GENERAL INFORMATION  IOC Code: MAL  Country: Mali  Continent: Africa President: Amadou Toumani Touré  Prime Minister: Ousmane Issoufi        Maïga  Capital: Bamako  Largest City: Bamako  Currency:  CFA franc (XOF)  Official languages: French  Motto: "One people, one goal, one        faith"  POPULATION  Population: 13 518 000  GDP/inhabitant (US $): 1 154  Density (inhabitants/km2): 11 Average age (in years):   Life expectancy (in years):  COMMUNICATION  Internet code: .ml  Calling code: +223

 DESCRIPTION
Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked nation in Western Africa. It is the seventh largest country of Africa. It borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its straight borders on the north stretch into the centre of the Sahara, while the country's south, where the majority of inhabitants live, features the Niger and Senegal rivers. Formerly French Sudan, the country is named after the Empire of Mali. The name of the country comes from the Bambara word for hippopotamus, the name of its capital city, Bamako comes from the Bambara word meaning "place of crocodiles".

Source: www.wikipedia.com