Mali (2007) | Tonga (2006) | |
Administrative divisions | 8 regions (regions, singular - region); Gao, Kayes, Kidal, Koulikoro, Mopti, Segou, Sikasso, Tombouctou | 3 island groups; Ha'apai, Tongatapu, Vava'u |
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: 35.3% (male 20,679/female 19,843)
15-64 years: 60.5% (male 34,399/female 34,964) 65 years and over: 4.2% (male 2,059/female 2,745) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, millet, rice, corn, vegetables, peanuts; cattle, sheep, goats | squash, coconuts, copra, bananas, vanilla beans, cocoa, coffee, ginger, black pepper; fish |
Airports | 29 (2007) | 6 (2006) |
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 (2006) |
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: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2006) |
Area | total: 1.24 million sq km
land: 1.22 million sq km water: 20,000 sq km |
total: 748 sq km
land: 718 sq km water: 30 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Texas | four 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, 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. | Tonga - unique among Pacific nations - never completely lost its indigenous governance. The archipelagos of "The Friendly Islands" were united into a Polynesian kingdom in 1845. Tonga became a constitutional monarchy in 1875 and a British protectorate in 1900; it withdrew from the protectorate and joined the Commonwealth of Nations in 1970. Tonga remains the only monarchy in the Pacific. |
Birth rate | 49.61 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 25.37 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $764 million
expenditures: $828 million (2002 est.) |
revenues: $56.97 million
expenditures: $83.88 million; including capital expenditures of $1.9 million (FY99/00 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) |
name: Nuku'alofa
geographic coordinates: 21 08 S, 175 12 W time difference: UTC+13 (18 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; modified by trade winds; warm season (December to May), cool season (May to December) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 419 km |
Constitution | adopted 12 January 1992 | 4 November 1875; revised 1 January 1967 |
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: Kingdom of Tonga
conventional short form: Tonga local long form: Pule'anga Tonga local short form: Tonga former: Friendly Islands |
Death rate | 16.51 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 5.28 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.8 billion (2002) | $80.7 million (2004) |
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 Tonga; the ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tonga |
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 Fekitamoeloa 'UTOIKAMANU
chancery: 250 East 51st Street, New York, NY 10022 telephone: [1] (917) 369-1025 FAX: [1] (917) 369-1024 consulate(s) general: San Francisco |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $691.5 million (2005) | $19.3 million Australia $5.5 million, New Zealand $2.3 million (FY01/02) |
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. | Tonga, a small, open, South Pacific island economy, has a narrow export base in agricultural goods. Squash, coconuts, bananas, and vanilla beans are the main crops, and agricultural exports make up two-thirds of total exports. The country must import a high proportion of its food, mainly from New Zealand. The country remains dependent on external aid and remittances from Tongan communities overseas to offset its trade deficit. Tourism is the second-largest source of hard currency earnings following remittances. The government is emphasizing the development of the private sector, especially the encouragement of investment, and is committing increased funds for health and education. Tonga has a reasonably sound basic infrastructure and well-developed social services. High unemployment among the young, a continuing upturn in inflation, pressures for democratic reform, and rising civil service expenditures are major issues facing the government. |
Electricity - consumption | 412.9 million kWh (2005) | 31.62 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh; note - recent hydropower developments may be providing electricity to Senegal and Mauritania (2005) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 444 million kWh (2005) | 34 million kWh (2003) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Senegal River 23 m
highest point: Hombori Tondo 1,155 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Kao Island 1,033 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching | deforestation results as more and more land is being cleared for agriculture and settlement; some damage to coral reefs from starfish and indiscriminate coral and shell collectors; overhunting threatens native sea turtle populations |
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: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, 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% | Polynesian, Europeans |
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) | pa'anga per US dollar - 1.96 (2005), 1.9716 (2004), 2.142 (2003), 2.1952 (2002), 2.1236 (2001) |
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: King George TUPOU V (since 11 September 2006)
head of government: Prime Minister Dr. Feleti SEVELE (since 11 February 2006); Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Viliami TANGI (since 16 May 2006) cabinet: Cabinet currently consists of 14 members, 10 appointed by the monarch for life; 4 appointed from among the elected members of the Legislative Assembly, including 2 each from the nobles and peoples representatives serving three year terms note: there is also a Privy Council that consists of the monarch, the cabinet, and two governors elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the monarch |
Exports | NA bbl/day | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | cotton, gold, livestock | squash, fish, vanilla beans, root crops |
Exports - partners | China 35.2%, Thailand 9.3%, Taiwan 6.5%, Bangladesh 5.3%, Australia 5% (2006) | Japan 41.5%, US 33.1%, NZ 6.3% (2005) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), yellow, and red; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia | red with a bold red cross on a white rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 45%
industry: 17% services: 38% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 23%
