(Redirected from
Sudanese Republic)
République du Mali
Republic of Mali
|
|
| Motto: One people, one goal, one faith (French: Un peuple, un but, une foi) |
| Anthem: Pour l'Afrique et pour toi, Mali (English: For Africa and for you, Mali) |
 |
| Capital |
Bamako
12°39′ N 8°0′ W |
| Largest city |
Bamako |
| Official language(s) |
French |
| Government
|
Parliamentary democracy
Amadou Toumani Touré
Ousmane Issoufi Maïga |
Independence
Declared |
From France
September 22, 1960 |
Area
• Total
• Water (%) |
1,240,000 km² (24th)
1.6% |
Population
• 2005 est.
• [[As of |]] census
• Density |
12,291,529 (67th)
9/km² (174th)
|
GDP (PPP)
• Total
• Per capita |
2004 estimate
$12,485,000,000 (129th)
$1,024 (176th) |
| HDI (2003) |
0.333 (174th) – low |
| Currency |
CFA franc (XOF) |
Time zone
• Summer (DST) |
(UTC0)
(UTC+1) |
| Internet TLD |
.ml |
| Calling code |
+223 |
|
- See also the Empire of Mali and the town of Mali, Guinea.
The Republic of Mali (République du Mali) is a landlocked nation in West Africa. It is the second largest country among West African nations. It borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its straight borders on the north stretch into the centre of the Sahara desert, while the country's south, where the majority of inhabitants live, features the Niger and Senegal rivers. Formerly French Sudan, the country is named after the Empire of Mali.
History
Main article: History of Mali
The Mandé peoples settled the Sahel (including present-day Mali), and formed a succession of Sahelian kingdoms, including the Ghana Empire, the Mali Empire, and the Songhai Empire. Timbuktu was a key city in these empires as an outpost for trans-Saharan trade and a center for scholarship. The Songhai Empire declined under a Moroccan invasion in 1591.
Mali was invaded by France starting in 1880, which annexed it as an overseas department of France. The colony, which at times also included neighbouring countries, was known as French Sudan or the Sudanese Republic. In early 1959, the union of Mali and Senegal became the Mali Federation, which gained independence from France on June 20, 1960. Senegal withdrew from the Mali Federation after a few months. The Republic of Mali, under Modibo Keïta, withdrew from the French Community on September 22, 1960.
Mali was ruled by a series of dictators from independence until 1991. Anti-government protests in 1991 led to a coup, a transitional government, and a new constitution. In 1992, Alpha Oumar Konaré won Mali's first democratic, multi-party presidential election. Upon his reelection in 1997, President Konaré pushed through political and economic reforms and fought corruption. In 2002 he was succeeded in democratic elections by Amadou Toumani Touré, a retired General, who had been the leader of the military aspect of 1991 democratic uprising.
Politics
Main Article: Politics of Mali
Administrative Divisions
Main Articles: Regions of Mali, Cercles of Mali
Mali is divided into 8 regions (régions) and 1 district. It is subdivided into 49 cercles and further subdivided into 288 arrondissements.
The regions include:
Cercles: see Cercles of Mali
Geography
Main article: Geography of Mali
Mali is landlocked and has a subtropical to arid climate. It is mostly flat, rising to rolling northern plains covered by sand, with savanna around the Niger River in the south. The hills of the Air Massif and Djado Plateau lie in the northeast. Most of the country lies in the Sahara Desert, which produces a hot, dust-laden harmattan haze common during dry seasons and leads to recurring droughts. The nation has considerable natural resources, with gold, uranium, phosphates, kaolin, salt and limestone being most widely exploited.
See List of cities in Mali
Economy
Mosque under construction in Bamako
Main article: Economy of Mali
Mali is among the poorest countries in the world, with 65% of its land area desert or semidesert. Economic activity is largely confined to the riverine area irrigated by the Niger River. 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. In 1997, the government 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 African franc in January 1994, has pushed up economic growth. Several multinational corporations increased gold mining operations in 1996-1998, and the government anticipates that Mali will become a major Sub-Saharan gold exporter in the next few years.
Demographics
Main article: Demographics of Mali
Mali's population consists of diverse Sub-Saharan ethnic groups, sharing similar historic, cultural, and religious traditions. Exceptions are the Tuaregs and Maurs, desert nomads, related to the North African Berbers. The Tuaregs traditionally have opposed the central government. Starting in June 1990,in the North by Tuaregs seeking greater autonomy led to clashes with the military. In April 1992, the government and most opposing factions signed a pact to end the fighting and restore stability in the north. Its major aims are to allow greater autonomy to the north and increase government resource allocation to what has been a traditionally impoverished region. The peace agreement was celebrated in 1996 in Timbuktu during an official and highly publicized ceremony called "Flamme de la Paix"--(peace flame).
Culture
Main article: Culture of Mali
Approximately 90% of the Malians follow Sunni Islam, but not always to the exclusion of traditional religious beliefs and practices. The Muslims have their own educational systems, leading in some cases to the equivalent of baccalaureate and doctoral studies. An increasingly large number of Muslims make the pilgrimage to Mecca and study in Arab countries. Christians comprise about 5% of the population. Under French colonial rule the introduction of missionaries into predominantly Islamic areas was discouraged.
Literacy in French, the official language, is low and is concentrated in the urban areas. The government has expanded literacy considerably since 1960 by stressing education at the primary and lower secondary levels. A national university was established in Bamako in the 1990s.
Miscellaneous topics
External links
Government
News
Overviews
Directories
Music
Tourism
The content of this page is retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sudanese_Republic under GFDL
