Mali Economy
Mali is one of the poorest countries in the world. There were several long droughts there over the last hundred years. Therefore, most economic activity is near the Niger River. Industry is mainly to process farm products. Women also do pottery and the pots are bought and taken to markets. Many foreign tourists like the traditional methods which the women use to make the pots. Mali's main export is cotton, so if the price of cotton changes, Mali's economy is affected a lot. Mali also receives a lot of financial help from other countries. Several international companies started digging for larger amounts of gold in 1996-1998, and the government thinks that Mali will become an important gold exporter soon.