The wildlife of Mali, composed of its flora and fauna, is widely varying from the Saharan desert zone (covering about 33% of the country) to the Sahelian east–west zone, to Mali, a landlocked francophone country in North Africa; large swathes of Mali remain unpopulated but has three sub-equal vegetation zones; the country has Sahara Desert in the north, the Niger RiverBasin at its center and the Senegal River on the south.