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The
Republic of Mali (former
denominations: a- Soudan Français - French Sudan; b- The Sudanese
Republic) is located in Western Africa, southwest
of Algeria
Total area: 1.24 million sq.
km land: (1.22 million sq. km water: 20,000 sq. km)
Remark:
The Sudanese Republic and Senegal became independent from France
on September 22, 1960 as the "Mali Federation". When Senegal
withdrew from the federation after only a six months period membership, the Sudanese
Republic was renamed Mali.
Independence
from France: September 22, 1960
National holiday:
Anniversary of the Proclamation of the Republic, September 22
Constitution:
adopted 12 January 1992
Capital:
Bamako
Neighboring countries: Algeria over
1,376 km, Burkina Faso over 1,000 km,
Guinea-Conakry over 858 km, Cote
d'Ivoire over 532 km, Mauritania
over 2,237 km, Niger
over 821 km, Senegal over 419 km
Population: 10,685,948 (July 2000); 11,626,219
(July 2003 est.) Population growth rate: 2.98%
(2000); 2.82% (2003 est.)
Natural resources:
gold, phosphates, kaolin, salt, limestone, uranium, hydropower Note: bauxite,
iron ore, manganese, tin, and copper deposits are known but not exploited
Agriculture productions: cotton, millet, rice,
corn, vegetables, peanuts; cattle, sheep, goats
Industrial
productions: minor local consumer goods production and food processing;
construction; phosphate and gold mining
Mali,
which is presently rated among the poorest countries in the world, does have a
resourceful population to reverse the trend if a strategic development scheme
is devised and relentlessly implemented.
Indeed, in spite of having
only 25-35% of its territory - alongside the River Niger's 1,815 km banks and
adjacent 40 million hectares flooding areas - available for cultivation,
Mali's country folk succeeded, year upon year, to producing enough cereals - 3,391,965
metric tons for 2003/ 2004 harvest - millet, rice, corn, peanuts; and a variety
of fruits and vegetables (mangoes, French beans, tomatoes, shallot, gumbo, etc.)
to feed the population. Table below gives a synopsis about cereal production (metric
tons) in Mali:
| CEREALS
PRODUCTION COMPARISON BETWEEN SEVERAL YEARS HARVESTS | | Harvests-Years
| Millet | Sorghum | Corn | Fonio | Rice | Wheat/Barley | Total | | 2003-2004 | 1,122,691 | 760,209 | 529,257 | 17,801 | 967,183 | 11,080 | 3,391,965 | | 2002-2003 | 795,146 | 641,695 | 363,629 | 16,321 | 710,446 | 4,621 | 2,631,858 | | Average
1998/99-2002/03 | 795,866 | 602,665 | 378,595 | 21,619 | 767,838 | 6,370 | 2,573,451 | | 2003/04
compared to 2002/03 (%) | 41 | 18 | 40 | 9 | 36 | 140 | 34 | | 2003/04
compared to the average (%) | 41 | 26 | 35 | -18 | 26 | 61 | 32 | | Source:
Famine Early Warning Systems Network |
This is accomplished without the support of a clear and systematic rural development
scheme.
When such a systematic planning is
in action - in the Cotton sector for example - Mali ends up being one of the top
world producer (571.000 metric tons of cotton produced in
2001-2002 ).
Animal breeding
is also one of the rural activity in which Mali's country folk show their resourcefulness:
In 2003, cattle, sheep and goats number rose to 38 millions, Horse,
donkeys, camels and pigs rose to 1.5 million. Poultry Farming / Fowl Livestock
numbers estimated to be 39 millions in 1998. Fishing employs 310,000 people -
in 2003; 165,000 metric tons of fish were caught and Mali exports fish to Ghana
and Ivory Coast.
And
yet there is no strategic plan to develop and exploit to the limit that potential.
Most of the herders are nomadic people (10% of the population) who
used to wander around with their animals searching for herding pastures. They
sell some cattle from time to time to merchants for exportation to coastal
countries: Ivory Coast, Ghana,
Togo
A much needed systematic
ranching scheme had not been implemented by Mali's political authorities:
| 1-
To feed and fatten the cattle, goats and cheeps.
2- To establish a
reproduction planning.
3- To systematically sell animals after a certain
fattening. period. 90% of goat / sheep selling is done during the month of January
or February - preceding the Muslim's day of Mercy - known throughout sub-Saharan
Africa as the "Tabaski" / Mutton Feast's Day.
4- To
establish a meat processing agribusiness (fresh meat, smoked meat, salted meat.
Etc.) to supply the entire West Africa's region |
Mali has the potential (human
resources and arable lands) to lauching an integrated development scheme to put
the country on the double
digit growth rate path. That is the only way to aleviate rampant poverty and
progressively increase the per capita GNP from the current low level (US 289).
2003's
National Budget lost F CFA 87 billions due
to the political crisis in Ivory Coast. The Ivorian port of Abidjan was the
most direct import / export outlet for Mali. Now Mali is obliged to reroute its
import / export through Lomé (Togo),
Tema (Ghana) and Dakar
(Senegal). No doubt that these long distance trips will increase the selling or
purchasing prices of goods.
There are business opportunities
in all sectors of activities: agribusiness, tourism (there is need for hotels
in Bamako the Capital-City) , low cost housing schemes, city transportation, and
general infrastructure; etc.
On
the political stage the arrival to the presidency on June 8, 2002 of retired army
general Amadou Toumani Touré - ATT - who ruled the country 10 years ago
(for one year) after the demise of the regime of Moussa Traoré - is a positive
sign.
President Touré has a thorough knowledge of the country
social and economical needs. He benefited from a wide range of national political
support to win the presidential ballot. On May 2, 2004 he reshuffled the cabinet
and appointed a new prime Minister (Mr. Ousmane Issoufi Maïga) to boost the
economy.
Click here
for a "Strategic economic development scheme"
Click
here to view a "Community Income Building Power" scheme.
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GNP:
US$ 3.1 billion (2000); 3.25 billion (2001); 3.21
billion (2002); 3.35
billion (2003)
GNP-growth
rate: 5% (1999); 4.8%
(2000); -1.2% (2001); 4.5%
(2002)
GNP-per
capita: US$ 275 (2000);
270 (2001); 289 (2003)
Click
here for the difference between GNP and Parity Purchasing Power
GNP-composition
by sector
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agriculture:
45%
- industry:
17%
- services:
38%
Exports:
US$ 480 million
(f.o.b. 2000); 680 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Commodities:
commodities: cotton
50%, gold, livestock
Exports
- partners: Thailand 13.9%, Italy 9.8%, India 7.7%, Brazil 5.5%, Germany
5%, Spain 4.9%, Portugal 4.3%, Taiwan 4.3% (2002)
Imports:
US$ 575 million
(f.o.b. 2000); 630 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Commodities:
machinery and equipment,
construction materials, petroleum, foodstuffs, textiles
Imports
- partners: Cote
d'Ivoire 17.1%, France 13.5%, Senegal
6.5%, Germany 4% (2002)
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THE REPUBLIC OF MALI - BRIEFS
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