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Geography of Mali

Location:Western Africa, southwest of Algeria
Geographic coordinates:17 00 N, 4 00 W
Map references:Africa
Area:total: 1.24 million sq km
land: 1.22 million sq km
water: 20,000 sq km
Area - comparative:slightly less than twice the size of Texas
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
Coastline:0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims:none (landlocked)
Climate:subtropical to arid; hot and dry (February to June); rainy, humid, and mild (June to November); cool and dry (November to February)
Terrain:mostly flat to rolling northern plains covered by sand; savanna in south, rugged hills in northeast
Elevation extremes:lowest point: Senegal River 23 m
highest point: Hombori Tondo 1,155 m
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
Land use:arable land: 3.76%
permanent crops: 0.03%
other: 96.21% (2005)
Irrigated land:2,360 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards:hot, dust-laden harmattan haze common during dry seasons; recurring droughts; occasional Niger River flooding
Environment - current issues:deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching
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
Geography - note:landlocked; divided into three natural zones: the southern, cultivated Sudanese; the central, semiarid Sahelian; and the northern, arid Saharan

Mali Quickstats

  • Population: 11,995,402 (July 2007 est.)
  • Area: 1.24 million sq km
  • Density: 11 /km² (207th)
  • GDP (total): $14.400 billion (125th)
  • GDP (per capita): $1,154 (166th)
  • Literacy: 46.4%

Languages of Mali

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  • Currency: CFA franc (XOF)
  • Dial code: +223

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