Niger
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Niger
Niger is a landlocked country in western-Africa, southeast of Algeria.
One of the hottest countries in the world, Niger is dominated by the Sahara Desert which covers the northern four-fifths of country with desert plains and sand dunes.
The southern one-fifth, where the Niger River crosses the country, is savanna, with flat to rolling plains suitable for livestock and limited agriculture.
There are hills in north. Niger is one of the poorest countries in the world with minimal government services and insufficient funds to develop its resource base.
The largely agrarian and subsistence-based economy is frequently disrupted by extended droughts common to the Sahel region of Africa.
Location of Niger. Source: Vardion/Wikipedia
Niger's major environmental issues include:
- overgrazing;
- soil erosion;
- deforestation;
- desertification; and,
- wildlife populations (such as elephant, hippopotamus, giraffe, and lion) which are threatened because of poaching and habitat destruction.
Niger is susceptible to recurring droughts.
Niger became independent from France in 1960 and experienced single-party and military rule until 1991, when Gen. Ali Saibou was forced by public pressure to allow multiparty elections, which resulted in a democratic government in 1993.
Political infighting brought the government to a standstill and in 1996 led to a coup by Col. Ibrahim Bare.
In 1999 Bare was killed in a coup by military officers who promptly restored democratic rule and held elections that brought Mamadou Tandja to power in December of that year. Tandja was reelected in 2004.
A predominately Tuareg ethnic group emerged in February 2007, the Nigerien Movement for Justice (MNJ), and attacked several military targets in Niger's northern region throughout 2007 and 2008. Events have since evolved into a fledging insurgency.
Source: CIA World Factbook
Geography
Location: Western Africa, southeast of Algeria
Geographic Coordinates: 16 00 N, 8 00 E
Area: 1.267 million km2 (1,266,700 km2 land and 300 km2water)
arable land: 11.43%
permanent crops: 0.01%
other: 88.56% (2005)
Land Boundaries: 5,697 km. Border countries: Algeria 956 km, Benin 266 km, Burkina Faso 628 km, Chad 1,175 km, Libya 354 km, Mali 821 km, Nigeria 1,497 km
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
Maritime Claims: none (landlocked)
Natural Hazards: recurring droughts
Terrain: Predominately desert plains and sand dunes; flat to rolling plains in south; hills in north. Its lowest point is the Niger River (200 metres) and its highest point is Mont Bagzane (2,022 metres)
Climate: Desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south
Government
Government Type: Republic
Capital: Niamey
Independence Date: 3 August 1960 (from France)
Legal System: based on French civil law system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
International Environmental Agreements
Niger is party to international agreements on: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, and Wetlands. It has signed, but not ratified the international agreement known as the Law of the Sea.
People and Society
Population: 13,272,679 (July 2008 est.)
Age Structure:
0-14 years: 47% (male 3,174,834/female 3,057,003)
15-64 years: 50.6% (male 3,450,393/female 3,267,496)
65 years and over: 2.4% (male 159,945/female 163,008) (2008 est.)
Population Growth Rate: 2.878% (2008 est.)
Birth Rate: 49.62 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Death Rate: 20.26 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Net Migration Rate: -0.57 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Life Expectancy at Birth: 44.28 years (2008 est.)
Total Fertility Rate: 7.29 children born/woman (2008 est.)
Languages: French (official), Hausa, Djerma
Literacy (2005 est.): 28.7% (male: 42.9% - female: 15.1%)
Water
Total Renewable Water Resources: 33.7 cu km (2003)
Freshwater Withdrawal: Total: 2.18 cu km/yr (4% domestic, 0% industrial, 95% agricultural). Per capita: 156 cu m/yr (2000)
Agriculture
Agricultural Products: cowpeas, cotton, peanuts, millet, sorghum, cassava (tapioca), rice; cattle, sheep, goats, camels, donkeys, horses, poultry
Irrigated Land: 730 sq km (2003)
Resources
Natural Resources: uranium, coal, iron ore, tin, phosphates, gold, molybdenum, gypsum, salt, petroleum.
