Aruba (2001) | Niger (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) | 8 regions (regions, singular - region) includes 1 capital district* (commune urbaine); Agadez, Diffa, Dosso, Maradi, Niamey*, Tahoua, Tillaberi, Zinder |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
21.29% (male 7,709; female 7,193) 15-64 years: 68.52% (male 23,111; female 24,859) 65 years and over: 10.19% (male 2,954; female 4,181) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 47.3% (male 2,811,539/female 2,704,498)
15-64 years: 50.6% (male 2,890,119/female 3,009,281) 65 years and over: 2.1% (male 130,953/female 119,547) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | aloes; livestock; fish | cowpeas, cotton, peanuts, millet, sorghum, cassava (tapioca), rice; cattle, sheep, goats, camels, donkeys, horses, poultry |
Airports | 1 (2000 est.) | 27 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 18
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
193 sq km land: 193 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 1.267 million sq km
land: 1,266,700 sq km water: 300 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Washington, DC | slightly less than twice the size of Texas |
Background | Discovered and claimed for Spain in 1499, Aruba was acquired by the Dutch in 1636. The island's economy has been dominated by three main industries. A 19th century gold rush was followed by prosperity brought on by the opening in 1924 of an oil refinery. The last decades of the 20th century saw a boom in the tourism industry. Aruba seceded from the Netherlands Antilles in 1986 and became a separate, autonomous member of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Movement toward full independence was halted at Aruba's request in 1990. | Not until 1993, 33 years after independence from France, did Niger hold its first free and open elections. A 1995 peace accord ended a five-year Tuareg insurgency in the north. Coups in 1996 and 1999 were followed by the creation of a National Reconciliation Council that effected a transition to civilian rule by December 1999. 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. |
Birth rate | 12.64 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 48.3 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$NA expenditures: $541 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $320 million - including $134 million from foreign sources
expenditures: $320 million, including capital expenditures of $178 million (2002 est.) |
Capital | Oranjestad | Niamey |
Climate | tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation | desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south |
Coastline | 68.5 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 1 January 1986 | new constitution adopted 18 July 1999 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Aruba |
conventional long form: Republic of Niger
conventional short form: Niger local long form: Republique du Niger local short form: Niger |
Currency | Aruban guilder/florin (AWG) | - |
Death rate | 6.21 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 21.33 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $285 million (1996) | $1.6 billion (1999 est.) |
Dependency status | part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; full autonomy in internal affairs obtained in 1986 upon separation from the Netherlands Antilles; Dutch Government responsible for defense and foreign affairs | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Consul General Barbara J. STEPHENSON embassy: J. B. Gorsiraweg #1, Curacao mailing address: P. O. Box 158, Willemstad, Curacao telephone: [599] (9) 461-3066 FAX: [599] (9) 461-6489 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Gail Dennise Thomas MATHIEU
embassy: Rue Des Ambassades, Niamey mailing address: B. P. 11201, Niamey telephone: [227] 72 26 61 through 72 26 64 FAX: [227] 73 31 67, 72-31-46 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands) | chief of mission: Ambassador Joseph DIATTA
chancery: 2204 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4224 through 4227 FAX: [1] (202)483-3169 |
Disputes - international | none | Libya claims about 25,000 sq km in a currently dormant dispute; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated, and states expect a ruling in 2005 from the ICJ over the disputed Niger and Mekrou River islands; only Nigeria and Cameroon have heeded the Lake Chad Commission's admonition to ratify the delimitation treaty which also includes Chad and Niger |
Economic aid - recipient | $26 million (1995); note - the Netherlands provided a $127 million aid package to Aruba and Suriname in 1996 | $341 million (1997) |
Economy - overview | Tourism is the mainstay of the Aruban economy, although offshore banking and oil refining and storage are also important. The rapid growth of the tourism sector over the last decade has resulted in a substantial expansion of other activities. Construction has boomed, with hotel capacity five times the 1985 level. In addition, the reopening of the country's oil refinery in 1993, a major source of employment and foreign exchange earnings, has further spurred growth. Aruba's small labor force and less than 1% unemployment rate have led to a large number of unfilled job vacancies, despite sharp rises in wage rates in recent years. | Niger is one of the poorest countries in the world, a landlocked Sub-Saharan nation, whose economy centers on subsistence crops, livestock, and some of the world's largest uranium deposits. Drought cycles, desertification, a 3.3% population growth rate, and the drop in world demand for uranium 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. 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 418.5 million kWh (1999) | 327.6 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 80 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 450 million kWh (1999) | 266.2 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Jamanota 188 m |
