Brunei (2002) | Niger (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 4 districts (daerah-daerah, singular - daerah); Belait, Brunei and Muara, Temburong, Tutong | 7 departments (departements, singular - departement), and 1 capital district* (capitale district); Agadez, Diffa, Dosso, Maradi, Niamey*, Tahoua, Tillaberi, Zinder |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 30.2% (male 54,038; female 51,833)
15-64 years: 67% (male 125,051; female 110,257) 65 years and over: 2.8% (male 4,609; female 5,110) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years:
47.97% (male 2,528,484; female 2,439,051) 15-64 years: 49.75% (male 2,518,400; female 2,633,677) 65 years and over: 2.28% (male 123,589; female 111,955) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, vegetables, fruits, chickens, water buffalo | cowpeas, cotton, peanuts, millet, sorghum, cassava (tapioca), rice; cattle, sheep, goats, camels, donkeys, horses, poultry |
Airports | 2 (2001) | 27 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
9 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
18 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 5,770 sq km
land: 5,270 sq km water: 500 sq km |
total:
1.267 million sq km land: 1,266,700 sq km water: 300 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Delaware | slightly less than twice the size of Texas |
Background | The Sultanate of Brunei's heyday occurred between the 15th and 17th centuries, when its control extended over coastal areas of northwest Borneo and the southern Philippines. Brunei subsequently entered a period of decline brought on by internal strife over royal succession, colonial expansion of European powers, and piracy. In 1888, Brunei became a British protectorate; independence was achieved in 1984. Brunei benefits from extensive petroleum and natural gas fields, the source of one of the highest per capita GDPs in the less developed countries. The same family has ruled Brunei for over six centuries. | 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 in December 1999. |
Birth rate | 20.06 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 50.68 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.5 billion
expenditures: $2.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.35 billion (1997 est.) |
revenues:
$377 million, including $146 million from foreign sources expenditures: $377 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1999 est.) |
Capital | Bandar Seri Begawan | Niamey |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid, rainy | desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south |
Coastline | 161 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 29 September 1959 (some provisions suspended under a State of Emergency since December 1962, others since independence on 1 January 1984) | 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: Negara Brunei Darussalam
conventional short form: Brunei |
conventional long form:
Republic of Niger conventional short form: Niger local long form: Republique du Niger local short form: Niger |
Currency | Bruneian dollar (BND) | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States |
Death rate | 3.38 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 22.71 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $0 | $1.3 billion (1999 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Gene B. CHRISTY
embassy: Third Floor, Teck Guan Plaza, Jalan Sultan, Bandar Seri Begawan mailing address: PSC 470 (BSB), FPO AP 96507 telephone: [673] (2) 229670 FAX: [673] (2) 225293 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Charles O. CECIL 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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador PUTEH ibni Mohammad Alam
chancery: 3520 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 237-1838 FAX: [1] (202) 885-0560 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Joseph DIATTA chancery: 2204 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4224 through 4227 |
Disputes - international | Brunei established an exclusive economic fishing zone encompassing Louisa Reef in southern Spratly Islands in 1984, but makes no public territorial claim to the offshore reefs | Libya claims about 19,400 sq km in northern Niger; delimitation of international boundaries in the vicinity of Lake Chad, the lack of which led to border incidents in the past, has been completed and awaits ratification by Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria |
Economic aid - recipient | $4.3 million (1995) (1995) | $341 million (1997)
note: 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 |
Economy - overview | This small, wealthy economy is a mixture of foreign and domestic entrepreneurship, government regulation, welfare measures, and village tradition. Crude oil and natural gas production account for nearly half of GDP. Per capita GDP is far above most other Third World countries, and substantial income from overseas investment supplements income from domestic production. The government provides for all medical services and subsidizes rice and housing. Brunei's leaders are concerned that steadily increased integration in the world economy will undermine internal social cohesion although it became a more prominent player by serving as chairman for the 2000 APEC (Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation) forum. Plans for the future include upgrading the labor force, reducing unemployment, strengthening the banking and tourist sectors, and, in general, further widening the economic base beyond oil and gas. | Niger is a poor, landlocked Sub-Saharan nation, whose economy centers on subsistence agriculture, animal husbandry, 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, the World Bank approved a structural adjustment loan of $35 million to help support fiscal reforms. However, reforms could prove difficult given the government's bleak financial situation. |
