Coming to Mali

THE REPUBLIC OF MALI is a country in West Africa bordered by Mauritania and Algeria to the north, Niger to the east, Burkina Faso and Côte d'Ivoire to the south, Guinea to the southwest and Senegal to the west..

CAPITAL: Bamako
AREA: 1.241.238 km2
POPULATION: 15.006.354 habitants
LANGUAGES OF MALI: The official language is French but Bambara is spoken by 80% of the population. 9 languages are declared national languages : Bambara, Fulani, Dogon, Soninke, Songhai, Tamashek, Senufo, bozo, Bomu.

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS IN MALI:

• Valid passport .
• Visa required for all except nationals of ECOWAS.

Visas can be extended in Bamako at the Directorate General of National Police.

Those who enter by land from Senegal, Mauritania and Burkina Faso can obtain their visa at the border at a cost of 15 000 FCFA (25 €) for entry valid for 3 months.

Useful addresses in France: To request a visa to France, you can download the visa application form here:

> http://www.riob.org/IMG/pdf/visa_Mali.pdf.

Provide € 70 in cash and 2 photos for a visa valid for 1 month. Contact the Consulate.

Expect 48 hours to get a visa on site (at least one week for the provincal consulates).

• Embassy of Mali 89, rue du Cherche-Midi, 75006 Paris. Metro: Saint-Placide. Tel. : 01-45-48-58-43. Open Monday to Friday from 9h to 13h and 14h to 17h.

• Consulate of Mali 64, rue Pelleport, 75020 Paris. Metro: Pelleport. Tel.: 01-48-07-85-85. Open Monday to Friday from 9h to 13h and 14h to 17h.

For visas, file applications on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from 9am to 12.30pm; withdrawal Wednesday and Friday from 9am to 12.30pm.

Consulats honoraires à Bordeaux, Lyon et Marseille.

Belgium :

• Embassy of Mali: Avenue Molière, 487, 1050 Brussels. Tel: 02-345-74-32. Open Monday to Friday from 9am to 12pm..

Switerland:
Provide 100 SF for a visa valid for 3 months

• Consulate of Mali Honorary Consul, St Jakobsstrasse, 30, PO Box, 4002 Basel. Tel. : 061-295-38-88. By appointment.
  
  
• Permanent Mission of Mali ICC Building (1st floor), Road Prébois, 20, PO Box 1814, 1215 Geneva 15. Tel.: 022-710-09-60.
  
  

In Canada:
CA $ 100 visa (1 month, 1 entry) 500 CA $ (12 months).

• Embassy of Mali
  50 Ave. Goulburn,
  Ottawa, Ontario K1N-8C8.
  Tel.: (1) 613-232-15-01

In The United States:

$131 visa fee; accompanied by 2 completed application forms, 2 recent passport sized photographs, and a copy of yellow fever vaccination certificate.

• Embassy of Mali
  2130 R Street, NW
  Washington, D.C.
  20008
  Tel: 1 (202) 332-2249
  Website: http://www.maliembassy.us/
  
• Permanent Mission of Mali to the United Nations
  111 East 69th Street
  New York, NY 10021-5004 U.S.A.
  Tel: 1 (212) 737-4150
  Website: http://www.mali-un.org
  
  

For a complete listing of Malian embassies and consulates around the world, click here: http://embassy.goabroad.com/embassies-of/mali

CUSTOM FORMALITIES :

Les voitures peuvent être importées temporairement en franchise de tous droits et taxes, sous couvert d'un triptyque ou d'un carnet de passage de douane.

A traveler may import clothes and personal effects without payment of duties or taxes, limited to: two cameras of different types or format, a video or film camera, personal jewelry, a pair of binoculars, one portable musical instrument, a package of sporting and camping, cigarettes, cigars and tobacco in normal amounts, souvenirs in reasonable quantities.

HEALTH REGULATIONS

Required vaccination for entry in Mali

• Yellow Fever (vaccination must be given at least one week prior to entry).
  
