth rate | 49.61 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 11.53 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $764 million
expenditures: $828 million (2002 est.) |
revenues: $135.8 million
expenditures: $147 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2000) |
Capital | name: Bamako
geographic coordinates: 12 39 N, 8 00 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Oranjestad |
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; little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 68.5 km |
Constitution | adopted 12 January 1992 | 1 January 1986 |
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: Aruba |
Currency | - | Aruban guilder/florin (AWG) |
Death rate | 16.51 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 6.47 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.8 billion (2002) | $285 million (1996) |
Dependency status | - | part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; full autonomy in internal affairs obtained in 1986 upon separation from the Netherlands Antilles; Dutch Government responsible for defense and foreign affairs |
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 |
the US does not have an embassy in Aruba; the Consul General to Netherlands Antilles, Robert E. SORENSON, is accredited to Aruba |
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 |
none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $691.5 million (2005) | $26 million (1995); note - the Netherlands provided a $127 million aid package to Aruba and Suriname in 1996 |
Economy - overview | 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 sturdy 5% average in 1996-2006. Worker remittances and external trade routes for the landlocked country have been jeopardized by continued unrest in neighboring Cote d'Ivoire. | Tourism is the mainstay of the small, open Aruban economy, with offshore banking and oil refining and storage also important. The rapid growth of the tourism sector over the last decade has resulted in a substantial expansion of other activities. Construction has boomed, with hotel capacity five times the 1985 level. In addition, the reopening of the country's oil refinery in 1993, a major source of employment and foreign exchange earnings, has further spurred growth. Aruba's small labor force and low unemployment rate have led to a large number of unfilled job vacancies, despite sharp rises in wage rates in recent years. Tourist arrivals have declined in the aftermath of the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on the US. The government now must deal with a budget deficit and a negative trade balance. |
Electricity - consumption | 412.9 million kWh (2005) | 494.7 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh; note - recent hydropower developments may be providing electricity to Senegal and Mauritania (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 444 million kWh (2005) | 531.9 million kWh (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Senegal River 23 m
highest point: Hombori Tondo 1,155 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Jamanota 188 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching | NA |
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% | mixed white/Caribbean Amerindian 80% |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002) | Aruban guilders/florins per US dollar - 1.79 (2003), 1.79 (2002), 1.79 (2001), 1.79 (2000), 1.79 (1999) |
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% |
chief of state: Queen BEATRIX of the Netherlands (since 30 April 1980), represented by Governor General Fredis REFUNJOL (since 11 May 2004)
head of government: Prime Minister Nelson O. ODUBER (since 30 October 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers (elected by the Staten) elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed for a six-year term by the monarch; prime minister and deputy prime minister elected by the Staten for four-year terms; election last held 28 September 2001 (next to be held by December 2005) election results: Nelson O. ODUBER elected prime minister; percent of legislative vote - NA |
Exports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | cotton, gold, livestock | live animals and animal products, art and collectibles, machinery and electrical equipment, transport equipment |
Exports - partners | China 35.2%, Thailand 9.3%, Taiwan 6.5%, Bangladesh 5.3%, Australia 5% (2006) | Netherlands 33.7%, Colombia 12%, Netherlands Antilles 12%, Panama 12%, Venezuela 10.8%, US 9.6% (2003) |
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 | blue, with two narrow, horizontal, yellow stripes across the lower portion and a red, four-pointed star outlined in white in the upper hoist-side corner |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $1.94 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 45%
industry: 17% services: 38% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $28,000 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.1% (2006 est.) | -1.5% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 17 00 N, 4 00 W | 12 30 N, 69 58 W |
Geography - note | landlocked; divided into three natural zones: the southern, cultivated Sudanese; the central, semiarid Sahelian; and the northern, arid Saharan | a flat, riverless island renowned for its white sand beaches; its tropical climate is moderated by constant trade winds from the Atlantic Ocean; the temperature is almost constant at about 27 degrees Celsius (81 degrees Fahrenheit) |
Highways | - | total: 800 km
paved: 513 km unpaved: 287 km note: most coastal roads are paved, while unpaved roads serve large tracts of the interior (1995) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.4%
highest 10%: 30.2% (2001) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | - | transit point for US- and Europe-bound narcotics with some accompanying money-laundering activity |
Imports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum, machinery and equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs, textiles | machinery and electrical equipment, crude oil for refining and reexport, chemicals; foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | France 12.8%, Senegal 12.1%, Cote d'Ivoire 10.4% (2006) | US 55.3%, Netherlands 13%, Netherlands Antilles 3.1% (2003) |
Independence | 22 September 1960 (from France) | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA (2002 est.) |