Electricity - consumption | 2.065 billion kWh (2000) | 401 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 215 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 2.22 billion kWh (2000) | 200 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Bukit Pagon 1,850 m |
lowest point:
Niger River 200 m highest point: Mont Greboun 1,944 m |
Environment - current issues | seasonal smoke/haze resulting from forest fires in Indonesia | 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: Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
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 | Malay 67%, Chinese 15%, indigenous 6%, other 12% | 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 | Bruneian dollars per US dollar - 1.8388 (January 2002), 1.8917 (2001), 1.7240 (2000), 1.6950 (1999), 1.6736 (1998), 1.4848 (1997); note - the Bruneian dollar is at par with the Singapore dollar | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 699.21 (January 2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997), 511.55 (1996); note - from 1 January 1999, the XOF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF per euro |
Executive branch | chief of state: Sultan and Prime Minister Sir HASSANAL Bolkiah (since 5 October 1967); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: Sultan and Prime Minister Sir HASSANAL Bolkiah (since 5 October 1967); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Cabinet Ministers appointed and presided over by the monarch; deals with executive matters; note - there is also a Religious Council (members appointed by the monarch) that advises on religious matters, a Privy Council (members appointed by the monarch) that deals with constitutional matters, and the Council of Succession (members appointed by the monarch) that determines the succession to the throne if the need arises elections: none; the monarch is hereditary |
chief of state:
President Mamadou TANDJA (since 22 December 1999); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government head of government: President Mamadou TANDJA (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 note: President Ibrahim BARE was assassinated on 9 April 1999; subsequent elections were held under the nine-month provisional government of Major Daouda Mallam WANKE cabinet: 23-member cabinet appointed by President TANDJA elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; last held 24 November 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Mamadou TANDJA elected president; percent of vote - Mamadou TANDJA 59.9%, Mahamadou ISSOUFOU 40.1% |
Exports | $3 billion f.o.b. (2000 est.) | $385 million (f.o.b., 1999) |
Exports - commodities | crude oil, natural gas, refined products | uranium ore 65%, livestock products, cowpeas, onions (1998 est.) |
Exports - partners | Japan 42%, US 17%, South Korea 14%, Thailand 3% (1999) | France 45%, Nigeria 27%, UK 11% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | yellow with two diagonal bands of white (top, almost double width) and black starting from the upper hoist side; the national emblem in red is superimposed at the center; the emblem includes a swallow-tailed flag on top of a winged column within an upturned crescent above a scroll and flanked by two upraised hands | 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 - $6.2 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $10 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 5%
industry: 45% services: 50% (2001 est.) |
agriculture:
40% industry: 18% services: 42% (1998) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $18,000 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2001 est.) | 3.5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 4 30 N, 114 40 E | 16 00 N, 8 00 E |
Geography - note | close to vital sea lanes through South China Sea linking Indian and Pacific Oceans; two parts physically separated by Malaysia; almost an enclave of Malaysia | landlocked |
Heliports | 3 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 1,712 km
paved: 1,284 km unpaved: 428 km (1996) |
total:
10,100 km paved: 798 km unpaved: 9,302 km (1996) |
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 trafficking and illegally importing controlled substances are serious offenses in Brunei and carry a mandatory death penalty | - |
Imports | $1.4 billion c.i.f. (2000 est.) | $317 million (f.o.b., 1999) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, chemicals | consumer goods, primary materials, machinery, vehicles and parts, petroleum, cereals |
Imports - partners | Singapore 34%, UK 15%, Malaysia 15%, US 5% (1999) | France 22%, Cote d'Ivoire 15%, Nigeria 8%, US 3% (1999) |
Independence | 1 January 1984 (from UK) | 3 August 1958 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4% (1997 est.) | NA% |
Industries | petroleum, petroleum refining, liquefied natural gas, construction | uranium mining, cement, brick, textiles, food processing, chemicals, slaughterhouses |
Infant mortality rate | 13.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 123.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (1999 est.) | 2.8% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | APEC, ARF, ASEAN, C, CCC, ESCAP, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDB, IFRCS, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ITU, MIPONUH, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB, WAEMU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1998 est.) | 660 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (chief justice and judges are sworn in by the monarch for three-year terms) | State Court or Cour d'Etat; Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | 143,400 (1999 est.); note - includes foreign workers and military personnel
note: temporary residents make up 41% of labor force (1991) (1999 est.) |
70,000 receive regular wages or salaries |
Labor force - by occupation | government 48%, production of oil, natural gas, services, and construction 42%, agriculture, forestry, and fishing 10% (1999 est.) | agriculture 90%, industry and commerce 6%, government 4% |