Energy
| Energy in Niger | |||||
| Production | Consumption | Exports | Imports | Reserves | |
| Electricity | 234.1 million kWh (2005) | 437.7 million kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2005) | 220 million kWh (2005) | |
| Oil | 0 bbl/day (2005 est.) | 5,450 bbl/day (2005 est.) | 0 bbl/day (2004) | 5,412 bbl/day (2004) | NA bbl |
| Natural Gas | 0 cu m (2005 est.) | 0 cu m (2005 est.) | 0 cu m (2005 est.) | 0 cu m (2005) | 0 cu m (1 January 2006 est.) |
| Source: CIA Factbook | |||||
Health
Prevalence Rate of HIV/AIDS in Adults: 1.2% (2003 est.)
Major Infectious Diseases: degree of risk: very high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne disease: malaria
respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis
note: highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has been identified in this country; it poses a negligible risk with extremely rare cases possible among US citizens who have close contact with birds (2008)
Conflict
International Dispute: Libya claims about 25,000 sq km in a currently dormant dispute in the Tommo region; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated; only Nigeria and Cameroon have heeded the Lake Chad Commission's admonition to ratify the delimitation treaty which also includes the Chad-Niger and Niger-Nigeria boundaries
Economy
Niger is one of the poorest countries in the world, ranking near last on the United Nations Development Fund index of human development. It is a landlocked, Sub-Saharan nation, whose economy centers on subsistence crops, livestock, and some of the world's largest uranium deposits. Drought cycles, desertification, and a 2.9% population growth rate, have undercut the economy. Niger shares a common currency, the CFA franc, and a common central bank, the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO), with seven other members of the West African Monetary Union. In December 2000, Niger qualified for enhanced debt relief under the International Monetary Fund program for Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) and concluded an agreement with the Fund on a Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF). Debt relief provided under the enhanced HIPC initiative significantly reduces Niger's annual debt service obligations, freeing funds for expenditures on basic health care, primary education, HIV/AIDS prevention, rural infrastructure, and other programs geared at poverty reduction. In December 2005, Niger received 100% multilateral debt relief from the IMF, which translates into the forgiveness of approximately US $86 million in debts to the IMF, excluding the remaining assistance under HIPC. Nearly half of the government's budget is derived from foreign donor resources. Future growth may be sustained by exploitation of oil, gold, coal, and other mineral resources. Uranium prices have increased sharply in the last few years. A drought and locust infestation in 2005 led to food shortages for as many as 2.5 million Nigeriens.
GDP (Purchasing Power Parity): $8.902 billion (2007 est.)
GDP (Official Exchange Rate): $4.174 billion (2007 est.)
GDP- real growth rate: 3.2% (2007 est.)
GDP- per capita (PPP): $700 (2007 est.)
GDP- composition by sector:
agriculture: 39%
industry: 17%
services: 44% (2001)
Population Below Poverty Line: 63% (1993 est.)
Industries: uranium mining, cement, brick, soap, textiles, food processing, chemicals, slaughterhouses
Exports: uranium ore, livestock, cowpeas, onions
Export Partners: France 50.3%, Nigeria 23.3%, Russia 13.8% (2006)
Imports: foodstuffs, machinery, vehicles and parts, petroleum, cereals
Import Partners: France 15.4%, French Polynesia 8.5%, Nigeria 8.3%, Belgium 8.3%, US 6.7%, Cote d'Ivoire 5.5% (2006)
Economic Aid Recipient: $515.4 million (2005)
Currency: $515.4 million (2005)
Further Reading
Citation
Central Intelligence Agency (Lead Author);CIA World Factbook (Content Source);Lakhdar Boukerrou (Topic Editor) "Niger". In: Encyclopedia of Earth. Eds. Cutler J. Cleveland (Washington, D.C.: Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment). [First published in the Encyclopedia of Earth June 1, 2009; Last revised Date December 31, 2011; Retrieved February 9, 2012 <http://www.eoearth.org/article/Niger>
The Author
The Central Intelligence Agency was created in 1947 with the signing of the National Security Act by President Harry S. Truman. The act also created a Director of Central Intelligence (DCI) to serve as head of the United States intelligence community; act as the principal adviser to the President for intelligence matters related to the national security; and serve as head of the Central Intelligence Agency. The Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 amended the National Securit ... (Full Bio)
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