Modern African Research Paper
Mali
Most of Mali is flat, with areas of low plateaus. The vast desert wasteland Sahara occupies the northern third of the country. In the Northeast is the Adrar des Iforas mountain region. The Niger River flows through southern Mali, and the Senegal River flows from southwest Mali. The desert region of Mali is hot and dry, but the lower part of Mali is cooler. About 35 inches of rain falls in the southern part of Mali, while almost no rain falls in the northern desert part.
In the colonial era, Mali fell under the control of the French beginning in the late 1800s. By 1905, most of the area was under firm French control as a part of French Sudan. In early 1959, Mali (then the Sudanese Republic) and Senegal united to become the Mali Federation. The Mali Federation gained independence from France on June 20, 1960. Senegal withdrew from the federation in August 1960, which allowed the Sudanese Republic to form the independent nation of Mali on September 22, 1960. Modibo Keïta was elected the first president. Keïta quickly established a one-party state, adopted an independent African and socialist orientation with close ties to the East, and implemented extensive nationalization of economic resources. Anti-government protests in 1991 led to a coup, a transitional government, and a new constitution. In 1992, Alpha Oumar Konaré won Mali's first democratic, multi-party presidential election. Upon his reelection in 1997, President Konaré pushed through political and economic reforms and fought corruption. In 2002, he was succeeded in democratic elections by Amadou Toumani Touré, a retired general, who had been the leader of the military aspect of the 1991 democratic uprising. Today, Mali is one of the most politically and socially stable countries in Africa.
There are many different ethnic groups in Mali. The largest are Mande, followed by Fulani and over 20 others. The religion of choice is Muslim, 90% of the people in Mali are...