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 ]
land: 1,220,190 sq km
[see also: Area - land country ranks ]
water: 20,002 sq km
[see also: Area - water country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 24
Area - comparative:
slightly less than twice the size of Texas
Land boundaries:
total: 7,908 km
border countries (7): Algeria 1,359 km, Burkina Faso 1,325 km, Cote d'Ivoire 599 km, Guinea 1,062 km, Mauritania 2,236 km, Niger 838 km, Senegal 489 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:
mean elevation:
[see also: Mean Elevation country ranks ]
elevation extremes:
lowest point: Senegal River 23 m
highest point: Hombori Tondo 1,155 m
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:
agricultural land: 34.1%
arable land 5.6%; permanent crops 0.1%; permanent pasture 28.4%
[see also: Land use - agricultural land country ranks ]
forest: 10.2%
[see also: Land use - forest country ranks ]
other: 55.7% (2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - other country ranks ]
Irrigated land:
3,780 sq km (2012)
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]
Total renewable water resources:
100 cu km (2011)
[see also: Total renewable water resources country ranks ]
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 6.55 cu km/yr (9%/1%/90%)
per capita: 545.4 cu m/yr (2000)
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