Form of Government: Republic (currently under a military junta)
Area: 1 248 574 sq km
Population: 20 537 000 inhab. (estimate 2020)
Density: 16.45 inhab./sq km
Coordinates: lat. 25° - 10° N; long. 12° W - 4° E
Capital: Bamako (capital) 2 285 000 inhab. (2016);
Currency: CFA franc (100 centimes)
Human development index: 0.434 (rank: 184)
Interim President: Assimi Goïta, since 28 May 2021
Interim Prime Minister: Choguel Kokalla Maïga (5 June Movement-Rally of Patriotic Forces), since 7 June 2021
National Assembly (dissolved): seats based on the elections of 29 March and 19 April 2020: RPM (Rally for Mali), 51; ADEMA (Alliance for Democracy in Mali), 24; URD (Union for the Republic and Democracy), 19; MPM (Movement for Mali), 10; independents, 2; others, 41
Internet: www.instat-mali.org (Institut National de la Statistique)
Member of AU, ECOWAS, OIC, UN, WTO
Mali

International license plate code RMM
International dialling code 00223
Travel vaccinations requirement yellow fever (required); malaria prophylaxis (recommended)
Electricity (Voltage) 220
Driving side rigth
Internet code .ml
GMT 0
DST not applied
Annual average temperature (°C) Bamako 27.8
Average temperature in January/July (°C) Bamako 25/27
Daily sunshine hours in June/December (average) Bamako 8/8.5
Annual average precipitation (mm) Bamako 976
Days of rainfall (annual average) Bamako 71

On 24 May 2021, Colonel A. Goïta, who led the coup d’etat against President Boubacar Keïta on 18 August 2020, took power after having President Bah Ndaw and Prime Minister Moctar Ouane arrested.
Geography.
Mali is bordered by Algeria to the north, Niger to the east, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire and Guinea to the south, and by Senegal and Mauritania to the west. The terrain is essentially a large plateau which rises to an altitude of 900 m in the south-east. It includes the upper basin of the Senegal and part of the middle and upper basin reaches of the Niger. The northern part stretches along the massifs of the Central Sahara. The climate is principally steppe and desert-like.
Government
Formerly a French colony under the name of French Sudan, Mali became independent on 20 June 1960 (along with Senegal) in the Mali Federation. After the collapse of the union, Mali proclaimed its independence on 22 September 1960. Modibo Keïta’s Third-Worldist presidency (1960-68) was succeeded by the military dictatorship of Moussa Traoré (1968-91); a democratization process began in 1992. On 22 March 2012, a military coup d’état dismissed the government and suspended the Constitution, on the pretext of the tough situation in the north of the country, where the return of militia previously in the pay of Gaddafi’s Libyan regime once more stirred up the Tuareg rebellion (MNLA, National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad), backed by Islamic fundamentalist movements with links to al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (Ansar Dine and MUJAO, Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa), which took control of the northern part of the country. On 11 January 2013, a group of French troops, with forces from Chad and Nigeria, launched a military operation, allowing the swift repossession of most of the occupied land. On 25 April 2013, the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) was instituted, which was also tasked with supervising the correct execution of the presidential elections. Despite the June 2015 peace agreements, attacks by armed groups continue; Sunni fundamentalism has merged with the claims of ethnic minorities (Tuareg and Fulbe), forming, in 2017, the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims, which participated in the violent inter-ethnic clashes between nomadic pastoralists (Fulbe) and farmers (Bambara, Dogon). According to the 1992 Constitution, the President is elected directly for five years, as is the National Assembly (147 members). After the 2020 coup, the Assembly was dissolved and replaced by a National Transitional Council of 121 members.
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
Army | 100 | % | 2015 |
Military expenditure | 2.709 | % of GDP | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
Homicides | 10.9 | per 100 000 pop. | 2015 |
Administrative division
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
Bamako | 2 285 000 | inhab. | 2016 |
Sikasso | 226 618 | inhab. | 2009 |
Population
Population by age and gender (% - 2020) | ||||||||
| ||||||||
MALE | AGE | FEMALE |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
Birth rate | 41.035 | ‰ | 2019 |
Death rate | 9.412 | ‰ | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
Bambara | 34.1 | % | 2012 |
Fulbe | 14.7 | % | 2012 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
Muslim | 94.8 | % | 2009 |
Christian | 2.4 | % | 2009 |
DESCRIPTION |
---|
Arabic |
French (official) |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
0-14 years | 47.7 | % | 2020 |
15-29 years | 25.8 | % | 2020 |
Economy
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
Agricultural prod. index (2004-06=100) | 171.33 | index | 2016 |
Agricultural prod. index (2014-16=100) | 121.06 | index | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
Active population | 7 384 689 | units | 2020 |
Active population, Females | 43.7 | % | 2020 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
Unemployment rate | 7.5 | % | 2020 |
Unemployment rate, Females | 48.2 | % | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
Expenses | 2 531 000 | M LCU | 2019 |
Revenues | 2 235 000 | M LCU | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
agriculture | 62.6 | % | 2019 |
industry | 7.6 | % | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
agriculture | 39.791 | % | 2019 |
industry | 23.236 | % | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
Currency in circulation | 1 069.52 | BN LCU | 2020 |
International reserves | 123.6 | M US$ | 2016 |
Agriculture
The country relies on cotton and gold prices. Economic growth is being threatened by the long-lasting situation of insecurity. Most of the active population is employed in agriculture at a subsistence level (millet, sorghum, maize, rice and sweet potatoes or batata. The main plantation crop is cotton, which is exported to foreign markets. Fishing in inland waters (especially cichlids and clariids) is important from the point of view of feeding the local population. Mali’s forests constitute a precious resource, yielding timber and gum arabic for export. The only minerals being extracted are gold and iron ore but there are also deposits of phosphates, diamonds, manganese and salt. The manufacturing industry is limited: a tractor assembly plant, textile mills, chemical plants and cement works, shoe factories, sugar refineries and a peanut oil plant.
