Mali (2007) | Brunei (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | 8 regions (regions, singular - region); Gao, Kayes, Kidal, Koulikoro, Mopti, Segou, Sikasso, Tombouctou | 4 districts (daerah-daerah, singular - daerah); Belait, Brunei and Muara, Temburong, Tutong |
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: 29.6% (male 54,118; female 51,902)
15-64 years: 67.6% (male 128,421; female 113,480) 65 years and over: 2.8% (male 4,804; female 5,373) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, millet, rice, corn, vegetables, peanuts; cattle, sheep, goats | rice, vegetables, fruits, chickens, water buffalo |
Airports | 29 (2007) | 2 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2007) |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
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) |
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
Area | total: 1.24 million sq km
land: 1.22 million sq km water: 20,000 sq km |
total: 5,770 sq km
land: 5,270 sq km water: 500 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Texas | slightly smaller than Delaware |
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. | The Sultanate of Brunei's influence peaked between the 15th and 17th centuries when its control extended over coastal areas of northwest Borneo and the southern Philippines. Brunei subsequently entered a period of decline brought on by internal strife over royal succession, colonial expansion of European powers, and piracy. In 1888, Brunei became a British protectorate; independence was achieved in 1984. The same family has ruled Brunei for over six centuries. Brunei benefits from extensive petroleum and natural gas fields, the source of one of the highest per capita GDPs in the developing world. |
Birth rate | 49.61 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 19.68 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $764 million
expenditures: $828 million (2002 est.) |
revenues: $2.5 billion
expenditures: $2.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.35 billion (1997 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) |
Bandar Seri Begawan |
Climate | subtropical to arid; hot and dry (February to June); rainy, humid, and mild (June to November); cool and dry (November to February) | tropical; hot, humid, rainy |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 161 km |
Constitution | adopted 12 January 1992 | 29 September 1959 (some provisions suspended under a State of Emergency since December 1962, others since independence on 1 January 1984) |
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: Negara Brunei Darussalam
conventional short form: Brunei |
Currency | - | Bruneian dollar (BND) |
Death rate | 16.51 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 3.39 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.8 billion (2002) | $0 |
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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Gene B. CHRISTY
embassy: Third Floor, Teck Guan Plaza, Jalan Sultan, Bandar Seri Begawan mailing address: PSC 470 (BSB), FPO AP 96507 telephone: [673] (2) 229670 FAX: [673] (2) 225293 |
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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Anak Dato Haji PUTEH
chancery: 3520 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 237-1838 FAX: [1] (202) 885-0560 |
Disputes - international | none | Involved in dispute over the Spratly Islands with China, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam; Brunei established an exclusive economic fishing zone encompassing Louisa Reef in southern Spratly Islands in 1984 but makes no public territorial claim to the offshore reefs; claimants in November 2002 signed the "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea", a mechanism to ease tension but which fell short of a legally binding "code of conduct" |
Economic aid - recipient | $691.5 million (2005) | $4.3 million (1995) |
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. | This small, wealthy economy encompasses a mixture of foreign and domestic entrepreneurship, government regulation, welfare measures, and village tradition. Crude oil and natural gas production account for nearly half of GDP. Per capita GDP is far above most other Third World countries, and substantial income from overseas investment supplements income from domestic production. The government provides for all medical services and subsidizes rice and housing. Brunei's leaders are concerned that steadily increased integration in the world economy will undermine internal social cohesion, although it became a more prominent player by serving as chairman for the 2000 APEC (Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation) forum. Plans for the future include upgrading the labor force, reducing unemployment, strengthening the banking and tourist sectors, and, in general, further widening the economic base beyond oil and gas. |
Electricity - consumption | 412.9 million kWh (2005) | 2.322 billion 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) | 2.497 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Senegal River 23 m
highest point: Hombori Tondo 1,155 m |
lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Bukit Pagon 1,850 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching | seasonal smoke/haze resulting from forest fires in Indonesia |
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 |
party to: Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
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% | Malay 67%, Chinese 15%, indigenous 6%, other 12% |
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) | Bruneian dollars per US dollar - 1.79 (2002), 1.79 (2001), 1.72 (2000), 1.69 (1999), 1.67 (1998) |
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: Sultan and Prime Minister Sir HASSANAL Bolkiah (since 5 October 1967); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: Sultan and Prime Minister Sir HASSANAL Bolkiah (since 5 October 1967); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Cabinet Ministers appointed and presided over by the monarch; deals with executive matters; note - there is also a Religious Council (members appointed by the monarch) that advises on religious matters, a Privy Council (members appointed by the monarch) that deals with constitutional matters, and the Council of Succession (members appointed by the monarch) that determines the succession to the throne if the need arises elections: none; the monarch is hereditary |
Exports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | cotton, gold, livestock | crude oil, natural gas, refined products |
Exports - partners | China 35.2%, Thailand 9.3%, Taiwan 6.5%, Bangladesh 5.3%, Australia 5% (2006) | Japan 40.3%, South Korea 12.3%, Thailand 12.1%, Australia 9.2%, US 8.1%, China 6.4%, Singapore 5.7% (2002) |
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 | yellow with two diagonal bands of white (top, almost double width) and black starting from the upper hoist side; the national emblem in red is superimposed at the center; the emblem includes a swallow-tailed flag on top of a winged column within an upturned crescent above a scroll and flanked by two upraised hands |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $6.5 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 45%
industry: 17% services: 38% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 5%
industry: 45% services: 50% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $18,600 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.1% (2006 est.) | 3% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 17 00 N, 4 00 W | 4 30 N, 114 40 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; divided into three natural zones: the southern, cultivated Sudanese; the central, semiarid Sahelian; and the northern, arid Saharan | close to vital sea lanes through South China Sea linking Indian and Pacific Oceans; two parts physically separated by Malaysia; almost an enclave of Malaysia |
