| Formerly known as French Sudan, Mali is one of the largest countries in West Africa, and borders Senegal, Algeria, Ivory Coast and 4 other countries. Although not plagued by the wars of its neighbors, Mali has virtually no coveted natural resources, manufacturing or exports and draws little in the way of tourism, so it must rely almost entirely on subsistent farming to survive.
With the Sahara desert occupying over half the country, the conditions are extremely harsh and farming is barely successful 73% of the population earns less than $1 a day. Consequently, Mali is ranked as one of the poorest and most desperately in need of all countries in the world. The life expectancy is only 51.5 years and 40% of all babies born will not reach the age of 40. There are only a few hundred doctors to serve the needs of over 14 million people.
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