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Kidal is the eighth administrative region of Mali
Mali

Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked nation in West Africa. Mali is the seventh largest country in Africa, bordering Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the C?te d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west....
, covering 151,430 km². Its capital is the city of Kidal
Kidal

Kidal is a Tuareg city in northern Mali. It is the capital of Kidal Region and of Kidal Cercle....
.

region is bordered on the west by Tomboctou Region
Tombouctou Region

Tombouctou is the largest northern-most region of Mali, comprised mostly of the Southwestern section of the Sahara desert.Tombouctou region is famous outside Mali for its capital, the ancient city Timbuktu , synonymous to 19th century Europeans as an elusive, hard-to-reach destination....
, to the south by Gao Region
Gao Region

The Gao Region is located in western Mali. The region's capital city ismGao Region is bordered to the south and east by Niger, to the north by Kidal Region, and to the west by Tombouctou Region....
, to the east by Niger
Niger

Niger , officially the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east....
 and to the north by Algeria
Algeria

Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country located in North Africa. It is the largest country of the Mediterranean sea, second largest in the Arab World, and the second largest on the African continent and the eleventh-largest country in the world in terms of land area....
.

Kidal has a desert climate with day-time temperatures that reach as high as 45°C (113°F).

The population numbers 85,000, mostly Tuareg
Tuareg

The Tuareg are a nomadic pastoralist people. They are the principal inhabitants of the Saharan interior of North Africa. They call themselves variously Kel Tamasheq or Kel Tamajaq , Imuhagh, Imazaghan or Imashaghen , or Kel Tagelmust, i.e., "People of the Veil"....
s and Songhai
Songhai

The Songhai are an ethnic group from western Africa akin to the Mand?. The Songhai languages, however, has been connected with the Nilo-Saharan languages language family, unlike their neighboring counterparts....
s.

The largest cities of the region are Kidal, Tessalit
Tessalit

Tessalit is a city in Mali's Kidal Region. The town is both a Communes of Mali and the capital of Tessalit Cercle . As of 1998 the commune had a total population of 2,533....
, and Aguel'hoc
Aguel'hoc

Aguelhok or Aguel'hoc is a Communes of Mali in the north of Mali's Kidal Region that serves as the seat of its Arrondissements of Mali, in the Cercle of Tessalit.As of 1998 the commune had a population of 3,111....
.

primary trades of Kidal Region include livestock breeding, craft-making, and commerce.






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Kidal is the eighth administrative region of Mali
Mali

Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked nation in West Africa. Mali is the seventh largest country in Africa, bordering Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the C?te d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west....
, covering 151,430 km². Its capital is the city of Kidal
Kidal

Kidal is a Tuareg city in northern Mali. It is the capital of Kidal Region and of Kidal Cercle....
.

Geography

The region is bordered on the west by Tomboctou Region
Tombouctou Region

Tombouctou is the largest northern-most region of Mali, comprised mostly of the Southwestern section of the Sahara desert.Tombouctou region is famous outside Mali for its capital, the ancient city Timbuktu , synonymous to 19th century Europeans as an elusive, hard-to-reach destination....
, to the south by Gao Region
Gao Region

The Gao Region is located in western Mali. The region's capital city ismGao Region is bordered to the south and east by Niger, to the north by Kidal Region, and to the west by Tombouctou Region....
, to the east by Niger
Niger

Niger , officially the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east....
 and to the north by Algeria
Algeria

Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country located in North Africa. It is the largest country of the Mediterranean sea, second largest in the Arab World, and the second largest on the African continent and the eleventh-largest country in the world in terms of land area....
.

Kidal has a desert climate with day-time temperatures that reach as high as 45°C (113°F).

The population numbers 85,000, mostly Tuareg
Tuareg

The Tuareg are a nomadic pastoralist people. They are the principal inhabitants of the Saharan interior of North Africa. They call themselves variously Kel Tamasheq or Kel Tamajaq , Imuhagh, Imazaghan or Imashaghen , or Kel Tagelmust, i.e., "People of the Veil"....
s and Songhai
Songhai

The Songhai are an ethnic group from western Africa akin to the Mand?. The Songhai languages, however, has been connected with the Nilo-Saharan languages language family, unlike their neighboring counterparts....
s.

