Mali
Mali is a landlocked country in West Africa. To the north is Algeria, toi the west Niger, to the south Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast, to the west Guinea and to the North west Mauritania.
Total Area:1.24 million sq km
Land Borders: Algeria, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Cote d'Ivoire, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal
Population: 11,716,829
Life Expectancy: 49 years
HIV % Total Poulation:1.9%
Ethnic Groups: Mande 50% (Bambara, Malinke, Soninke), Peul 17%, Voltaic 12%, Songhai 6%, Tuareg and Moor 10%, other 5%
Languages:French (official), Bambara 80%, numerous African languages
President:Amadou Toumani TOURE
GDP - Per Capita: $1,200
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