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: 25

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

Land boundaries:
total: 7,908 km
[see also: Land boundaries - total country ranks ]
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

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)
More Climate Details

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

Elevation:
mean elevation: 343 m
[see also: Elevation - 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 ]

Population - distribution:
the overwhelming majority of the population lives in the southern half of the country, with greater density along the border with Burkina Faso

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

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