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Article: National Day of the Republic of Mali.(Opinion & Editorial)
- Article from:
- Manila Bulletin
- Article date:
- September 21, 2003
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2003 Manila Bulletin Publishing Corp. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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THE Republic of Mali celebrates its National Day today.
Mali is located in northwestern Africa, bounded on the northeast by Algeria, on the east by Niger, on the south by Burkina Faso, Cote dIvoire, and Guinea, and on the west by Senegal and Mauritania. The area of the country is 1,240,192 sq. km., with a 2003 estimated population of about 11.6 million.
Almost all the population of Mali is African. The major groups are the Bambara, Fulani, Tuareg, Soninke, Senufo, Songhai, and Mandinka. Islam is the religion of about 80 percent of the population, while about 18 percent of the people follow traditional beliefs. Less than two percent are Christians. French ...