Heliports | - | 3 (2002) |
Highways | - | total: 2,525 km
paved: 2,525 km unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.4%
highest 10%: 30.2% (2001) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | drug trafficking and illegally importing controlled substances are serious offenses in Brunei and carry a mandatory death penalty |
Imports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum, machinery and equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs, textiles | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, chemicals |
Imports - partners | France 12.8%, Senegal 12.1%, Cote d'Ivoire 10.4% (2006) | Singapore 30.6%, Japan 21.5%, Malaysia 17.4%, UK 6.1%, Hong Kong 4% (2002) |
Independence | 22 September 1960 (from France) | 1 January 1984 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 5% (2002 est.) |
Industries | food processing; construction; phosphate and gold mining | petroleum, petroleum refining, liquefied natural gas, construction |
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: 13.5 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 17.09 deaths/1,000 live births female: 9.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.5% (2002 est.) | -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 | APEC, ARF, ASEAN, C, ESCAP, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDB, IFRCS, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 2,360 sq km (2003) | 10 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme | Supreme Court (chief justice and judges are sworn in by the monarch for three-year terms) |
Labor force | 3.93 million (2001 est.) | 143,400
note: includes foreign workers and military personnel; temporary residents make up about 40% of labor force (1999 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 80%
industry and services: 20% (2001 est.) |
government 48%, production of oil, natural gas, services, and construction 42%, agriculture, forestry, and fishing 10% (1999 est.) |
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 |
total: 381 km
border countries: Malaysia 381 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.76%
permanent crops: 0.03% other: 96.21% (2005) |
arable land: 0.57%
permanent crops: 0.76% other: 98.67% (1998 est.) |
Languages | French (official), Bambara 80%, numerous African languages | Malay (official), English, Chinese |
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 English common law; for Muslims, Islamic Shari'a law supersedes civil law in a number of areas |
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 Legislative Council or Majlis Masyuarat Megeri (a privy council that serves only in a consultative capacity; NA seats; members appointed by the monarch)
elections: last held in March 1962 note: in 1970 the Council was changed to an appointive body by decree of the monarch; an elected Legislative Council is being considered as part of constitutional reform, but elections are unlikely for several years |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 49.51 years
male: 47.6 years female: 51.46 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 74.3 years
male: 71.9 years female: 76.82 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 46.4% male: 53.5% female: 39.6% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 91.8% male: 94.8% female: 88.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, southwest of Algeria | Southeastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and Malaysia |
Map references | Africa | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM or to median line
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 465,937 GRT/413,393 DWT
ships by type: liquefied gas 8 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: UK 7 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Malian Armed Forces: Army, Republic of Mali Air Force (Force Aerienne de la Republique du Mali, FARM), National Guard (2007) | Land Forces, Navy, Air Force, Royal Brunei Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $329.7 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.9% (2006) | 5% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 110,888 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 63,966 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 3,277 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 22 September (1960) | National Day, 23 February (1984); note - 1 January 1984 was the date of independence from the UK, 23 February 1984 was the date of independence from British protection |
Nationality | noun: Malian(s)
adjective: Malian |
noun: Bruneian(s)
adjective: Bruneian |
Natural hazards | hot, dust-laden harmattan haze common during dry seasons; recurring droughts; occasional Niger River flooding | typhoons, earthquakes, and severe flooding are rare |
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 |
petroleum, natural gas, timber |
Net migration rate | -6.28 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 3.75 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 665 km; oil 439 km (2003) |
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] | Brunei Solidarity National Party or PPKB in Malay [Haji Mohd HATTA bin Haji Zainal Abidin, president]; note - the PPKB is the only legal political party in Brunei; it was registered in 1985 but became largely inactive after 1988; it was revived in 1995 and again in 1998; it has less than 200 registered party members; other parties include Brunei People's Party or PRB (banned in 1962) and Brunei National Democratic Party (registered in May 1965, deregistered by the Brunei Government in 1988) |
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.) | 358,098 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 64% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.681% (2007 est.) | 2% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Bandar Seri Begawan, Kuala Belait, Muara, Seria, Tutong |
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 3, FM 10, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | total: 729 km
narrow gauge: 729 km 1.000-m gauge (2006) |
total: 13 km (private line)
narrow gauge: 13 km 0.610-m gauge (2001 est.) |
Religions | Muslim 90%, Christian 1%, indigenous beliefs 9% | Muslim (official) 67%, Buddhist 13%, Christian 10%, indigenous beliefs and other 10% |
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: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.13 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female total population: 1.1 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | none |
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: service throughout the country is excellent; international service is good to East Asia, Europe, and the US
domestic: every service available international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean); digital submarine cable links to Malaysia, the Philippines, and Singapore (2001) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 82,500 (2006) | 79,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.513 million (2006) | 43,524 (1996) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus repeaters) (2001) | 2 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly flat to rolling northern plains covered by sand; savanna in south, rugged hills in northeast | flat coastal plain rises to mountains in east; hilly lowland in west |
Total fertility rate | 7.38 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 2.37 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 14.6% (2001 est.) | 10% (2001 est.) |
Waterways | 1,800 km (2007) | 209 km; navigable by craft drawing less than 1.2 m |