This means that there is a fairly high dependency ratio which needed to be taken into account when assessing the impacts of a new intervention on the local economy. Furthermore, there has been a relatively large influx of young men seeking work on the Sadiola Hill gold project. Map of West Africa showing Mali and the location of the Sadiola deposit. Malnutrition related diseases are rare but many children are chronically underfed. The economic base of Malinke households primarily consists of subsistence agriculture and pastoral activities.
Little surplus is produced for barter or sale.
There is some dependence on indigenous plants. Migrant remittances are an important supplementary form of support for many households and provide one of the few means of entering the cash economy. Few have specialised or full-time formal employment as opportunities are extremely limited. All households stated that their members were Muslim though traditional beliefs in the supernatural are also commonly held. Local communities are characteristically peaceful without some of the major social problems encountered within larger towns and cities.