industry: 27% services: 50% (FY03/04 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.1% (2006 est.) | 2.4% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 17 00 N, 4 00 W | 20 00 S, 175 00 W |
Geography - note | landlocked; divided into three natural zones: the southern, cultivated Sudanese; the central, semiarid Sahelian; and the northern, arid Saharan | archipelago of 169 islands (36 inhabited) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.4%
highest 10%: 30.2% (2001) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | NA bbl/day | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | petroleum, machinery and equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs, textiles | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, fuels, chemicals |
Imports - partners | France 12.8%, Senegal 12.1%, Cote d'Ivoire 10.4% (2006) | NZ 33.4%, Fiji 26.7%, Australia 10.5%, US 8.4% (2005) |
Independence | 22 September 1960 (from France) | 4 June 1970 (from UK protectorate) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 1% (2003 est.) |
Industries | food processing; construction; phosphate and gold mining | tourism, fishing |
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: 12.3 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.63 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.91 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.5% (2002 est.) | 11.1% (2005 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 | ACP, AsDB, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) |
Irrigated land | 2,360 sq km (2003) | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal (Chief Justice and high court justices from overseas chosen and approved by Privy Council) |
Labor force | 3.93 million (2001 est.) | 33,910 (2003) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 80%
industry and services: 20% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 65%
industry and services: 35% (1997 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 |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.76%
permanent crops: 0.03% other: 96.21% (2005) |
arable land: 20%
permanent crops: 14.67% other: 65.33% (2005) |
Languages | French (official), Bambara 80%, numerous African languages | Tongan, English |
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 law |
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 Assembly or Fale Alea (32 seats - 14 reserved for cabinet ministers sitting ex officio, 9 for nobles selected by the country's 33 nobles, and 9 elected by popular vote; members serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 21 March 2005 (next to be held in 2008) election results: Peoples Representatives: percent of vote - HRDMT 70%; seats - HRDMT 7, independents 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 49.51 years
male: 47.6 years female: 51.46 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 69.82 years
male: 67.32 years female: 72.45 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 46.4% male: 53.5% female: 39.6% (2003 est.) |
definition: can read and write Tongan and/or English
total population: 98.9% male: 98.8% female: 99% (1999 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, southwest of Algeria | Oceania, archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand |
Map references | Africa | Oceania |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
Merchant marine | - | total: 16 ships (1000 GRT or over) 62,185 GRT/72,960 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 10, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 1 foreign-owned: 4 (Australia 1, Norway 1, Switzerland 1, UK 1) (2006) |
Military branches | Malian Armed Forces: Army, Republic of Mali Air Force (Force Aerienne de la Republique du Mali, FARM), National Guard (2007) | Tonga Defense Services: Land Force (Royal Guard), Naval Force (includes Royal Marines, Air Wing) (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.9% (2006) | NA |
National holiday | Independence Day, 22 September (1960) | Emancipation Day, 4 June (1970) |
Nationality | noun: Malian(s)
adjective: Malian |
noun: Tongan(s)
adjective: Tongan |
Natural hazards | hot, dust-laden harmattan haze common during dry seasons; recurring droughts; occasional Niger River flooding | cyclones (October to April); earthquakes and volcanic activity on Fonuafo'ou |
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 |
fish, fertile soil |
Net migration rate | -6.28 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 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] | People's Democratic Party [Tesina FUKO] |
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 | Human Rights and Democracy Movement Tonga or HRDMT [Rev. Simote VEA, chairman]; Public Servant's Association [Finau TUTONE] |
Population | 11,995,402 (July 2007 est.) | 114,689 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 64% (2001 est.) | 24% NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.681% (2007 est.) | 2.01% (2006 est.) |
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 1, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2004) |
Railways | total: 729 km
narrow gauge: 729 km 1.000-m gauge (2006) |
- |
Religions | Muslim 90%, Christian 1%, indigenous beliefs 9% | Christian (Free Wesleyan Church claims over 30,000 adherents) |
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: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 21 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: competition between Tonga Telecommunications Corporation (TCC) and Shoreline Communications Tonga (SCT) is accelerating expansion of telecommunications; SCT recently granted authority to develop high-speed digital service for telephone, Internet, and television
domestic: fully automatic switched network international: country code - 676; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) (2004) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 82,500 (2006) | 11,200 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.513 million (2006) | 16,400 (2004) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus repeaters) (2001) | 3 (2004) |
Terrain | mostly flat to rolling northern plains covered by sand; savanna in south, rugged hills in northeast | most islands have limestone base formed from uplifted coral formation; others have limestone overlying volcanic base |
Total fertility rate | 7.38 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 3 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 14.6% (2001 est.) | 13% (FY03/04 est.) |
Waterways | 1,800 km (2007) | - |