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Mali: Geography
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Location:
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Western Africa, southwest of Algeria
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Geographic coordinates:
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17 00 N, 4 00 W
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Map references:
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Africa
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Area:
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total: 1.24 million sq km
water: 20,000 sq km
land: 1.22 million sq km
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Area - comparative:
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slightly less than twice the size of Texas
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Land boundaries:
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total: 7,243 km
border countries: Algeria 1,376 km, Burkina Faso 1,000 km, Guinea 858 km, Cote d'Ivoire 532 km, Mauritania 2,237 km, Niger 821 km, Senegal 419 km
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Coastline:
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0 km (landlocked)
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Maritime claims:
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none (landlocked)
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Climate:
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subtropical to arid; hot and dry February to June; rainy, humid, and mild June to November; cool and dry November to February
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Terrain:
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mostly flat to rolling northern plains covered by sand; savanna in south, rugged hills in northeast
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Senegal River 23 m
highest point: Hombori Tondo 1,155 m
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Natural resources:
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gold, phosphates, kaolin, salt, limestone, uranium, hydropower
note: bauxite, iron ore, manganese, tin, and copper deposits are known but not exploited
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Land use:
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arable land: 3.77%
permanent crops: 0.04%
other: 96.19% (1998 est.)
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Irrigated land:
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1,380 sq km (1998 est.)
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Natural hazards:
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hot, dust-laden harmattan haze common during dry seasons; recurring droughts; occasional Niger River flooding
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Environment - current issues:
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deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching
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Environment - international agreements:
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party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Nuclear Test Ban
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Geography - note:
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landlocked; divided into three natural zones: the southern, cultivated Sudanese; the central, semiarid Sahelian; and the northern, arid Saharan
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