Flags of Mali

Green, yellow and red are the colors of the flag of the country of Mali. Like any other flags, these colors symbolize deep meanings: green for hope, yellow for purity and mineral wealth, red for strength and blood shed for the fight for independence. Adopted on March 1, 1961, the current flag of Mali is the second to be adopted by the African country. Mali's first flag was adopted on April 4, 1959 when the country was still known as the Mali Federation created by Senegal and French Sudan. Mali gained independence from France on September 22, 1960.

Because of their shared heritage, Mali and Senegal has similar flags except that the Mali flag depicts a star in the middle. Both flags are based on the French flag. Instead of the French colors though, Pan African hues were used. The colors of the flag of Mali were also borrowed from the African Democratic Rally which was the political party who led the fight for freedom from France. The first Mali flag featured a "kanaga" symbol, a black human-like image. It was removed though in 1961 because of pressures from Muslims who do not approved of making images, especially that of humans.