Mali (2008) | Grenada (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | 8 regions (regions, singular - region); Gao, Kayes, Kidal, Koulikoro, Mopti, Segou, Sikasso, Tombouctou | 6 parishes and 1 dependency*; Carriacou and Petite Martinique*, Saint Andrew, Saint David, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick |
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: 32.8% (male 14,876/female 14,641)
15-64 years: 64.1% (male 30,522/female 27,137) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 1,353/female 1,442) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, millet, rice, corn, vegetables, peanuts; cattle, sheep, goats | bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, mace, citrus, avocados, root crops, sugarcane, corn, vegetables |
Airports | 29 (2007) | 3 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 (2007) |
total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
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: 344 sq km
land: 344 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Texas | twice 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 military coup - led by the current president Amadou TOURE - enabling Mali's emergence as one of the strongest democracies on the continent. 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, who was subsequently elected to a second term in 2007. The elections were widely judged to be free and fair. | Carib Indians inhabited Grenada when COLUMBUS discovered the island in 1498, but it remained uncolonized for more than a century. The French settled Grenada in the 17th century, established sugar estates, and imported large numbers of African slaves. Britain took the island in 1762 and vigorously expanded sugar production. In the 19th century, cacao eventually surpassed sugar as the main export crop; in the 20th century, nutmeg became the leading export. In 1967, Britain gave Grenada autonomy over its internal affairs. Full independence was attained in 1974, making Grenada one of the smallest independent countries in the Western Hemisphere. Grenada was seized by a Marxist military council on 19 October 1983. Six days later the island was invaded by US forces and those of six other Caribbean nations, which quickly captured the ringleaders and their hundreds of Cuban advisers. Free elections were reinstituted the following year and have continued since that time. Hurricane Ivan struck Grenada in September of 2004 causing severe damage. |
Birth rate | 49.61 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 21.87 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $764 million
expenditures: $828 million (2002 est.) |
revenues: $85.8 million
expenditures: $102.1 million (1997) |
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: Saint George's
geographic coordinates: 12 03 N, 61 45 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) | tropical; tempered by northeast trade winds |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 121 km |
Constitution | adopted 12 January 1992 | 19 December 1973 |
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: Grenada |
Death rate | 16.51 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 6.61 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.8 billion (2002) | $347 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 |
chief of mission: the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Grenada
embassy: Lance-aux-Epines Stretch, Saint George's mailing address: P. O. Box 54, Saint George's telephone: [1] (473) 444-1173 through 1177 FAX: [1] (473) 444-4820 |
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 Denis G. ANTOINE
chancery: 1701 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 265-2561 FAX: [1] (202) 265-2468 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $691.5 million (2005) | $44.87 million (2005) |
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 5% average in 1996-2007. Worker remittances and external trade routes for the landlocked country have been jeopardized by continued unrest in neighboring Cote d'Ivoire. | Grenada relies on tourism as its main source of foreign exchange, especially since the construction of an international airport in 1985. Strong performances in construction and manufacturing, together with the development of an offshore financial industry, have also contributed to growth in national output. Grenada has rebounded from the devastating effects of Hurricanes Ivan (2004) and Emily (2005), but is now saddled with the debt burden from the rebuilding process. The agricultural sector, particularly nutmeg and cocoa cultivation, has gradually recovered, and the tourism sector has seen substantial increases in foreign direct investment as the regional share of the tourism market increases. |
Electricity - consumption | 412.9 million kWh (2005) | 139.5 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh; note - recent hydropower developments may be providing electricity to Senegal and Mauritania (2005) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 444 million kWh (2005) | 150 million kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Senegal River 23 m
highest point: Hombori Tondo 1,155 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Saint Catherine 840 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 |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, 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% | black 82%, mixed black and European 13%, European and East Indian 5%, and trace of Arawak/Carib Amerindian |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 493.51 (2007), 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003) | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - NA (2007), 2.7 (2006), 2.7 (2005), 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003) |
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 ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Daniel WILLIAMS (since 9 August 1996)
head of government: Prime Minister Keith MITCHELL (since 22 June 1995) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general |
Exports | 0 bbl/day (2004) | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | cotton, gold, livestock | bananas, cocoa, nutmeg, fruit and vegetables, clothing, mace |
Exports - partners | China 26.8%, Germany 24.9%, Thailand 7.1%, Taiwan 4.9%, Bangladesh 4% (2006) | Saint Lucia 18.8%, Antigua and Barbuda 12.8%, Saint Kitts & Nevis 11.5%, Dominica 11.4%, US 11.4% (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 | a rectangle divided diagonally into yellow triangles (top and bottom) and green triangles (hoist side and outer side), with a red border around the flag; there are seven yellow, five-pointed stars with three centered in the top red border, three centered in the bottom red border, and one on a red disk superimposed at the center of the flag; there is also a symbolic nutmeg pod on the hoist-side triangle (Grenada is the world's second-largest producer of nutmeg, after Indonesia); the seven stars represent the seven administrative divisions |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 45%