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
arable land | 5.377 | % | 2018 |
forests | 10.897 | % | 2018 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
cereals, total | 10 451.442 | 1000 t | 2019 |
maize | 3 816.536 | 1000 t | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
cassava | 70.312 | 1000 t | 2019 |
potatoes | 303.257 | 1000 t | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
cabbages | 78.294 | 1000 t | 2019 |
carrots and turnips | 15.941 | 1000 t | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
beans, dry | 159.814 | 1000 t | 2019 |
beans, green | 3.433 | 1000 t | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
groundnuts | 368.672 | 1000 t | 2019 |
sesame seed | 51.148 | 1000 t | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
ginger | 17.137 | 1000 t | 2019 |
pepper | 0.023 | 1000 t | 2016 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
sugar beet | 11.632 | 1000 t | 2019 |
sugar cane | 370.028 | 1000 t | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
seed cotton | 710.731 | 1000 t | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
jute | 1.449 | 1000 t | 2014 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
fruits, total | 1 996.758 | 1000 t | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
cashew nuts | 167.621 | 1000 t | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
citrus fruits | 169.489 | 1000 t | 2019 |
grapefruits | 1.257 | 1000 t | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
bananas | 196.421 | 1000 t | 2019 |
dates | 0.67 | 1000 t | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
maize | 1 432.151 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
millet | 1 989.953 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
cassava | 5.905 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
potatoes | 13.459 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
cabbages | 4.188 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
carrots and turnips | 1.093 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
beans, dry | 15.835 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
beans, green | 0.405 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
groundnuts | 452.369 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
sesame seed | 99.527 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
ginger | 1.294 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
tea | 0.108 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
sugar beet | 0.819 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
sugar cane | 5.108 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
seed cotton | 738.193 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
jute | 2.545 | 1000 ha | 2014 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
cashew nuts | 40.009 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
citrus fruits | 9.593 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
grapefruits | 0.112 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
bananas | 8.27 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
dates | 0.091 | 1000 ha | 2019 |
Forests-Livestock-Fishing
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
timber | 6 652 451 | m³ | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
cattle | 12 111.128 | 1000 heads | 2019 |
cattle and buffaloes | 12 111.128 | 1000 heads | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
pigs | 86.182 | 1000 heads | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
sheep | 19 183.5 | 1000 heads | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
goats | 26 486.24 | 1000 heads | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
asses | 1 144.336 | 1000 heads | 2019 |
asses and mules | 1 144.336 | 1000 heads | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
camels | 1 241.093 | 1000 heads | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
birds | 49 618 | 1000 heads | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
honey | 2.015 | 1000 t | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
eggs | 14.904 | 1000 t | 2019 |
hides and skins | 58.97 | 1000 t | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
freshwater fishes | 116 347 | t | 2019 |
total catch | 116 347 | t | 2019 |
Minerals
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
phosphate rock | 20$ | 1000 t | 2013 |
salt | 6$ | 1000 t | 2011 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
gold | 61 000 | kg | 2020 |
semiprecious stones | 10 000 000 | kg | 2011 |
Energy
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
- thermal | 2 083.04 | M kWh | 2018 |
- hydro | 1 363.23 | M kWh | 2018 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
- thermal | 410 | 1000 kW | 2018 |
- hydro | 184 | 1000 kW | 2019 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
total net generation | 3 530.27 | M kWh | 2018 |
total installed capacity | 618.56 | 1000 kW | 2018 |
Industry
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
nitrogen fertilizers | 46.8 | 1000 t | 2017 |
phosphate fertilizers | 14.6 | 1000 t | 2017 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
fabrics - m | 7 054 | 1000 metres | 2012 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
beer of barley | 18$ | 1000 t | 2018 |
cottonseed oil | 61.6 | 1000 t | 2018 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
cigarettes | 975.9 | M units | 2009 |
cigarettes, boxes | 142.3 | 1000 units | 2012 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
other paper | 600 | 1000 t | 2016 |
paper | 600 | 1000 t | 2016 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
cement | 660 | 1000 t | 2018 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
manufacturing production | 1 185.276 | M US$ | 2020 |
Trade
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
food products | 13.094 | % of goods exports | 2017 |
manufactures | 12.761 | % of goods exports | 2017 |
Tourism
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
Expenditures | 255 | M US$ | 2018 |
Number of arrivals | 217 000 | units | 2019 |
Social and welfare
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
Expected years of schooling | 7.461 | years | 2017 |
Gross enrolment ratio, primary - Female | 71.603 | index | 2018 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
Students, primary level | 2 477 081 | units | 2018 |
Students, secondary level | 1 046 493 | units | 2018 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
Hospital beds | 0.12 | per 1000 pop. | 2017 |
Physicians | 0.12 | per 1000 pop. | 2018 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
HIV | 1.2 | % of adults | 2019 |
HIV, total | 0.9 | % | 2001 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
Research and development spending | 0.292 | % of GDP | 2017 |
DESCRIPTION | VALUE | UNITS | YEAR |
---|---|---|---|
Access to clean fuels and technologies for cooking | 0.9 | % | 2019 |
Access to electricity | 48.021 | % | 2019 |