MALI RIVER

river, rising in the hills near the northern border of Myanmar (Burma) and flowing about 200 miles (320 km) south to unite with the Nmai River and form the Irrawaddy River (q.v.). The Mali River is partially navigable. The economy Mali's is basically an agricultural economy. Because the northern half of the country is occupied by the Sahara, most human activity is concentrated in the more southerly regions, in particular in the valleys of the Niger and Sngal rivers and their tributaries. Most agriculture is at the subsistence level, and, for many people, cash crops provide a valuable income supplement. Pastoralism is also important. Progress in the rural sector has been limited by an unfavourable climate, by periodic droughts since the late 1960s, and by low levels of technology. Other sectors are no further advanced: the development of Mali's extensive mineral and water resources is limited, and the country's industrial sector, which is still in its infancy, concentrates heavily on food processing. Foreign exchange is obtained chiefly from the export of primary commodities that have suffered from volatile world markets and foreign currency fluctuations. The revenue is insufficient to cover the cost of Mali's highly processed imports from France and other Western nations. Added to its problems, Mali has suffered severely from resource mismanagement, and the national debt continues to grow. At the time of independence in 1960, the government adopted a policy of socialism. State companies and rural cooperative societies were organized to regulate both the production and the distribution of goods. Since the military coup d'tat in 1968, socialist policy has been mitigated by the encouragement of private business. Bilateral external aid is provided largely by France, the United States, the nations of the European Economic Community (EEC), and the nations of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). International aid is granted by such organizations as the United Nations, the European Development Fund (FED), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Since 1981 the Mali government has responded to pressures from the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and aid donors to introduce measures to encourage private investment and enterprise, liberalization of domestic markets, and the general reduction of state control. Planning is based on five-year periods, and the plan of 198791 included in its objectives self-sufficiency in food, economic reforms, a campaign against desertification, and a scheme for protection and improvement of grazing land. Resources Mali's natural resources remain relatively undeveloped. Iron is the most widespread mineral resource, but it is not currently exploited because of Mali's limited infrastructure. Deposits are found in the west near the Senegal and Guinea borders. Bauxite deposits are located near Kayes and on the Mandingue Plateau. Manganese is also found, and there are phosphate deposits in the Ansongo region. Important deposits of gold are at Kalana near Bougouni, on the Mandingue Plateau, and in the Iforas Massif. Lithium has been discovered near Kayes and Bougouni, and there are uranium deposits in the Iforas. There are also traces of tungsten, tin, lead, copper, and zinc, as well as deposits of salt, marble, kaolin (china clay), and limestone. The land Relief Mali's landscape is largely flat and monotonous. Two basic relief features can be distinguishedplateaus and plains. The highland regions are localized and discontinuous. The plateaus of the south and southwest (extensions of the Fouta Djallon highlands of Guinea and the Guinea Highlands of Guinea and Cte d'Ivoire) lie between about 1,000 and 1,600 feet (300 and 500 metres) above sea level but attain heights approaching 2,000 feet in the Mandingue Plateau near Bamako and more than 2,100 feet near Satadougou. The plateaus of the southeast and east, also extensions of the Guinea Highlands, are a series of small, broken hills. Altitudes in the southeast range between almost 1,000 feet in the region of Sikasso and 1,739 feet at Mount Mina. East of the Niger River the Dogon Plateau descends gently westward to the river valley but ends in abrupt cliffs on the southeast. These cliffs reach an altitude approaching 3,300 feet at Bandiagara. The only marked relief feature in the north is the Iforas Massif. An extension of the mountainous Hoggar region of the Sahara, this heavily eroded sandstone plateau rises to altitudes of more than 2,000 feet. Northern and central Mali are composed of the plains of the Niger River basin and of the Sahara. Drainage The drainage system is composed of the Sngal and Niger rivers and their tributaries. The Sngal River flows in a northwesterly direction across Mali for 420 miles (670 kilometres) on its course to the Atlantic Ocean. Its main headwatersthe Bafing and the Bakoye (Bakhoy) riversrise in the Fouta Djallon and join at Bafoulab to form the Sngal. The river then flows to the west across the plateau region, where it is broken by falls at Gouina and Flou. For 1,100 miles, more than one-third of its total length, the Niger River flows through Mali. Rising in the Fouta Djallon, the river is of significant size by the time it enters Mali near Kangaba. It flows to the northeast across the Mandingue Plateau, where it is broken by falls at Sotuba. Reaching Koulikoro, it spreads out in a wide valley and flows majestically to its confluence with the Bani River at Mopti. The Niger then forms an interior delta because the land is flat and the river's descent almost nonexistent. The river breaks down into a network of branches and lakes as it continues northward. At Bourem the Niger makes a great bend to the south, known as the Niger Bend, and flows past Gao and Ansongo to the Niger border at Labbezanga. The flow of the Niger varies seasonally. High waters occur on the upper Niger from July to October, at the delta from September to November, and at the bend from December to January. Periodic floods and the rich alluvial soils in the central delta make the Niger valley an important agricultural region. The people Mali contains two distinct, stratified societies. Most of the population belong to traditional social groups, which have inherited hierarchical social structures. These groups consist of nobles, vassals, and members of various castes, all of whom acquired their status by birth. The second Malian society is formed by the urban population. Privileged groups are the educated government officials and the traders. The middle socioeconomic group is composed of civil servants and industrial workers. The lowest group is made up of the unemployed. Ethnic groups What is known as the white population includes nomadic groups of Berbers (including the important Berber subgroup of the Tuareg) and the Arab-Berber group known as the Moors. These groups live in the Sahelian zone and north of the Niger Bend. The black population is composed of numerous agricultural groups, some of whom are descended from the peoples of the ancient empires of Ghana, Mali, and Songhai. The largest group are the Bambara, who live along the upper Niger River. The Soninke, or Sarakole, are descended from the founders of the Ghana empire and live in the western Sahelian zone. The Malinke, bearers of the heritage of the Mali empire, live in the southwest, while the Songhai are settled in the Niger valley from Djenn to Ansongo. The Dogon live in the plateau region around Bandiagara. The Voltaic group includes the Bwa, or Bobo, the Senufo, and the Minianka; they occupy the east and southeast. The Fulani, or Peul, are nomadic pastoralists of the Sahel and Macina. Other ethnic groups of note include the Tukulor (Tokolor), the Khasonke, the Bozo, and the Somono.