industry: 17% services: 38% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 5.4%
industry: 18% services: 76.6% (2003) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.3% (2007 est.) | 0.9% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 17 00 N, 4 00 W | 12 07 N, 61 40 W |
Geography - note | landlocked; divided into three natural zones: the southern, cultivated Sudanese; the central, semiarid Sahelian; and the northern, arid Saharan | the administration of the islands of the Grenadines group is divided between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.4%
highest 10%: 30.2% (2001) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | small-scale cannabis cultivation; lesser transshipment point for marijuana and cocaine to US |
Imports | 4,369 bbl/day (2004) | 1,776 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum, machinery and equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs, textiles | food, manufactured goods, machinery, chemicals, fuel |
Imports - partners | France 12.8%, Senegal 12.2%, Cote d'Ivoire 10.5% (2006) | Trinidad and Tobago 33.7%, US 24.2%, UK 4.3% (2006) |
Independence | 22 September 1960 (from France) | 7 February 1974 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 0.7% (1997 est.) |
Industries | food processing; construction; phosphate and gold mining | food and beverages, textiles, light assembly operations, tourism, 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: 13.92 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.57 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.27 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.5% (2002 est.) | 3% (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, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 2,360 sq km (2003) | NA |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of a court of Appeal and a High Court of Justice (a High Court judge is assigned to and resides in Grenada) |
Labor force | 3.93 million (2001 est.) | 42,300 (1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 80%
industry and services: 20% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: 24%
industry: 14% services: 62% (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 |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.76%
permanent crops: 0.03% other: 96.21% (2005) |
arable land: 5.88%
permanent crops: 29.41% other: 64.71% (2005) |
Languages | French (official), Bambara 80%, numerous African languages | English (official), French patois |
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 |
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 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (13 seats, 10 appointed by the government and 3 by the leader of the opposition) and the House of Representatives (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held on 27 November 2003 (next to be held by early 2009) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NNP 46.6%, NDC 44.1%, other 9.3%; seats by party - NNP 8, NDC 7 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 49.51 years
male: 47.6 years female: 51.46 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 65.21 years
male: 63.38 years female: 67.05 years (2007 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: 96% male: NA% female: NA% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, southwest of Algeria | Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean, north of Trinidad and Tobago |
Map references | Africa | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Military branches | Malian Armed Forces: Army, Republic of Mali Air Force (Force Aerienne de la Republique du Mali, FARM), National Guard (2007) | no regular military forces; Royal Grenada Police Force (includes Coast Guard) (2007) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.9% (2006) | NA |
National holiday | Independence Day, 22 September (1960) | Independence Day, 7 February (1974) |
Nationality | noun: Malian(s)
adjective: Malian |
noun: Grenadian(s)
adjective: Grenadian |
Natural hazards | hot, dust-laden harmattan haze common during dry seasons; recurring droughts; occasional Niger River flooding | lies on edge of hurricane belt; hurricane season lasts from June to November |
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 |
timber, tropical fruit, deepwater harbors |
Net migration rate | -6.28 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -11.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Alliance for Democratic Change (political group comprised mainly of Tuareg from Mali's northern region); 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] | Grenada United Labor Party or GULP [Gloria Payne BANFIELD]; National Democratic Congress or NDC [Tillman THOMAS]; New National Party or NNP [Keith MITCHELL] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | NA |
Population | 11,995,402 (July 2007 est.) | 89,971 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 64% (2001 est.) | 32% (2000) |
Population growth rate | 2.681% (2007 est.) | 0.336% (2007 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 230 (27 regional and government stations, and 203 private stations), shortwave 1 (2001) | AM 2, FM 13, 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 53%, Anglican 13.8%, other Protestant 33.2% |
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 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.016 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.125 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.938 male(s)/female total population: 1.082 male(s)/female (2007 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: fixed-line availability is gradually increasing, but subscribership remains less than 1 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular subscribership has increased sharply to 13 per 100 persons international: country code - 223; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean, 1 Indian Ocean) |
general assessment: automatic, islandwide telephone system
domestic: interisland VHF and UHF radiotelephone links international: country code - 1-473; landing point for the East Caribbean Fiber Optic System (ECFS) submarine cable with links to 13 other islands in the eastern Caribbean extending from the British Virgin Islands to Trinidad; SHF radiotelephone links to Trinidad and Tobago and Saint Vincent; VHF and UHF radio links to Trinidad |
Telephones - main lines in use | 82,500 (2006) | 27,700 (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.513 million (2006) | 46,200 (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (plus repeaters) (2007) | 2 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly flat to rolling northern plains covered by sand; savanna in south, rugged hills in northeast | volcanic in origin with central mountains |
Total fertility rate | 7.38 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 2.3 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 14.6% (2001 est.) | 12.5% (2000) |
Waterways | 1,800 km (2007) | - |