Mali

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Quick Facts

[edit]

Capital

Bamako

Population

12,292,000

Government

Republic

Religions

Islam, Christianity, Indigenous beliefs

Languages

Bamanankan, Bomu, Bozo, Dogoso, Fulfulde, Hasanya, Mamara, Maninkakan, Soninke, Sonoy, Syenara, Tamasayt, Xaasongaxanno, French

Calling Code

+223

Nationality

Malian

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Introduction

Mopti

© All Rights Reserved LuisDafos

Mali, West Africa's largest country, is perhaps its most impressive destination. From the sandy mysteries of Timbuktu, to boat trips (we won't go so far as to call them cruises) up and down the Niger, Mali has a wide variety of attractions to satisfy travellers. Not bad for one of the world's poorest nations. A lack of financial resources has not inhibited Mali's attraction; instead, cultural vibrancy and activity more than compensate. In Bamako, the capital, for instance, you'll be easily swept into the hustle and bustle of motorbikes, loud Malian music, and a busy marketplace environment.

Hiking excursions into Pays Dogon, the home of the Dogon people, are excellent. The Dogon live traditionally, in an area listed as a World Heritage Site. Their culture and arts are fascinating, and their resourceful use of space is truly something to be marvelled at.

Brief History

Geography

Regions

Mali is made up of 8 regions.

• Gao
• Kayes
• Kidal
• Koulikoro
• Mopti
• Ségou
• Sikasso
• Tombouctou (Timbuktu)

Cities

• Bamako, the capital
• Kayes
• Timbuktu
• Mopti
• Segou
• Gao
• Sikasso
• Djenne

Sights and Activities

Timbuktu

Timbuktu is one of those names which makes you feel like goin to exotic places immediately. Although Timbuktu itself is not as exotic as it may sound, the place itself has many attractions. It is the home of the Koranic Sankore University and other madrasas. The city was a centre of intellectuality and spirituality and for the propagation of Islam throughout Africa in the 15th and 16th centuries. The three mosques all are a witness of Timbuktu's golden age. Timbuktu therefore is on the Unesco World Heritage List.

Bandiagara Escarpment

© All Rights Reserved alsalis

Dogon country

The Dogon are a nomadic people and the Cliff of Bandiagara might be their centrepiece. On the Unesco list as well, the Bandiagara site is a fascinating landscape of cliffs and sandy stones with fine architecture including houses, altars and the Togu Na, the communal meeting areas. Today, traditions like masks, rituals and ancestor worship live on in the region. Equally interesting are the geological, archaeological and ethnological meaning of this area and together with the landscape, the Bandiagara plateau might just be one of the finest places to visit in Mali.

Djenne

Sunrise in Djenné

© All Rights Reserved Luis M

Djenne is one of the most beautiful cities in Mali and is one of four Unesco sites in the country. The area around Djenne was inhabited since 250 B.C. and it played a central role as a market centre and an important link in the Saharan gold trade. In the 15th and 16th centuries, it was one of the centres for the propagation of Islam, like Timbuktu was. Nowadays, around 2000 of its traditional houses remain and they are built on hillocks (toguere) as a protection from the seasonal floods. Its mosque is one of the most recognizable buildings in West Africa.

Hombori

© All Rights Reserved LuisDafos

Other sights and activities

• Niger River
• Tomb of Askia - In the eastern city of Gao
• Hombori - Fatima´s Hand, rock formation

Events and Festivals

Weather

Mali has a hot and generally dry desert climate with a short rain season from June to September when there can be severe thunderstorms with occasonial floodings. Rains can be unpredictable though and sometimes the rainy season means just a few showers now and then. The coolest time is between November and February with warm and dry weather. April to June are very hot in the entire country with average daytime temperatures of 40 degrees Celcius or more. Kayes in the west is said to be the hottest place in West Africa.

Getting There

By Plane

Bamako Senou International Airport (BKO) is the main international airport in Mali. It serves flights to destinations throughout Africa and to Paris, for example with Air France. Air Mali International has flights to Dakar and Nouakchott, the capitals of Senegal and Mauretania.

By Train

Dakar-Bamako train

© All Rights Reserved LuisDafos

Theoretically, a weekly train travels between the capitals of Senegal and Mali. The train is supposed to leave Dakar on Saturdays around 10am, arriving in Bamako just under 48 hours later. In the opposite direction, the train leaves Bamako on Wednesdays at 9.15 am, taking about the same amount of time. Because of works on the railway, the train now (since 2008) leaves every 8 or 9 days and there is no fixed schedule at the moment, so ask around in both cities when the next train is supposed to leave.

