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Quick Facts
- Population:
- GDP (PPP):
- $51.0 billion
- 3.3% 5-year compound annual growth
- $2,447 per capita
- Unemployment:
- Inflation (CPI):
- FDI Inflow:
- Public Debt:
Mali’s economic freedom score is 54.5, making its economy the 122nd freest in the 2023 Index. Its score has decreased by 1.4 points from last year. Mali is ranked 21st out of 47 countries in the Sub-Saharan Africa region, and its overall score is below the world average.
Mali has made little progress in expanding economic freedom over the years and remains mired in the Index’s “mostly unfree” category. A lack of dynamism leaves the domestic economy highly vulnerable to external economic conditions. Institutional weaknesses broadly restrict citizens’ economic freedom and prevent the dynamic growth of economic activity.
Background
After decades of French colonial rule and a brief federation with Senegal, the Republic of Mali was established in 1960. In 2012, Tuareg separatists and militants linked to al-Qaeda took control of northern Mali, prompting a French military intervention that ended in 2022. An August 2020 coup ousted Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, and Colonel Assimi Goita became president when an interim government was overthrown in May 2021. The ECOWAS community lifted its sanctions in July 2022 after the junta agreed to a two-year preelection transitional period. One of the world’s 25 poorest countries, Mali depends on gold mining and agricultural exports.
Rule of Law
The overall rule of law is weak in Mali. The country’s property rights score is below the world average; its judicial effectiveness score is below the world average; and its government integrity score is below the world average.
Government Size
The top individual and corporate tax rates are, respectively, 40 percent and 35 percent. The tax burden equals 16.8 percent of GDP. Three-year government spending and budget balance averages are, respectively, 25.5 percent and –4.0 percent of GDP. Public debt equals 51.9 percent of GDP.
Regulatory Efficiency
The regulatory framework for business does not efficiently encourage economic diversification or private-sector development. Much private-sector activity takes place outside of the formal economy. Labor regulations, although not fully enforced, are relatively rigid. The most recent available inflation rate is 4.0 percent.
Open Markets
The trade-weighted average tariff rate is 10.5 percent, and 20 nontariff measures are in force. The government is trying to encourage economic diversification and broader economic development, but progress is constrained by inadequate financial infrastructure and the country’s fragile security situation.