Page last updated on February 23,

Location:
interior Western Africa, southwest of Algeria, north of Guinea, Cote d'Ivoire, and Burkina Faso, west of Niger

Geographic coordinates:
17 00 N, 4 00 W

Map references:
Africa

Area:
total: 1,240,192 sq km
[see also: Area - total country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 24
land: 1,220,190 sq km
[see also: Area - land country ranks ]
water: 20,002 sq km
[see also: Area - water country ranks ]

Area - comparative:
slightly less than twice the size of Texas

Land boundaries:
total: 7,243 km
border countries: Algeria 1,376 km, Burkina Faso 1,000 km, Guinea 858 km, Cote d'Ivoire 532 km, Mauritania 2,237 km, Niger 821 km, Senegal 419 km
[see also: Land boundaries country ranks ]

Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)
[see also: Coastline country ranks ]

Maritime claims:
none (landlocked)

Climate:
subtropical to arid; hot and dry (February to June); rainy, humid, and mild (June to November); cool and dry (November to February)

Terrain:
mostly flat to rolling northern plains covered by sand; savanna in south, rugged hills in northeast

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Senegal River 23 m
[see also: Elevation extremes - lowest point country ranks ]
highest point: Hombori Tondo 1,155 m
[see also: Elevation extremes - highest point country ranks ]

Natural resources:
gold, phosphates, kaolin, salt, limestone, uranium, gypsum, granite, hydropower
note: bauxite, iron ore, manganese, tin, and copper deposits are known but not exploited

Land use:
arable land: 3.76%
[see also: Land use - arable land country ranks ]
permanent crops: 0.03%
[see also: Land use - permanent crops country ranks ]
other: 96.21% (2005)
[see also: Land use - other country ranks ]

Irrigated land:
2,360 sq km (2008)
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]

Total renewable water resources:
100 cu km (2001)
[see also: Total renewable water resources country ranks ]

Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 6.55 cu km/yr (9%/1%/90%)
[see also: Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural) - total country ranks ]
per capita: 484 cu m/yr (2000)
[see also: Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural) - per capita country ranks ]

Natural hazards:
hot, dust-laden harmattan haze common during dry seasons; recurring droughts; occasional Niger River flooding

Environment - current issues:
deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:
landlocked; divided into three natural zones: the southern, cultivated Sudanese; the central, semiarid Sahelian; and the northern, arid Saharan