Diafarabé

Diafarabé
Commune and village
Diafarabé Location in Mali
Coordinates: 14°8′20″N 5°1′8″W / 14.13889°N 5.01889°WCoordinates: 14°8′20″N 5°1′8″W / 14.13889°N 5.01889°W
Country	Mali
Region	Mopti Region
Cercle	Ténenkou Cercle
Area[1]
• Total	980 km^2 (380 sq mi)
Population (2009 census)[2]
• Total	15,748
• Density	16/km^2 (42/sq mi)
Time zone	GMT (UTC+0)

Diafarabé is a village and rural commune of the Cercle of Ténenkou in the Mopti Region of Mali. The commune is at the southern boundary of the cercle. It covers an area of approximately 980 square kilometers and extends on both sides of the Niger River. The commune includes 10 villages^[3] and in the 2009 census had a population of 15,748.^[2] The main village of Diafarabé, the chef-lieu, is situated on the north bank of the river next to the junction with the Diaka Channel, a distributary that only flows when the Niger is in flood.

A market takes place in the village on Mondays and serves many settlements in the surrounding area.^[4]

Every year in late November thousands of cattle are shepherded across the Diaka as they return to the grazing areas in the Inner Niger Delta. The Traversée des Animaux is an important festival for village.^[5]

References

1. Plan de Securité Alimentaire Commune Rurale de Diafarabé 2006–2010 (PDF) (in French), Commissariat à la Sécurité Alimentaire, République du Mali, USAID-Mali, 2006.
2. Resultats Provisoires RGPH 2009 (Région de Kayes) (PDF) (in French), République de Mali: Institut National de la Statistique.
3. Communes de la Région de Mopti (PDF) (in French), Ministère de l’administration territoriale et des collectivités locales, République du Mali.
4. Quensière, Jacques, ed. (1994), La pêche dans le delta central du Niger: approche pluridisciplinaire d'un système de production halieutique (PDF) (in French), Paris: ORSTOM, Karthala, p. 539 Carte VI, ISBN 2709912023.
5. Traoré, Nouhoum (2009), Diafarabé : La 191e Traversée des Animaux, République du Mali.