By Car

Mali shares borders with quite a few countries, most of the border posts are open, but the ones with Algeria tend to close now and then and it is not a safe route anyway.

By Bus

Bamako and several other cities are connected by buses. These buses travel to Senegal, Cote d'Ivoire (daily connections to Abidjan), Burkina Faso, Ghana, Mauritania, Guinea and Niger.
Buses from Bamako go to Bobo-Dioulasso (15 hours) and Ouagadougou (21 hours) in Burkina Faso daily. There is also a daily bus between Koro and Ouahigouya (4 hours) with onward connections to Ouagadougou.
There is a weekly bus to Conakry in Guinee, but there are more frequent connections from Bamako to Siguiri by bush taxi's.
Old 4wd vehicles and trucks ply the routes to Mauritania, with connections between Kayes and Sélibabai and between
Nioro and Ayoûn el-Atroûs. From the latter you can get onward transport along good roads to Nouakchott, the capital of Mauritania.
Connections from Mali to Niger include buses from Gao to Niamey, taking 30 hours along bad roads.

By Boat

Boats to Ayohou in Niger leave once weekly from Gao, taking roughly 2 days. During the rainy season there are also boats along the river between Siguiri (Guinea) and Bamako. It takes a day in that direction, but two days coming from Bamako upstream.

Getting Around

By Plane

New airlines are joining the market all the time, so check around. Air Mali, and chartered flights from Société des Transports Aériens and Société Avion Express are one of the options. Flights mostly terminate or originate at Bamako and destinations include Mopti, Timbuktu, Kayes, Yelimané, Gao, Kidal and Sadiola.

By Train

The train to and from Dakar in Senegal which travels once every week or 10 days aproximately, also stops in several cities and towns east of Bamako, including Kayes.

By Car

It is possible to rent a car, either with a driver or driving yourself, but is best to rent a 4wd as apart from a few tarred roads (potholed at places, excellent in other places), most roads are dirt roads (pistes) which can be impassable after heavy rains. Also, it is not cheap so renting one with 2 or 3 persons is recommended. The main roads runs northeast from Bamako to Segou and Mopti and on to Timbouktou and Gao, while the other one run south to Ivory Coast.

By Bus

Bittar Transport is one of the major bus companies, with scheduled services travelling to all major cities and towns, including Bamako, Mopti and Timbouktou.
Another popular option are the so-called taxi brousses (also called septplace, seven places), which are usually older Peugeots 504 and 505 station, which theoretically have seven places, but most of the times carry a few more. They don't have scheduled departures and leave when full. It is an adventure and a good way to travel to smaller places not connected by bus, but be prepared to have an uncomfortable and sometimes long trip.

By Boat

Between July and December it is possible to travel along the mighty Niger River from Bamako to Gao via Timbuktu. From December to March, only the last part to Gao from Mopti is passable. It takes 5 or 6 days and first class cabins are recommended and can be booked in advance.

Red Tape

People from ECOWAS (West African) countries only need a valid national card or passport. A valid passport is also the only thing you need if you are from Algeria, Cameroon, Andorra, Monaco, Chad, Gambia, Morocco, Mauritania or Tunisia.
All other nationals need to apply for a visa at one of the nearest embassies or consulates of Mali. Normal single-entry visas (valid for 3 months) are $80, $131 for US citizens. Multiple-entry visas are $110 and also valid for 3 months. 6 and 12-month valid visas are much more expensive, $200 and $370 respectively!

Money

See also Money matters

Mali uses the CFA Franc as a currency. The CFA Franc is divided into 100 centimes. Coins come in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100, 500 francs while banknotes come in denominations of 500, 1000, 2000, 5000, 10,000 francs
The exchange range is fixed at aproximately 656 CFA Francs for one Euro.

In Mali the West African CFA Franc (XOF) is used which has the same vallue as the Central African CFA Franc (XAF), but it's not possible to use both currencies in the same country.

Fourteen countries in Africa use this currency, eight in West Africa and six in Central Africa. The West African CFA Franc can only be used in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo, while the Central African CFA Franc can only be used in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.

Work

Study

Language

Eat

Sleep

Drink

Health

See also Travel Health

Safety

See also Travel Safety

Keep Connected

Internet

Phone

See also International Telephone Calls

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