The largest cities of the region are Kidal, Tessalit
Tessalit

Tessalit is a city in Mali's Kidal Region. The town is both a Communes of Mali and the capital of Tessalit Cercle . As of 1998 the commune had a total population of 2,533....
, and Aguel'hoc
Aguel'hoc

Aguelhok or Aguel'hoc is a Communes of Mali in the north of Mali's Kidal Region that serves as the seat of its Arrondissements of Mali, in the Cercle of Tessalit.As of 1998 the commune had a population of 3,111....
.

Transportation and economy

The primary trades of Kidal Region include livestock breeding, craft-making, and commerce. Commercial farming has been developed in some areas. The region is extremely isolated, with no paved highways or rivers for transportation.

History

The region saw Tuareg rebellions
Tuareg Rebellion

The Tuareg Rebellion was an Rebellion by various Tuareg groups in Niger and Mali with the aim of achieving Autonomous entity or forming their own nation-state....
 in 1963-64
1964

1964 was a leap year starting on Wednesday of the 1964 Gregorian calendar....
 and in 1990-91
1991

1991 was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian Calendar. The year number was a palindrome, the following was in 2002....
. The accords of Tamanresset followed on January 6, 1991, creating the Kidal Region by decree on August 8, 1991.

Culture

Each year the Desert Music Festival
Desert Music Festival

The Festival au D?sert is an annual concert in Essakane, Mali, showcasing traditional Tuareg music as well as world music. The Tuareg band Tinariwen first garnered international attention with their performance at the 2001 Festival....
 is held at Essouk
Essouk

Essouk or Tin-Essako is a village, Communes of Mali and Cercles of Mali in Mali's north-eastern Kidal Region.As of 1998 the entire cercle and commune had a total population of 935.This makes the area the least populated cercle in Mali, because of its hot Sahara Desert extreme climate....
.

The region is peopled primarily by Tuaregs, a nomadic ethnicity of Berber origin. Their writing is the Tifinagh
Tifinagh

Tifinagh is an alphabetic script used by some Berber peoples, notably the Tuareg, to write their language. The Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley....
 alphabet.

Though nomad
Nomad

Nomadic people, , also known as nomads, are communities of people who move from one place to another, rather than Settler in one location....
ism remains the lifestyle best adapted to the difficult environment of the region, several settlements have emerged at Kidal, Aguel'hoc
Aguel'hoc

Aguelhok or Aguel'hoc is a Communes of Mali in the north of Mali's Kidal Region that serves as the seat of its Arrondissements of Mali, in the Cercle of Tessalit.As of 1998 the commune had a population of 3,111....
, Tessalit
Tessalit

Tessalit is a city in Mali's Kidal Region. The town is both a Communes of Mali and the capital of Tessalit Cercle . As of 1998 the commune had a total population of 2,533....
, and Tinzawatène.

Administrative subdivisions

Kidal Cercles
Kidal Region is divided into four Cercles encompassing 11 communes:
  • Abéibara
    Abeïbara

    Abe?bara is a small desert town and Communes of Mali and capital of the Abe?bara Cercle in the Kidal Region of north-eastern Mali. As of 1998 the commune had a total population of 2,187....
  • Kidal
    Kidal

    Kidal is a Tuareg city in northern Mali. It is the capital of Kidal Region and of Kidal Cercle....
  • Tin-Essako
  • Tessalit
    Tessalit

    Tessalit is a city in Mali's Kidal Region. The town is both a Communes of Mali and the capital of Tessalit Cercle . As of 1998 the commune had a total population of 2,533....


See also

  • Regions of Mali
    Regions of Mali

    |||}Mali is divided into eight regions and one district. The principal city of each regions bears the name of the region, respectively. The regions are divided into 49 Cercles of Mali....
  • Cercles of Mali
    Cercles of Mali

    |||}A Cercle is the second level administrative unit in Mali. Mali is divided into eight Regions of Mali and one capitol district ....


External links