MALI. Republic of Mali
A landlocked country in West Africa. Area - 1,240,000 km². Capital - Bamako (over 1 million), other major cities: Mopti, Gao, Timbuktu, Koulikoro, Segou. Administrative division - Bamako district and 8 regions, 701 communes. Population - approximately 12 million, ethnic groups: Bambara (2.5 million), Senoufo (1 million), Soninke (600 thousand), Songhai (500 thousand), Malinke (500 thousand), Tuareg and Moor tribes account for 5% of the population, Fulbe - 10%. Official language - French. Religion: 90% of the population practices Islam, 2% - Christianity, the rest adhere to traditional beliefs. Currency - CFA franc (African Financial Community), which has a fixed exchange rate against the euro (1000 CFA francs correspond to 1.52 euros).
It has diplomatic relations with the Russian Federation (established with the USSR on December 14, 1960).
National holiday - September 22 - Independence Day (1960).
Mali, according to the constitution of January 12, 1992, is a presidential republic, the head of which is elected by popular vote in 2 rounds for no more than two terms of 5 years (since June 2002 - Amadou Toumani Touré). The president appoints the prime minister (since April 2004 - O. I. Maiga) and, upon his proposal, other members of the government. Legislative power is exercised by a unicameral National Assembly consisting of 147 deputies, elected for 5 years during general elections (held in August 2002). The chairman of the parliament is I. B. Keita, leader of the "Hope-2002" bloc, head of the United for Mali party (46 deputy seats).
There are more than 90 political parties and associations in the country. Among the largest are: "Alliance for Democracy in Mali - African Party for Solidarity and Justice" (APSS - ADEMA), Union for the Republic and Democracy (URD). Practically all political forces express support for President A. T. Touré, creating a so-called system of "non-oppositional democracy".
There are 2 trade union centers in the country: the National Union of Workers of Mali and the Social Coalition of Workers of Mali, several women's, youth, and religious organizations, including the Supreme Islamic Council.
The first mentions of statehood on the territory of Mali date back to the 3rd century AD. From this time until the 19th century, several African empires were created and then disappeared here. One of the oldest among them was the Ghana Empire. In the Muslim world, it was known as the "land of gold." The Mali Empire was formed approximately in the mid-11th century. In the 13th century, at the height of its prosperity, it occupied territory from Gao to Tekrur (in modern Senegal) and was one of the main world suppliers of gold. The most famous ruler of Mali was Mansa (chief, king) Musa, who ruled from 1307 to 1332, leaving behind a powerful empire that encompassed the southern part of the Sahara and the northern part of the Niger River basin. The decline of the Mali Empire refers to the late 14th-15th centuries when the leading role in the region began to pass to the Songhai Empire with its capital in Gao. In the late 16th century, Songhai was nominally included in the Moroccan pashalik (province) of Timbuktu, which by the late 18th century had broken up into several small states.
Mali was colonized by France at the turn of the 19th-20th centuries, receiving the name French Sudan, and was part of French West Africa. In 1958, the country gained the status of an autonomous Sudanese Republic within the French Community. In April 1959, it united with Senegal to form the Federation of Mali, which gained independence on June 20, 1960. Two months later, Senegal left the Federation, and on September 22, the Republic of Mali was proclaimed. President Modibo Keita (a prominent political and public figure in Africa, one of the founders of the Organization of African Unity) severed ties with the former metropolis and established close relations with the USSR and other socialist countries. The ruling party, the Sudanese Union - African Democratic Assembly (founded in 1946), played an important role in the struggle to strengthen the independence of the Malian people. In 1966, M. Keita was elected president of the First Republic.
In November 1968, in the context of a severe economic and social crisis in Mali, a coup d'état occurred, resulting in the rise to power of the Military Committee for National Liberation led by M. Traoré. In 1969, he was elected president of the Second Republic (1968-1991). These years were marked by authoritarian methods of governance, with only one political party - the Democratic Union of the Malian People - operating in the country. Since the mid-1980s, the ruling regime has taken a course towards structural restructuring of the economy, interaction with France and the IMF, and creating conditions for reviving the private sector.
On March 26, 1991, a second military coup occurred in Mali. The leader of the military, Colonel A. T. Touré, announced a "transitional period," during which the task was to prepare and conduct free democratic elections on a multiparty basis.
In the presidential elections in June 1992, the leader of the APSS - ADEMA movement, school teacher A. U. Konaré, won, becoming president of the Third Republic and proclaiming a course towards creating a legal democratic state and a liberal market economy in Mali. In May 1997, A. U. Konaré was re-elected president for a second term.
As a result of the 2002 elections, the new president of the country became the former leader of the "transitional period," General Amadou Toumani Touré.
Mali is a member of the UN (since 1960), the Non-Aligned Movement, the African Union, the OIC, the International Organization of La Francophonie, the Community of Sahelo-Saharan States, the West African Economic and Monetary Union, ECOWAS, and others.
Mali is classified as one of the least developed countries in the world, ranking 174th out of 177 countries according to UNDP (2004). The income per capita is $440 per year. GDP growth rates are 2-6% (depending on weather conditions), and inflation decreased by 5% in 2003-2004. Approximately 60% of the population lives below the poverty line. About 70% of adults are illiterate. Only one in three school-age children attends school, although education is free and officially mandatory for 9 years. Half of the working-age population is engaged in the so-called informal economy.
Mali is an agrarian country. About 75% of the population is engaged in agriculture. The country holds leading positions in Africa for cotton production (575 thousand tons in 2004) and exports peanuts and tropical fruits. Livestock ranks third in exports. Mali has 7.9 million head of cattle, 17 million goats and sheep, 70 thousand pigs, and 25 million poultry. The catch of river fish reaches 120 thousand tons. The share of agriculture, livestock, forestry, and fishing in the total GDP is 43%; industry, construction, and energy - 18.6%; trade and services - 38.4%.
The leading sectors of industry are processing and mining. Cotton and peanut oil are produced, and cotton fiber is processed. Mali ranks third in Africa in gold production (45-55 tons per year). There are deposits of bauxite, phosphates, iron ore, manganese, rare earth metals, oil, and gas. More than 200 million kWh of electricity is generated annually.
Railway: there is a section (642 km) connecting Bamako with Dakar (Senegal). The total length of roads is 20 thousand km, including 3 thousand km of paved roads. An important transport artery is the Niger River (navigable during the rainy season from July to late December). Bamako International Airport serves regular flights to Paris and the capitals of North and West African countries. Domestic air traffic is maintained with all regional centers, and there are also about 40 small airfields.
The volume of external financial assistance is about $200 million per year. External debt reaches $3.5 billion. The main creditors are the IMF, the World Bank, and the African Development Bank. Up to 30% of export revenues are spent on debt servicing.
Mali maintains the most active trade and economic relations with France and other EU countries, China, Japan, the USA, Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal, and Guinea.
In Bamako, several periodicals are published in French. The Malian Agency for Press and Advertising (AMAP) operates, and the Malian Radio and Television Service (ORTM) broadcasts programs in French, English, and mainly in the national languages. Some commercial radio stations are also operating.
