Learn about barriers to market entry and local requirements, i.e., things to be aware of when entering the market for this country.

Despite some progress in improving the business environment, corruption remains the largest barrier to doing business in Mali. The World Bank’s Doing Business Report ranked Mali at 145 out of 190 countries for ease of doing business in 2019 (a slight drop from its ranking of 143 out of 190 in 2018). The process for new business registration takes an average of 11 days. Corruption is particularly pervasive in procurement, import and export of products, tax payment, administrative processing, and land management. Other major challenges to investment include a limited power supply and poor transportation infrastructure. There is insufficient commercial bank credit in the market, and interest rates are high. Insufficient skilled labor poses a challenge in industries, such as industrial mining, which require more advanced skills. Mali is landlocked, with a small domestic market for consumer goods, and suffers from severe poverty. Recent political and security crises in Mali, as well as corruption on major trade corridors between Mali and its neighbors, have added further hurdles to international trade.  

Prepared by our U.S. Embassies abroad. With its network of 108 offices across the United States and in more than 75 countries, the U.S. Commercial Service of the U.S. Department of Commerce utilizes its global presence and international marketing expertise to help U.S. companies sell their products and services worldwide. Locate the U.S. Commercial Service trade specialist in the U.S. nearest you by visiting http://export.gov/usoffices.