Rural population in Mali
Mali: Rural population was 17.08 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
Rural population in Mali, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
Analysis
The most recent figure for rural population in Mali is 17.08 million, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 66 years on record.
The figure is up 2.0% on the previous year and up 23.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population in Mali peaked at 17.08 million in 2025 and was at its lowest, 5.02 million, in 1960.
That places Mali 34th out of 218 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Rural population in Mali, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 5.02 million | — |
| 1961 | 5.08 million | +1.1% |
| 1962 | 5.13 million | +1.1% |
| 1963 | 5.19 million | +1.1% |
| 1964 | 5.24 million | +1.1% |
| 1965 | 5.30 million | +1.1% |
| 1966 | 5.36 million | +1.1% |
| 1967 | 5.41 million | +1.1% |
| 1968 | 5.47 million | +1.1% |
| 1969 | 5.54 million | +1.1% |
| 1970 | 5.60 million | +1.2% |
| 1971 | 5.67 million | +1.2% |
| 1972 | 5.74 million | +1.2% |
| 1973 | 5.82 million | +1.3% |
| 1974 | 5.90 million | +1.4% |
| 1975 | 5.98 million | +1.4% |
| 1976 | 6.07 million | +1.4% |
| 1977 | 6.16 million | +1.5% |
| 1978 | 6.26 million | +1.6% |
| 1979 | 6.36 million | +1.7% |
| 1980 | 6.47 million | +1.8% |
| 1981 | 6.59 million | +1.8% |
| 1982 | 6.71 million | +1.8% |
| 1983 | 6.84 million | +1.9% |
| 1984 | 6.96 million | +1.8% |
| 1985 | 7.08 million | +1.7% |
| 1986 | 7.19 million | +1.6% |
| 1987 | 7.29 million | +1.5% |
| 1988 | 7.40 million | +1.5% |
| 1989 | 7.52 million | +1.6% |
| 1990 | 7.65 million | +1.7% |
| 1991 | 7.79 million | +1.8% |
| 1992 | 7.93 million | +1.8% |
| 1993 | 8.08 million | +1.9% |
| 1994 | 8.23 million | +1.9% |
| 1995 | 8.39 million | +1.9% |
| 1996 | 8.55 million | +1.9% |
| 1997 | 8.72 million | +2.0% |
| 1998 | 8.91 million | +2.2% |
| 1999 | 9.13 million | +2.4% |
| 2000 | 9.37 million | +2.6% |
| 2001 | 9.61 million | +2.6% |
| 2002 | 9.87 million | +2.7% |
| 2003 | 10.14 million | +2.7% |
| 2004 | 10.42 million | +2.8% |
| 2005 | 10.71 million | +2.8% |
| 2006 | 11.01 million | +2.8% |
| 2007 | 11.31 million | +2.8% |
| 2008 | 11.63 million | +2.7% |
| 2009 | 11.94 million | +2.7% |
| 2010 | 12.26 million | +2.7% |
| 2011 | 12.58 million | +2.6% |
| 2012 | 12.86 million | +2.3% |
| 2013 | 13.15 million | +2.2% |
| 2014 | 13.47 million | +2.4% |
| 2015 | 13.79 million | +2.4% |
| 2016 | 14.12 million | +2.4% |
| 2017 | 14.45 million | +2.4% |
| 2018 | 14.78 million | +2.3% |
| 2019 | 15.10 million | +2.1% |
| 2020 | 15.41 million | +2.1% |
| 2021 | 15.74 million | +2.1% |
| 2022 | 16.06 million | +2.0% |
| 2023 | 16.40 million | +2.1% |
| 2024 | 16.74 million | +2.1% |
| 2025 | 17.08 million | +2.0% |
Mali compared with similar countries
- Mali's 17.08 million is above the median for low income countries, which is 15.21 million, 1.1× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Mali's 17.08 million is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 9.41 million, 1.8× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 5.28 million | 5.02 million | 5.54 million | 10 |
| 1970s | 5.95 million | 5.60 million | 6.36 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 7.01 million | 6.47 million | 7.52 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 8.34 million | 7.65 million | 9.13 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 10.60 million | 9.37 million | 11.94 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 13.65 million | 12.26 million | 15.10 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 16.24 million | 15.41 million | 17.08 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near Mali
More agriculture & rural data for Mali
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 13.83 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.3302 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 394.01 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 2.03 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0006 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.6779 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 33.0% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 33.0% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 8.4% (2023)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.4% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population in Mali?
- Rural population in Mali was 17.08 million in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest rural population recorded in Mali?
- The highest recorded value was 17.08 million in 2025.
- What is the lowest rural population recorded in Mali?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.02 million in 1960.
- How does Mali rank for rural population?
- Mali ranks 34th out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Is rural population rising or falling in Mali?
- Over the last ten years it is up 23.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Mali data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Rural population. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Rural population refers to people living in rural areas as defined by national statistical offices. It is calculated as the difference between total population and urban population. Aggregation of urban and rural population may not add up to total population because of different country coverages.