lowest point: Niger River 200 m
highest point: Mont Bagzane 2,022 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | overgrazing; soil erosion; deforestation; desertification; wildlife populations (such as elephant, hippopotamus, giraffe, and lion) threatened because of poaching and habitat destruction |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | mixed white/Caribbean Amerindian 80% | Hausa 56%, Djerma 22%, Fula 8.5%, Tuareg 8%, Beri Beri (Kanouri) 4.3%, Arab, Toubou, and Gourmantche 1.2%, about 1,200 French expatriates |
Exchange rates | Aruban guilders/florins per US dollar - 1.7900 (fixed rate since 1986) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen BEATRIX Wilhelmina Armgard of the Netherlands (since 30 April 1980), represented by Governor General Olindo KOOLMAN (since 1 January 1992) head of government: Prime Minister Jan (Henny) H. EMAN (since 29 July 1994) and Deputy Prime Minister Lili BEKE-MARTINEZ cabinet: Council of Ministers (elected by the Staten) elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed for a six-year term by the monarch; prime minister and deputy prime minister elected by the Staten for four-year terms; election last held 12 July 1997 (next to be held by December 2001) election results: Jan (Henny) H. EMAN elected prime minister; percent of legislative vote - NA%; Lili BEKE-MARTINEZ elected deputy prime minister; percent of legislative vote - NA% |
chief of state: President TANDJA Mamadou (since 22 December 1999); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
head of government: President TANDJA Mamadou (since 22 December 1999); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government; Prime Minister Hama AMADOU (since 31 December 1999) was appointed by the president and shares some executive responsibilities with the president cabinet: 27-member Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; second round last held 4 December 2004 (next to be held December 2009); prime minister appointed by the president election results: TANDJA Mamadou reelected president; percent of vote - TANDJA Mamadou 65.5%, Mahamadou ISSOUFOU 34.5% |
Exports | $2.2 billion (including oil reexports) (2000 est.) | NA |
Exports - commodities | live animals and animal products, art and collectibles, machinery and electrical equipment, transport equipment | uranium ore, livestock, cowpeas, onions |
Exports - partners | US 42%, Colombia 20%, Netherlands 12% (1999) | France 41%, Nigeria 22.4%, Japan 15.3%, Switzerland 6%, Spain 4.1%, Ghana 4% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | blue, with two narrow, horizontal, yellow stripes across the lower portion and a red, four-pointed star outlined in white in the upper hoist-side corner | three equal horizontal bands of orange (top), white, and green with a small orange disk (representing the sun) centered in the white band; similar to the flag of India, which has a blue spoked wheel centered in the white band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $2 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: 39%
industry: 17% services: 44% (2001) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $28,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $900 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.5% (2000 est.) | 3.5% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 12 30 N, 69 58 W | 16 00 N, 8 00 E |
Geography - note | - | landlocked; one of the hottest countries in the world: northern four-fifths is desert, southern one-fifth is savanna, suitable for livestock and limited agriculture |
Highways | total:
800 km paved: 513 km unpaved: 287 km note: most coastal roads are paved, while unpaved roads serve large tracts of the interior (1995) |
total: 10,100 km
paved: 798 km unpaved: 9,302 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 0.8%
highest 10%: 35.4% (1995) |
Illicit drugs | drug-money-laundering center and transit point for narcotics bound for the US and Europe | - |
Imports | $2.5 billion (2000 est.) | NA |
Imports - commodities | machinery and electrical equipment, crude oil for refining and reexport, chemicals; foodstuffs | foodstuffs, machinery, vehicles and parts, petroleum, cereals |
Imports - partners | US 63%, Netherlands 11%, Netherlands Antilles 3%, Japan (1999) | France 14.4%, US 10.3%, French Polynesia 9.4%, Nigeria 7.8%, Cote d'Ivoire 7.5%, Japan 5.2%, China 5.1%, Thailand 4.1% (2004) |
Independence | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) | 3 August 1960 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA (2001 est.) |
Industries | tourism, transshipment facilities, oil refining | uranium mining, cement, brick, soap, textiles, food processing, chemicals, slaughterhouses |
Infant mortality rate | 6.39 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 121.69 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 125.93 deaths/1,000 live births female: 117.33 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.2% (2000 est.) | 3% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | Caricom (observer), ECLAC (associate), Interpol, IOC, UNESCO (associate), WCL, WToO (associate) | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MONUC, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | NA | - |
Irrigated land | 0.01 sq km | 660 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Joint High Court of Justice (judges are appointed by the monarch) | State Court or Cour d'Etat; Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | 41,501 (1997 est.) | 70,000 receive regular wages or salaries (2002 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | most employment is in wholesale and retail trade and repair, followed by hotels and restaurants; oil refining | agriculture 90%, industry and commerce 6%, government 4% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 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 |
