Compare Benin (2006) - Niger (2003)

Compare Benin (2006) z Niger (2003)

	Benin (2006)	Niger (2003)

Administrative divisions	12 departments; Alibori, Atakora, Atlantique, Borgou, Collines, Kouffo, Donga, Littoral, Mono, Oueme, Plateau, Zou	7 departments (departements, singular - departement) and 1 capital district (capitale district); Agadez, Diffa, Dosso, Maradi, Niamey, Tahoua, Tillaberi, Zinder
Age structure	0-14 years: 44.1% (male 1,751,709/female 1,719,138) 15-64 years: 53.5% (male 2,067,248/female 2,138,957) 65 years and over: 2.4% (male 75,694/female 110,198) (2006 est.)	0-14 years: 47.6% (male 2,686,169; female 2,581,785) 15-64 years: 50.2% (male 2,710,554; female 2,842,319) 65 years and over: 2.2% (male 125,505; female 112,258) (2003 est.)
Agriculture - products	cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts; livestock	cowpeas, cotton, peanuts, millet, sorghum, cassava (tapioca), rice; cattle, sheep, goats, camels, donkeys, horses, poultry
Airports	5 (2006)	27 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006)	total: 9 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 under 914 m: 1 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2006)	total: 18 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 2 (2002)
Area	total: 112,620 sq km land: 110,620 sq km water: 2,000 sq km	total: 1.267 million sq km land: 1,266,700 sq km water: 300 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Pennsylvania	slightly less than twice the size of Texas
Background	Present day Benin was the site of Dahomey, a prominent West African kingdom that rose in the 15th century. The territory became a French Colony in 1872 and achieved independence on 1 August 1960, as the Republic of Benin. A succession of military governments ended in 1972 with the rise to power of Mathieu KEREKOU and the establishment of a government based on Marxist-Leninist principles. A move to representative government began in 1989. Two years later, free elections ushered in former Prime Minister Nicephore SOGLO as president, marking the first successful transfer of power in Africa from a dictatorship to a democracy. KEREKOU was returned to power by elections held in 1996 and 2001, though some irregularities were alleged.	Not until 1993, 33 years after independence from France, did Niger hold it's 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.
Birth rate	38.85 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)	49.54 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Budget	revenues: $766.8 million expenditures: $1.017 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.)	revenues: $320 million - including $134 million from foreign sources expenditures: $320 million, including capital expenditures of $178 million (2002 est.)
Capital	name: Porto-Novo (official capital) geographic coordinates: 6 29 N, 2 37 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Cotonou (seat of government)	Niamey
Climate	tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north	desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south
Coastline	121 km	0 km (landlocked)
Constitution	December 1990	the constitution of January 1993 was revised by national referendum on 12 May 1996 and again by referendum on 18 July 1999
Country name	conventional long form: Republic of Benin conventional short form: Benin local long form: Republique du Benin local short form: Benin former: Dahomey	conventional long form: Republic of Niger conventional short form: Niger local long form: Republique du Niger local short form: Niger
Currency	-	Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States
Death rate	12.22 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)	21.71 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Debt - external	$1.6 billion (2000)	$1.6 billion (1999 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Wayne NEILL embassy: Rue Caporal Bernard Anani, Cotonou mailing address: 01 B. P. 2012, Cotonou telephone: [229] 30-06-50 FAX: [229] 30-06-70	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	chief of mission: Ambassador Cyrille Segbe OGUIN chancery: 2124 Kalorama Road NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-6656 FAX: [1] (202) 265-1996	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	Benin and Burkina Faso military clash in 2006 over sections of riverine boundary involving disputed villages and squatters; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated; in 2005, Nigeria ceded thirteen villages to Benin as a consequence of a 2004 joint task force to resolve maritime and land boundary disputes, but clashes among rival gangs along the border persist; a joint boundary commission continues to resurvey the boundary with Togo to verify Benin's claim that Togo moved boundary stones	Libya claims about 25,000 sq km in a currently dormant dispute; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated but states accept 2001 arbitration over disputed Niger River islands; Lake Chad Commission continues to urge signatories Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria to ratify delimitation treaty over the lake region, which remains the site of armed clashes among local populations and militias
Economic aid - recipient	$342.6 million (2000)	$341 million (1997)
Economy - overview	The economy of Benin remains underdeveloped and dependent on subsistence agriculture, cotton production, and regional trade. Growth in real output has averaged around 5% in the past six years, but rapid population growth has offset much of this increase. Inflation has subsided over the past several years. In order to raise growth still further, Benin plans to attract more foreign investment, place more emphasis on tourism, facilitate the development of new food processing systems and agricultural products, and encourage new information and communication technology. Many of these proposals are included in Benin's application to receive Millennium Challenge Account funding - for which it was a finalist in 2004-05. The 2001 privatization policy continues in telecommunications, water, electricity, and agriculture in spite of government reluctance. The Paris Club and bilateral creditors have eased the external debt situation, with Benin benefiting from a G8 debt reduction announced in July 2005, while pressing for more rapid structural reforms. Benin continues to be hurt by Nigerian trade protection that bans imports of a growing list of products from Benin and elsewhere, which has resulted in increased smuggling and criminality in the border region.	Niger is a poor, landlocked Sub-Saharan nation, whose economy centers on subsistence agriculture, animal husbandry, and reexport trade, and increasingly less on uranium, because of declining world demand. The 50% devaluation of the West African franc in January 1994 boosted exports of livestock, cowpeas, onions, and the products of Niger's small cotton industry. The government relies on bilateral and multilateral aid - which was suspended following the April 1999 coup d'etat - for operating expenses and public investment. In 2000-01, the World Bank approved a structural adjustment loan of $105 million to help support fiscal reforms. However, reforms could prove difficult given the government's bleak financial situation. The IMF approved a $73 million poverty reduction and growth facility for Niger in 2000 and announced $115 million in debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. Further disbursements of aid occurred in 2002. Future growth may be sustained by exploitation of oil, gold, coal, and other mineral resources.
