Mali Geography - 2024

Location

interior Western Africa, southwest of Algeria, north of Guinea, Cote d'Ivoire, and Burkina Faso, west of Niger

Geographic coordinates

17 00 N, 4 00 W

Map references

Africa

Area

total: 1,240,192 sq km

land: 1,220,190 sq km

water: 20,002 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly less than twice the size of Texas

Land boundaries

total: 7,908 km

border countries (6): Algeria 1,359 km; Burkina Faso 1,325 km; Cote d'Ivoire 599 km; Guinea 1,062 km; Mauritania 2,236 km; Niger 838 km, Senegal 489 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

highest point: Hombori Tondo 1,155 m

lowest point: Senegal River 23 m

mean elevation: 343 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

agricultural land: 34.1% (2018 est.)

arable land: 5.6% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 0.1% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 28.4% (2018 est.)

forest: 10.2% (2018 est.)

other: 55.7% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land

3,780 sq km (2012)

Major lakes (area sq km)

fresh water lake(s): Lac Faguibine - 590 sq km
note - the Niger River is the only source of water for the lake; in recent years the lake is dry

Major rivers (by length in km)

Niger (shared with Guinea [s], Niger, and Nigeria [m]) - 4,200 km; Senegal (shared with Guinea [s], Senegal, and Mauritania [m]) - 1,641 km
note – [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth

Major watersheds (area sq km)

Atlantic Ocean drainage: Niger (2,261,741 sq km), Senegal (456,397 sq km), Volta (410,991 sq km)

Major aquifers

Lullemeden-Irhazer Basin, Taodeni-Tanezrouft Basin

Population distribution

the overwhelming majority of the population lives in the southern half of the country, with greater density along the border with Burkina Faso as shown in this

Natural hazards

hot, dust-laden harmattan haze common during dry seasons; recurring droughts; occasional Niger River flooding

Geography - note

landlocked; divided into three natural zones: the southern, cultivated Sudanese; the central, semiarid Sahelian; and the northern, arid Saharan