Andéramboukane

Andéramboukane
Commune and town
Andéramboukane Location in Mali
Coordinates: 15°25′42″N 3°1′6″E / 15.42833°N 3.01833°E / 15.42833; 3.01833Coordinates: 15°25′42″N 3°1′6″E / 15.42833°N 3.01833°E / 15.42833; 3.01833
Country	Mali
Region	Gao Region
Cercle	Ménaka Cercle
Area
• Total	6,684 km2 (2,581 sq mi)
Population (2009 census)
• Total	18,688
• Density	2.8/km2 (7.2/sq mi)
Time zone	GMT (UTC+0)
• Summer (DST)	not observed (UTC+0)

Andéramboukane (var. Andéramboucane) is a town and one of five Rural Communes in the Ménaka Cercle of the Gao Region of Mali. It lies at the extreme east of the country, several kilometers north of the Nigerien border. Andéramboukane is a rural, isolated, and largely desert area, crisscrossed by seasonal wadis, part of an ancient dry river system of the Azawagh region (the Iullemmeden Basin). The area is just south of the rocky outcrops of the Ader Douchi hills, and north of the Sahel scrubland which begins in Niger. Most of the population of the area are nomadic Tuareg or other nomadic minorities, including the Wodaabe Fula. The sedentary population is a largely low caste Tuareg community. The town is a seasonal gathering point for the Kel Dinnik Tuareg confederation, who travel from the desert Azawagh in the rainy season and the Niger River valley in the dry season. Since the 1990s, the town has hosted a formalised version of the traditional fairs that take place at beginning of the southward transhumance cycle. This festival, named Tamadacht, has become a showcase of traditional and contemporary Tuareg and Wodaabe music, dance, sport, performance, and arts.

The area around Andéramboukane has a reputation for lawlessness. Since the 1990s, there have been conflicts between Nigerien Fula and Malian Tuareg cattle herders in the area, and the theft of animals has been a regular occurrence. In addition, the vast empty border region is used as a route to smuggle drugs, alcohol, weapons and illegal migrants from tropical Africa to the Mediterranean.

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Wikipedia