Industries | food processing; construction; phosphate and gold mining | tourism, transshipment facilities, oil refining |
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.) |
total: 6.02 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 6.85 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.14 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.5% (2002 est.) | 3.2% (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, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OIF, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, UNESCO (associate), UPU, WCL, WToO (associate) |
Irrigated land | 2,360 sq km (2003) | 0.01 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme | Joint High Court of Justice (judges are appointed by the monarch) |
Labor force | 3.93 million (2001 est.) | 41,500 (1997 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 80%
industry and services: 20% (2001 est.) |
most employment is in wholesale and retail trade and repair, followed by hotels and restaurants; oil refining |
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: 3.76%
permanent crops: 0.03% other: 96.21% (2005) |
arable land: 10.53% (including aloe 0.01%)
permanent crops: 0% other: 89.47% (2001) |
Languages | French (official), Bambara 80%, numerous African languages | Dutch (official), Papiamento (a Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, English dialect), English (widely spoken), Spanish |
Legal system | based on French civil law system and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on Dutch civil law system, with some English common law influence |
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 |
unicameral Legislature or Staten (21 seats; members elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 28 September 2001 (next to be held by NA 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - MEP 52.4%, AVP 26.7%, PPA 9.6%, OLA 5.7%, Aliansa 3.5%, other 2.1%; seats by party - MEP 12, AVP 6, PPA 2, OLA 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 49.51 years
male: 47.6 years female: 51.46 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 78.98 years
male: 75.64 years female: 82.49 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 46.4% male: 53.5% female: 39.6% (2003 est.) |
definition:
total population: 97% male: NA female: NA |
Location | Western Africa, southwest of Algeria | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Venezuela |
Map references | Africa | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm |
Merchant marine | - | total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 5,772 GRT/7,068 DWT
by type: cargo 1, petroleum tanker 2 foreign-owned: Germany 1, Russia 1 registered in other countries: 1 (2003 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands |
Military branches | Malian Armed Forces: Army, Republic of Mali Air Force (Force Aerienne de la Republique du Mali, FARM), National Guard (2007) | no regular indigenous military forces; Royal Dutch Navy and Marines, Coast Guard |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.9% (2006) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 22 September (1960) | Flag Day, 18 March |
Nationality | noun: Malian(s)
adjective: Malian |
noun: Aruban(s)
adjective: Aruban; Dutch |
Natural hazards | hot, dust-laden harmattan haze common during dry seasons; recurring droughts; occasional Niger River flooding | lies outside the Caribbean hurricane belt |
Natural resources | gold, phosphates, kaolin, salt, limestone, uranium, gypsum, granite, hydropower
note: bauxite, iron ore, manganese, tin, and copper deposits are known but not exploited |
NEGL; white sandy beaches |
Net migration rate | -6.28 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | 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] | Aruba Solidarity Movement or MAS [leader NA]; Aruban Democratic Alliance or Aliansa [leader NA]; Aruban Democratic Party or PDA [Leo BERLINSKI]; Aruban Liberal Party or OLA [Glenbert CROES]; Aruban Patriotic Party or PPA [Benny NISBET]; Aruban People's Party or AVP [Jan (Henny) H. EMAN]; Concentration for the Liberation of Aruba or CLA [leader NA]; People's Electoral Movement Party or MEP [Nelson O. ODUBER]; For a Restructured Aruba Now or PARA [Urbana LOPEZ]; National Democratic Action or ADN [Pedro Charro KELLY] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Alliance for Democratic Change or ACD; Patriotic Movement of the Ghanda Koye or MPGK; United Movement and Fronts of Azawad or MFUA | NA |
Population | 11,995,402 (July 2007 est.) | 71,218 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 64% (2001 est.) | NA |
Population growth rate | 2.681% (2007 est.) | 0.51% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Barcadera, Oranjestad, Sint Nicolaas |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 28, shortwave 1 (the shortwave station in Bamako has seven frequencies and five transmitters and relays broadcasts for China Radio International) (2001) | AM 4, FM 6, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | total: 729 km
narrow gauge: 729 km 1.000-m gauge (2006) |
- |
Religions | Muslim 90%, Christian 1%, indigenous beliefs 9% | Roman Catholic 82%, Protestant 8%, Hindu, Muslim, Confucian, Jewish |
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.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: domestic system unreliable 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: country code - 223; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean, 1 Indian Ocean) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: more than adequate international: country code - 297; 1 submarine cable to Sint Maarten (Netherlands Antilles); extensive interisland microwave radio relay links |
Telephones - main lines in use | 82,500 (2006) | 37,100 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.513 million (2006) | 53,000 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus repeaters) (2001) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly flat to rolling northern plains covered by sand; savanna in south, rugged hills in northeast | flat with a few hills; scant vegetation |
Total fertility rate | 7.38 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 1.79 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 14.6% (2001 est.) | 0.6% (2003 est.) |
Waterways | 1,800 km (2007) | - |