Sikasso

Sikasso is the capital of the Sikasso Cercle and the Sikasso Region in southern Mali. With 225,753 residents according to the 2009 census, it is Mali's second largest city.

Sikasso is and has always been a mercantile town. Nestled near the multi-state border of Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, and Guinea, it benefits from a location that connects Africa's landlocked heart to the ports that dot the Atlantic coast. That trading history can still be found among the throbbing and frenetic fruit and vegetable markets that erupt ad hoc on virtually every block throughout the week.

Sikasso also has a second claim to fame. In the late nineteenth century, it was elevated to the status of imperial capital, an honor bestowed by King Tieba Traoré, whose own mother was born there. The Mamelon Hill rises are the place to go to find out more about that story.

Location: Sikasso region, south of Mali