1. History The Sudanese Republic and Senegal became independent of France in 1960 as the Mali Federation. When Senegal withdrew after only a few months, what formerly made up the Sudanese Republic was renamed Mali. Rule by dictatorship was brought to a close in 1991 by a military coup - led by the current president Amadou TOURE - enabling Mali's emergence as one of the strongest democracies on the continent. President Alpha KONARE won Mali's first democratic presidential election in 1992 and was reelected in 1997. In keeping with Mali's two-term constitutional limit, KONARE stepped down in 2002 and was succeeded by Amadou TOURE, who was subsequently elected to a second term in 2007. The elections were widely judged to be free and fair.

2. Population 14,159,904 (July 2011 est.) Interior Western Africa, southwest of Algeria, north of Guinea, Cote d'Ivoire, and Burkina Faso, west of Niger Subtropical to arid; hot and dry (February to June); rainy, humid, and mild (June to November); cool and dry (November to February)

3. Under Mali's 1992 constitution, the president is chief of state and commander in chief of the armed forces. The president is elected to 5-year terms, with a limit of two terms. The president appoints the prime minister as head of government. The president chairs the Council of Ministers (the prime minister and currently 27 other ministers, including 5 women), which adopts proposals for laws submitted to the National Assembly for approval. Principal Government Officials President--Amadou Toumani Touré Prime Minister--Cissé Mariam Kaidama Sidibé Minister of Foreign Affairs--Soumeylou Boubeye Maiga Minister of Economy and Finance--Lassine Bouaré Minister of Industry, Investment, and Commerce--Sangaré Niamoto Ba Minister of Defense--Natié Plea Ambassador to the U.S.--Mamadou Traore Ambassador to the United Nations--Oumar Daou

4. The Food Malian Fish Stew, “Jollof Rice”, which are the most famous Malian food.

5. The People of Mali

6. Music & Dance “ Mali is home to some of the most beautiful, and successful, contemporary music in Africa. The traditional music of Mali is based on the songs of the jalis (or griots), a distinct caste in the social structure since the days of the Mali Empire.” Salif Keita, is a successful famous musician and he is an ambassador for griot music. The Twins," Assane and Ousseynou Kouyate, come from a long line of "djialies" (jalis), historians, genealogists, storytellers, and keepers of cultural traditions from the Mendeng people of Mali. http://www.supermandepercussion.com.au/dance.html http://www.worldartswest.org/plm/guide/program/balletjali.shtml

7. References O The World Factbook Encyclopedia.com O AllRefer.com