Mali Military 2022, CIA World Factbook

Malian Armed Forces (Forces Armées Maliennes or FAMA): Army (includes a riverine patrol force), Republic of Mali Air Force; National Gendarmerie; National Guard (2022)

note 1: the Gendarmerie and the National Guard are under the authority of the Ministry of Defense and Veterans Affairs (Ministere De La Defense Et Des Anciens Combattants, MDAC), but operational control is shared with the Ministry of Internal Security and Civil Protection

note 2: the Gendarmerie's primary mission is internal security and public order; its duties also include territorial defense, humanitarian operations, intelligence gathering, and protecting private property, mainly in rural areas; it also has a specialized border security unit

note 3: the National Guard is a military force responsible for providing security to government facilities and institutions, prison service, public order, humanitarian operations, some border security, and intelligence gathering; its forces include a camel corps for patrolling the deserts and borders of northern Mali

note 4: there are also pro-government militias operating in Mali, such as the Imghad Tuareg Self-Defense Group and Allies (GATIA); the leader of GATIA is also a general in the national army

Military expenditures

3.5% of GDP (2021 est.)

3.4% of GDP (2020 est.)

3.1% of GDP (2019 est.) (approximately $630 million)

3.1% of GDP (2018 est.) (approximately $600 million)

3.2% of GDP (2017 est.) (approximately $600 million)

Military and security service personnel strengths

information varies; approximately 20,000 active FAMA personnel (includes up to 2,000 Air Force); approximately 5,000 Gendarmerie; approximately 10,000 National Guard (2022)

Military equipment inventories and acquisitions

the FAMA's inventory consists primarily of Soviet-era equipment, although in recent years it has received limited quantities of mostly second-hand armaments from more than a dozen countries, including Russia (2022)

Military service age and obligation

18 years of age for men and women for selective compulsory and voluntary military service; 2-year conscript service obligation (2022)

Military deployments

note: until announcing its withdrawal in May of 2022, Mali was part of a five-nation anti-jihadist task force known as the G5 Sahel Group, set up in 2014 with Burkina Faso, Chad, Mauritania, and Niger; Mali had committed 1,100 troops and 200 gendarmes to the force

Military - note

prior to the coup in August 2020 and military takeover in May 2021, the Malian military had intervened in the political arena at least five times since the country gained independence in 1960; two attempts failed (1976 and 1978), while three succeeded in overturning civilian rule (1968, 1991, and 2012); the military collapsed in 2012 during the fighting against Tuareg rebels and Islamic militants; it has been since rebuilt, but continues to have limited capabilities and is heavily reliant on external assistance

as of 2022, Malian security forces were actively engaged in operations against several insurgent terrorist groups affiliated with al-Qa'ida and the Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS), as well as other rebel groups, communal militias, and criminal bands spread across the central, northern, and southern regions of the country; the government was reportedly in control of only an estimated 10-20% of the country's central and northern territories, and terror attacks were increasing in the more heavily populated south, including around the capital Bamako; the Macina Liberation Front (FLM), part of the Jama’at Nusrat al Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM) coalition of al-Qa'ida-linked terror groups, has played a large role in a surge in violence in Mali’s central and southern regions; in the north, the Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham in the Greater Sahara (ISIS-GS) has been able to reassert itself in 2022

the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) has operated in the country since 2013; the Mission's responsibilities include providing security, rebuilding Malian security forces, protecting civilians, supporting national political dialogue, and assisting in the reestablishment of Malian government authority; as of mid-2022, MINUSMA had around 15,000 personnel deployed; in June 2022, the UN extended its mission another 12 months

the European Union Training Mission in Mali (EUTM-M) and the French military (under a separate, bi-lateral mission) have also operated in the country since 2013; the EUTM-M provides advice and training to the Malian Armed Forces and military assistance to the G5 Sahel Joint Force; as of May 2022, the mission included about 1,100 personnel from more than 20 European countries; in April of 2022, the EU said it would suspend its training program in Mali, citing issues with the ruling military government, including human rights abuses and the presence of Russian private military contractors; in August 2022, France completed withdrawing the last of its forces from Mali, also citing obstructions from the military government; prior to the withdrawal, more than 2,000 French troops had provided military assistance and conducted counter-terrorism/counter-insurgency operations

in December 2021, the Malian military government contracted with a Russian private military company to provide training for local armed forces and security to senior Malian officials; as of mid-2022, there were an estimated 1,000 Russian military contractors in Mali (2022)

NOTE: The information regarding Mali on this page is re-published from the 2022 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Mali 2022 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Mali 2022 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.