Tombouctou Region

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Tombouctou Region
Location within Mali
Location within Mali
Coordinates: 21°8′45″N 4°1′15″W﻿ / ﻿21.14583°N 4.02083°W﻿ / 21.14583; -4.02083Coordinates: 21°8′45″N 4°1′15″W﻿ / ﻿21.14583°N 4.02083°W﻿ / 21.14583; -4.02083
Country  Mali
Capital Timbuktu
 • Total 496,611 km2 (191,743 sq mi)
Population (2009 census)[2]
 • Total 681,691
 • Density 1.4/km2 (3.6/sq mi)
Time zone UTC (UTC±0)

Tombouctou Region is one of the administrative regions of Mali. It is the largest of Mali's eight regions and includes a large section of the Sahara desert. For administrative purposes, the region is subdivided into five cercles.

The region is part of northern Mali that was separated and declared independent by the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA)during the Tuareg rebellion of 2012. In the course of the conflict, the MNLA lost their control of the territory to Islamist militias.

Tombouctou region is world-famous for its capital, the ancient city Timbuktu (or as known in French, Tombouctou), synonymous to 19th-century Europeans as an elusive, hard-to-reach destination. The city gained world fame in 1390 when its ruler, Mansa Musa, went on a pilgrimage to Mecca, stopping with his entourage in Egypt and dispensing enough gold to devalue the Egyptian currency. This started the legend of a city in the interior of Africa, where roads were said to be paved with gold and buildings topped with roofs of gold.


The city is located at the southern edge of the Sahara, near the Niger River, which has headwaters in the highlands very near the Atlantic coast before its long 2000 mile journey to the northeast, before finally turning south to reach the Atlantic. The riches of the kingdom were due to Tombouctou's position as the southern terminus of the trans-Saharan trade in cocoa, copper and slaves.

Tombouctou's decline began with the capture of the city by Morocco in 1592. Many Islamic scholars were dispersed, some to Morocco. Morocco had difficulty holding onto the city, as the supply lines were long compared to the closer kingdoms vying for dominance of the region. Ultimately, however, it was the rise of sea trade along the West Africa coast that doomed the overland routes that connected North Africa to sub-Saharan Africa. The city lost its economic base and its fine university was not enough to save Timbuktu from decline.

Cut off from major trade routes, the city retained an aura of spectacular treasure. When French explorers rediscovered the city in 1815 they were disappointed to find a sand-blown city of low mud buildings.

The region was marginalized under French colonial control, which ended in 1960. The French opened up shorter trade routes to the Atlantic, cutting into the trans-Sahara trading economy and people in the city.

In early 2012, the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad and other militant groups opposed to the government of Mali swept through the region, entering Tomboutou without a fight after making a deal with local Arab militias. On 6 April 2012, the region was declared independent from Mali as part of the new country of Azawad. However, Mali has refused to acknowledge the Azawadi Declaration of Independence, and the international community continues to recognise Bamako's claim to the region.

Cercles of the Tombouctou Region

Administrative subdivisions[edit]

The region is divided into five cercles:[3][4]

Cercle name Area (km2) Population
Census 1998
Census 2009
Niafunké 12,000 119,900 184,285
Diré 1,750 76,960 111,324
Goundam 92,688 113,897 150,150
Tombouctou 347,488 68,228 124,546
Gourma-Rharous 45,000 63,634 111,386

See also[edit]


  1. ^ Synthèse des 108 Plans Communaux Sécurité Alimentaire de la Région de Tombouctou 2006-2010 (in French), Commissariat à la Sécurité Alimentaire, République du Mali, USAID-Mali, 2006 .
  2. ^ Resultats Provisoires RGPH 2009 (Région de Tombouktou) (in French), République de Mali: Institut National de la Statistique .
  4. ^ Communes de la Région de Tombouctou (in French), Ministère de l’administration territoriale et des collectivités locales, République du Mali .

External links[edit]