Electricity - consumption	538.2 million kWh (2003)	325.1 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2003)	0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	474 million kWh (2003)	100 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	69 million kWh (2003)	242 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source	-	fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m	lowest point: Niger River 200 m highest point: Mont Bagzane 2,022 m
Environment - current issues	inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification	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, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea
Ethnic groups	African 99% (42 ethnic groups, most important being Fon, Adja, Yoruba, Bariba), Europeans 5,500	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	Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001)	Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.7 (1999), 589.95 (1998)
Executive branch	chief of state: President YAYI Boni (since 6 April 2006); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President YAYI Boni (since 6 April 2006) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president reelected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); runoff election held 19 March 2006 (next to be held March 2011) election results: YAYI Boni elected president; percent of vote - YAYI Boni 74.5%, Adrien HOUNGBEDJI 25.5%	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: 23-member Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; last held 24 November 1999 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister appointed by the president election results: TANDJA Mamadou elected president; percent of vote - TANDJA Mamadou 59.9%, Mahamadou ISSOUFOU 40.1%
Exports	NA bbl/day	NA (2001)
Exports - commodities	cotton, crude oil, palm products, cocoa	uranium ore, livestock, cowpeas, onions
Exports - partners	China 31.3%, Indonesia 8.1%, India 7.4%, Niger 6%, Togo 4.8%, Thailand 4.8%, Nigeria 4.6% (2005)	France 39%, Nigeria 33.2%, Japan 17.1% (2002)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
Flag description	two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and red (bottom) with a vertical green band on the hoist side	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 - $8.713 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 31.6% industry: 13.8% services: 54.6% (2004 est.)	agriculture: 39% industry: 17% services: 44% (2001)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $800 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	3.5% (2005 est.)	2.9% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates	9 30 N, 2 15 E	16 00 N, 8 00 E
Geography - note	sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands	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: 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	transshipment point for narcotics associated with Nigerian trafficking organizations and most commonly destined for Western Europe and the US; vulnerable to money laundering due to a poorly regulated financial infrastructure	-
Imports	NA bbl/day	NA (2001)
Imports - commodities	foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products	foodstuffs, machinery, vehicles and parts, petroleum, cereals
Imports - partners	France 21.8%, Ghana 7.1%, Cote d'Ivoire 7%, China 6.7%, UK 5.2%, Belgium 4.9%, Togo 4.5%, Thailand 4.2%, Nigeria 4% (2005)	France 16.8%, Cote d'Ivoire 14.9%, China 9.8%, Nigeria 7.4%, US 5.2%, Japan 4.6%, India 4.4% (2002)
Independence	1 August 1960 (from France)	3 August 1960 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate	8.3% (2001 est.)	NA%
Industries	textiles, food processing, construction materials, cement	uranium mining, cement, brick, textiles, food processing, chemicals, slaughterhouses
Infant mortality rate	total: 79.56 deaths/1,000 live births male: 84.09 deaths/1,000 live births female: 74.88 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)	total: 123.64 deaths/1,000 live births male: 127.99 deaths/1,000 live births female: 119.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	3.5% (2005 est.)	3% (2002 est.)