Land boundaries | total: 381 km
border countries: Malaysia 381 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: 0.57%
permanent crops: 0.76% other: 98.67% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
3% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 7% forests and woodland: 2% other: 88% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Malay (official), English, Chinese | French (official), Hausa, Djerma |
Legal system | based on English common law; for Muslims, Islamic Shari'a law supersedes civil law in a number of areas | based on French civil law system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Council or Majlis Masyuarat Megeri (a privy council that serves only in a consultative capacity; NA seats; members appointed by the monarch)
elections: last held in March 1962 note: in 1970 the Council was changed to an appointive body by decree of the monarch; an elected Legislative Council is being considered as part of constitutional reform, but elections are unlikely for several years |
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: 74.06 years
male: 71.68 years female: 76.56 years (2002 est.) |
total population:
41.59 years male: 41.74 years female: 41.44 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 88.2% male: 92.6% female: 83.4% (1995 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 13.6% male: 20.9% female: 6.6% (1995 est.) |
Location | Southeastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and Malaysia | Western Africa, southeast of Algeria |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM or to median line
territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 7 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 348,476 GRT/340,635 DWT
ships by type: liquefied gas 7 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: United Kingdom 7 (2002 est.) |
- |
Military branches | Land Forces, Navy, Air Force, Royal Brunei Police | Army, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, Republican Guard, National Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $343 million (FY98) | $20 million (FY96) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 5.1% (FY98) | 1.1% (FY96) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 108,921 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
2,202,608 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 62,864 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
1,190,787 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 3,005 (2002 est.) | males:
108,993 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | National Day, 23 February (1984); note - 1 January 1984 was the date of independence from the UK, 23 February 1984 was the date of independence from British protection | Republic Day, 18 December (1958) |
Nationality | noun: Bruneian(s)
adjective: Bruneian |
noun:
Nigerien(s) adjective: Nigerien |
Natural hazards | typhoons, earthquakes, and severe flooding are very rare | recurring droughts |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, timber | uranium, coal, iron ore, tin, phosphates, gold, petroleum |
Net migration rate | 3.91 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -0.73 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 135 km; petroleum products 418 km; natural gas 920 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | Brunei Solidarity National Party or PPKB in Malay [Haji Mohd HATTA bin Haji Zainal Abidin, president]; the PPKB is the only legal political party in Brunei; it was registered in 1985, but became largely inactive after 1988, it was revived in 1995 and again in 1998; it has less than 200 registered party members; other parties include Brunei People's Party or PRB (banned in 1962) and Brunei National Democratic Party (registered in May 1965, deregistered by the Brunei Government in 1988) | 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 | 350,898 (July 2002 est.) | 10,355,156 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 63% (1993 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.06% (2002 est.) | 2.72% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bandar Seri Begawan, Kuala Belait, Muara, Seria, Tutong | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 10, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 5, FM 5, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | 329,000 (1998) | 680,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 13 km (private line)
narrow gauge: 13 km 0.610-m gauge (2001 est.) |
0 km |
Religions | Muslim (official) 67%, Buddhist 13%, Christian 10%, indigenous beliefs and other 10% | Muslim 80%, remainder indigenous beliefs and Christians |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.13 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female total population: 1.1 male(s)/female (2002 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 (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | none | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: service throughout country is excellent; international service good to Europe, US, and East Asia
domestic: every service available international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean); digital submarine cable links to Malaysia, Singapore, and Philippines (2001) |
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 | 79,000 (1996) | 16,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 43,524 (1996) | 13,000 (1995) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1997) | 10 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | flat coastal plain rises to mountains in east; hilly lowland in west | predominately desert plains and sand dunes; flat to rolling plains in south; hills in north |
Total fertility rate | 2.4 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 7.08 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | 209 km; navigable by craft drawing less than 1.2 m | 300 km
note: the Niger River is navigable from Niamey to Gaya on the Benin frontier from mid-December through March |