Land use | arable land:
7% (including aloe 0.01%) permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 93% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 3.54%
permanent crops: 0.01% other: 96.45% (2001) |
Languages | Dutch (official), Papiamento (a Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, English dialect), English (widely spoken), Spanish | French (official), Hausa, Djerma |
Legal system | based on Dutch civil law system, with some English common law influence | based on French civil law system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislature or Staten (21 seats; members elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 12 December 1997 (next to be held by NA December 2001) election results: percent of vote by party - AVP 43%, MEP 39%, OLA 9% PPA 4%, ADN 2%, PARA 1%, MAS 0.5%; seats by party - AVP 10, MEP 9, OLA 2 |
unicameral National Assembly (113 seats; note - expanded from 83 seats; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms)
elections: last held 4 December 2004 (next to be held December 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MNSD 47, CDS 22, PNDS 17, RSD 7, RDP 6, ANDP 5, Party for Socialism and Democracy in Niger 1, other 8 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
78.52 years male: 75.16 years female: 82.04 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 43.5 years
male: 43.54 years female: 43.45 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
NA total population: 97% male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 17.6% male: 25.8% female: 9.7% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Venezuela | Western Africa, southeast of Algeria |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea:
12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 3,120 GRT/3,635 DWT ships by type: cargo 1 (2000 est.) |
- |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands | - |
Military branches | Royal Dutch Navy and Marines, Coast Guard | Niger Armed Forces (Forces Armees Nigeriennes, FAN): Army, National Air Force (2005) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $33.3 million (2004) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.1% (2004) |
National holiday | Flag Day, 18 March | Republic Day, 18 December (1958) |
Nationality | noun:
Aruban(s) adjective: Aruban; Dutch |
noun: Nigerien(s)
adjective: Nigerien |
Natural hazards | lies outside the Caribbean hurricane belt | recurring droughts |
Natural resources | NEGL; white sandy beaches | uranium, coal, iron ore, tin, phosphates, gold, molybdenum, gypsum, salt, petroleum |
Net migration rate | NEGL | -0.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Aruba Solidarity Movement or MAS [leader NA]; Aruban Democratic Party or PDA [Leo BERLINSKI]; Aruban Liberal Party or OLA [Glenbert CROES]; Aruban Patriotic Party or PPA [Benny NISBET]; Aruban People's Party or AVP [Tico CROES]; Electoral Movement Party or MEP [Nelson ODUBER]; For a Restructured Aruba Now or PARA [leader NA]; National Democratic Action or ADN [Pedro Charro KELLY] | Alliance for Democracy and Progress or ANDP [leader NA]; Democratic Rally of the People-Jama'a or RDP-Jama'a [Hamid ALGABID]; Democratic and Social Convention-Rahama or CDS-Rahama [Mahamane OUSMANE]; National Movement for a Developing Society-Nassara or MNSD-Nassara [TANDJA Mamadou, chairman]; Nigerien Alliance for Democracy and Social Progress-Zaman Lahiya or ANDPS-Zaman Lahiya [Moumouni Adamou DJERMAKOYE]; Nigerien Party for Democracy and Socialism-Tarayya or PNDS-Tarayya [Mahamadou ISSOUFOU]; Party for Socialism and Democracy in Niger [leader NA]; Rally for Social Democracy or RSD [Cheiffou AMADOU]; Union of Democratic Patriots and Progressives-Chamoua or UPDP-Chamoua [Professor Andre' SALIFOU, chairman] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 70,007 (July 2001 est.) | 11,665,937 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 63% (1993 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.64% (2001 est.) | 2.63% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Barcadera, Oranjestad, Sint Nicolaas | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 4, FM 6, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 5, FM 6, shortwave 4 (2001) |
Radios | 50,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Roman Catholic 82%, Protestant 8%, Hindu, Muslim, Confucian, Jewish | Muslim 80%, remainder indigenous beliefs and Christian |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.1 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: more than adequate international: 1 submarine cable to Sint Maarten (Netherlands Antilles); extensive interisland microwave radio relay links |
general assessment: small system of wire, radio telephone communications, and microwave radio relay links concentrated in the southwestern area of Niger
domestic: wire, radiotelephone communications, and microwave radio relay; domestic satellite system with 3 earth stations and 1 planned international: country code - 227; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 33,000 (1997) | 22,400 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 3,402 (1997) | 24,000 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1997) | 3 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (2002) |
Terrain | flat with a few hills; scant vegetation | predominately desert plains and sand dunes; flat to rolling plains in south; hills in north |
Total fertility rate | 1.8 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 6.75 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 0.6% (1999 est.) | NA (2002 est.) |
Waterways | none | 300 km
note: Niger River is navigable to Gaya between September and March (2004) |