  

Recommended additional precautions:

• Cholera and Typhus vaccinations.
• Malaria prophylaxis
• Recommended vaccinations for travel in the bush: Polio, Tetanus, Hepatitis

HEALTH

Take precautions for malaria and yellow fever.

It is also recommended to take precautions against hepatitis A and B, typhoid and tetanus.

The water is not always treated, this is why we recommend that travelers always drink bottled mineral water.

PHOTO - VIDEO - FILM

Photography is allowed everywhere except military zones, airports, and the Presidential Palace.

Do not photograph or film individuals without their consent.

CLIMATE:

The best seasons for visiting Mali are from November to March (the cool season) and July to October (the wet season).

• Rainy season: June to September / October (in Bamako: 25 ° C)
• cool and dry season: from October to February (25 ° C)
• hot, dry season: from March to June (35 ° C)

It is recommended that visitors bring clothing suitable for tropical climates.

RELIGIONS:

Islam: 80%, Christian religions: 18%, animism: 2%

SCHEDULE

G.M.T

CURRENCY

The official currency of Mali is the CFA franc. The exchange rate is1 euro for 650 FCFA

ELECTRICITY

220 Volts, 50Hz

TELEPHONE, FAX

International Country Code : 00 223

BUSINESS AND ADMINISTRATIVE HOURS IN MALI

In general business hours are between 7:30 and 14:30. Some stores stay open at night. On Friday, offices are open until 12:30.

MAIL

Mali provides the usual postal services to the world and vice versa. Allow two weeks for delivery to Europe and the Americas.

Express mail service is available at: Postadex-International.

DHL is also available in Mali.

There is telephone, telegraph and telex service available between the major regional towns and the capital, as well as efficient international connections.

HOW TO GET TO MALI AIR TRANSPORT

The international airport is Bamako Senou. 15 km from Bamako city center (20 minutes).

The airport receives regular international flights. Several African and European air carriers have offices in Bamako.

Airlines flying to Mali:

• Royal Air Morocco
• TAP-Air Portugal
• Air Algeria
• Aigle Azur
• Air France
• Brussels Airlines
• Tunis Air
• airline in Mali
• Ethiopian Airlines

BY ROAD

Internal bus services link the country south to north, and also allows connection to neighboring countries.

All road links are good and safe, except near the Algerian border, where the roads can be dangerous and risky.

Major Roads and Highways:

• Sikasso-Bamako-Ouagadougou-Niamey: 1,426 km including 1,144 km of paved roads, 182 km of dirt roads.
• Sikasso-Bamako-Abidjan Bouake: 1,184 km including 1,050 km of paved roads and 134 km of earth roads
• Bamako-Segou-Koutiala-Bobo-Dioulasso: 610 km of paved roads
• Bamako-Mopti-Gao-Niamey: 1,624 km including 1,302 km of paved roads and 322 km of earth roads.

The tracks are impassable during the rainy season.

RAIL NETWORK

A single lane railway links Dakar, Senegal to Koulikoro on the Niger through Kayes, Kita, Kati, Bamako. Overall length: 1,287 km including 641 km in Mali.

RIVER TRANSPORT

The Niger River is navigable from Kouroussa (Guinea) to Bamako and Koulikoro (the terminus of the railroad) to Gao for 5 to 6 months of the year (the season of high water).

Malian Navigation Company (COMANAV) is responsible for the operation and management of river traffic on the Niger.

The Senegal River is navigable for three months of the year from Kayes to Saint-Louis (Senegal). Traffic remains low.

The Niger and Senegal have an average annual average flow of 46 billion and 10.3 billion m3 respectively betweenKoulikoro and Kayes.

The completion of the Manantali dam and other objectives of the OMVS are expected to contribute to the improvement of navigation on the Senegal and the increase of freight.

CLOTHING

Light, tropical-weight clothing, and comfortable shoes are recommended for travel in Mali.

Long sleeves, trousers, hats and light scarves are recommended. It’s always best to cover as much of the body as possible to avoid sunburn and mosquito bites.

It is very important to protect the head against the sun.

Sunglasses and sunscreen are also recommended.