International organization participation	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OIF, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, ECA, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIPONUH, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	-	1 (2002)
Irrigated land	120 sq km (2003)	660 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle; Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Court of Justice	State Court or Cour d'Etat; Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel
Labor force	3.211 million	70,000 receive regular wages or salaries
Labor force - by occupation	-	agriculture 90%, industry and commerce 6%, government 4%
Land boundaries	total: 1,989 km border countries: Burkina Faso 306 km, Niger 266 km, Nigeria 773 km, Togo 644 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: 23.53% permanent crops: 2.37% other: 74.1% (2005)	arable land: 3.94% permanent crops: 0% other: 96.06% (1998 est.)
Languages	French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north)	French (official), Hausa, Djerma
Legal system	based on French civil law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	based on French civil law system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch	unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (83 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 30 March 2003 (next to be held March 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Presidential Movement (UBF, MADEP, FC, Alliance MDC-PC-CPP, IPD, AFP, MDS, RDP) 52, opposition (PRB, PRD, E'toile, and 5 other small parties) 31	unicameral National Assembly (83 seats, members elected by popular vote for five-year terms) elections: last held 24 November 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MNSD-Nassara 38, CDS-Rahama 17, PNDS-Tarayya 16, RDP-Jama'a 8, ANDPS-Zaman Lahiya 4
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 53.04 years male: 51.9 years female: 54.22 years (2006 est.)	total population: 42.21 years male: 42.29 years female: 42.12 years (2003 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 33.6% male: 46.4% female: 22.6% (2002 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 17.6% male: 25.8% female: 9.7% (2003 est.)
Location	Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Nigeria and Togo	Western Africa, southeast of Algeria
Map references	Africa	Africa
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 200 nm	none (landlocked)
Military branches	Army, Navy, Air Force	Army, Air Force, Gendarmerie, National Intervention and Security Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$100.9 million (2005 est.)	$20.54 million (FY02)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	2.3% (2005 est.)	1.1% (FY02)
Military manpower - availability	-	males age 15-49: 2,379,485 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	-	males age 15-49: 1,288,396 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - military age	-	18 years of age (2003 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	-	males: 119,367 (2003 est.)
National holiday	National Day, 1 August (1960)	Republic Day, 18 December (1958)
Nationality	noun: Beninese (singular and plural) adjective: Beninese	noun: Nigerien(s) adjective: Nigerien
Natural hazards	hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March	recurring droughts
Natural resources	small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber	uranium, coal, iron ore, tin, phosphates, gold, petroleum
Net migration rate	0.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)	-0.69 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Political parties and leaders	Alliance of Progress Forces or AFP; African Movement for Democracy and Progress or MADEP [Sefou FAGBOHOUN]; Democratic Renewal Party or PRD [Adrien HOUNGBEDJI]; Impulse for Progress and Democracy or IPD; Key Force or FC; Movement for Development and Solidarity or MDS; Movement for Development by the Culture-Salute Party-Congress of People for Progress Alliance or Alliance MDC-PS-CPP; New Alliance or NA; Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP; Renaissance Party du Benin or RB [Nicephore SOGLO]; The Star Alliance (Alliance E'toile) [Sacca LAFIA]; Union of Tomorrow's Benin or UBF [Bruno AMOUSSOU] note: approximately 20 additional minor parties	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 [Mamadou TANDJA, 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]; Union of Democratic Patriots and Progressives-Chamoua or UPDP-Chamoua [Professor Andre' SALIFOU, chairman]
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	NA
Population	7,862,944 note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2006 est.)	11,058,590 (July 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line	33% (2001 est.)	63% (1993 est.)
Population growth rate	2.73% (2006 est.)	2.71% (2003 est.)
Ports and harbors	-	none
Radio broadcast stations	AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2000)	AM 5, FM 6, shortwave 4 (2001)
Railways	total: 578 km narrow gauge: 578 km 1.000-m gauge (2005)	0 km
Religions	indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 30%, Muslim 20%	Muslim 80%, remainder indigenous beliefs and Christian
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2006 est.)	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.12 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: NA domestic: fair system of open-wire, microwave radio relay, and cellular connections international: country code - 229; satellite earth station - 7 (Intelsat-Atlantic Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia	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: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use	76,300 (2005)	20,000 (2001)
Telephones - mobile cellular	386,700 (2005)	6,700 (2002)
Television broadcast stations	1 (2001)	3 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (2002)
Terrain	mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains	predominately desert plains and sand dunes; flat to rolling plains in south; hills in north
Total fertility rate	5.2 children born/woman (2006 est.)	6.91 children born/woman (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate	NA%	NA%
Waterways	150 km (on River Niger along northern border) (2005)	300 km note: the Niger River is navigable from Niamey to Gaya on the Benin frontier from mid-December through March

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