Burundi (2008) | Niger (2008) | |
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Administrative divisions | 17 provinces; Bubanza, Bujumbura Mairie, Bujumbura Rurale, Bururi, Cankuzo, Cibitoke, Gitega, Karuzi, Kayanza, Kirundo, Makamba, Muramvya, Muyinga, Mwaro, Ngozi, Rutana, Ruyigi | 8 regions (regions, singular - region) includes 1 capital district* (communite urbaine); Agadez, Diffa, Dosso, Maradi, Niamey*, Tahoua, Tillaberi, Zinder |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 46.3% (male 1,951,879/female 1,930,371)
15-64 years: 51.2% (male 2,131,759/female 2,162,093) 65 years and over: 2.6% (male 85,522/female 128,881) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 46.9% (male 3,083,871/female 2,969,201)
15-64 years: 50.6% (male 3,354,783/female 3,174,039) 65 years and over: 2.4% (male 155,430/female 157,541) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, cotton, tea, corn, sorghum, sweet potatoes, bananas, manioc (tapioca); beef, milk, hides | cowpeas, cotton, peanuts, millet, sorghum, cassava (tapioca), rice; cattle, sheep, goats, camels, donkeys, horses, poultry |
Airports | 8 (2007) | 28 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2007) |
total: 19
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 3 (2007) |
Area | total: 27,830 sq km
land: 25,650 sq km water: 2,180 sq km |
total: 1.267 million sq km
land: 1,266,700 sq km water: 300 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly less than twice the size of Texas |
Background | Burundi's first democratically elected president was assassinated in October 1993 after only 100 days in office, triggering widespread ethnic violence between Hutu and Tutsi factions. More than 200,000 Burundians perished during the conflict that spanned almost a dozen years. Hundreds of thousands of Burundians were internally displaced or became refugees in neighboring countries. An internationally brokered power-sharing agreement between the Tutsi-dominated government and the Hutu rebels in 2003 paved the way for a transition process that led to an integrated defense force, established a new constitution in 2005, and elected a majority Hutu government in 2005. The new government, led by President Pierre NKURUNZIZA, signed a South African brokered ceasefire with the country's last rebel group in September of 2006 but still faces many challenges. | 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. 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. 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. Events have since evolved into a budding insurrection. |
Birth rate | 41.97 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 50.16 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $259.4 million
expenditures: $331.8 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2007 est.) |
revenues: $320 million (includes $134 million from foreign sources)
expenditures: $320 million (2002 est.) |
Capital | name: Bujumbura
geographic coordinates: 3 22 S, 29 21 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
name: Niamey
geographic coordinates: 13 31 N, 2 07 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | equatorial; high plateau with considerable altitude variation (772 m to 2,670 m above sea level); average annual temperature varies with altitude from 23 to 17 degrees centigrade but is generally moderate as the average altitude is about 1,700 m; average annual rainfall is about 150 cm; two wet seasons (February to May and September to November), and two dry seasons (June to August and December to January) | desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 28 February 2005; ratified by popular referendum | new constitution adopted 18 July 1999 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Burundi
conventional short form: Burundi local long form: Republique du Burundi/Republika y'u Burundi local short form: Burundi former: Urundi |
conventional long form: Republic of Niger
conventional short form: Niger local long form: Republique du Niger local short form: Niger |
Death rate | 13.17 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 20.59 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.2 billion (2003) | $2.1 billion (2003 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Patricia Newton MOLLER
embassy: Avenue des Etats-Unis, Bujumbura mailing address: B. P. 1720, Bujumbura telephone: [257] 223454 FAX: [257] 222926 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Bernadette M. ALLEN
embassy: Rue Des Ambassades, Niamey mailing address: B. P. 11201, Niamey telephone: [227] 20-73-31-69 FAX: [227] 20-73-55-60 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Celestin NIYONGABO
chancery: Suite 212, 2233 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 342-2574 FAX: [1] (202) 342-2578 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Aminata Djibrilla Maiga TOURE
chancery: 2204 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4224 through 4227 FAX: [1] (202)483-3169 |
Disputes - international | conflicts among Tutsi, Hutu, other ethnic groups, associated political rebels, armed gangs, and various government forces have abated somewhat in the Great Lakes region; UN Operation in Burundi (ONUB) completed its mandate in December 2006 after a three-year peace-keeping mission | 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 |
Economic aid - recipient | $365 million (2005) | $515.4 million (2005) |
Economy - overview | Burundi is a landlocked, resource-poor country with an underdeveloped manufacturing sector. The economy is predominantly agricultural with more than 90% of the population dependent on subsistence agriculture. Economic growth depends on coffee and tea exports, which account for 90% of foreign exchange earnings. The ability to pay for imports, therefore, rests primarily on weather conditions and international coffee and tea prices. The Tutsi minority, 14% of the population, dominates the government and the coffee trade at the expense of the Hutu majority, 85% of the population. An ethnic-based war that lasted for over a decade resulted in more than 200,000 deaths, forced more than 48,000 refugees into Tanzania, and displaced 140,000 others internally. Only one in two children go to school, and approximately one in 15 adults has HIV/AIDS. Food, medicine, and electricity remain in short supply. Burundi grew about 5% annually in 2006, but GDP growth probably fell to under 4% in 2007. Political stability and the end of the civil war have improved aid flows and economic activity has increased, but underlying weaknesses - a high poverty rate, poor education rates, a weak legal system, and low administrative capacity - risk undermining planned economic reforms. Burundi will continue to remain heavily dependent on aid from bilateral and multilateral donors; the delay of funds after a corruption scandal cut off bilateral aid in 2007 reduced government's revenues and its ability to pay salaries. | 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 161.4 million kWh (2005) | 437.7 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 34 million kWh; note - supplied by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2005) | 220 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 137 million kWh (2005) | 234.1 million kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Lake Tanganyika 772 m
highest point: Heha 2,670 m |
lowest point: Niger River 200 m
highest point: Mont Bagzane 2,022 m |
Environment - current issues | soil erosion as a result of overgrazing and the expansion of agriculture into marginal lands; deforestation (little forested land remains because of uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel); habitat loss threatens wildlife populations | 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, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
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 | Hutu (Bantu) 85%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 14%, Twa (Pygmy) 1%, Europeans 3,000, South Asians 2,000 | Haoussa 55.4%, Djerma Sonrai 21%, Touareg 9.3%, Peuhl 8.5%, Kanouri Manga 4.7%, other 1.2% (2001 census) |
Exchange rates | Burundi francs per US dollar - 1,065 (2007), 1,030 (2006), 1,138 (2005), 1,100.91 (2004), 1,082.62 (2003) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 493.51 (2007), 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Pierre NKURUNZIZA (since 26 August 2005); First Vice President Yves SAVINGUVU - Tutsi (since 9 November 2007); Second Vice President Gabriel NTISEZERANA - Hutu (since 9 February 2007)
head of government: President Pierre NKURUNZIZA (since 26 August 2005); First Vice President Yves SAVINGUVU - Tutsi (since 9 November 2007); Second Vice President Gabriel NTISEZERANA - Hutu (since 9 February 2007) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by president elections: the president is elected by popular vote to a five-year term (eligible for a second term); note - the constitution adopted in February 2005 permits the post-transition president to be elected by a two-thirds majority of the parliament; vice presidents nominated by the president, endorsed by parliament election results: Pierre NKURUNZIZA was elected president by the parliament by a vote of 151 to 9; note - the constitution adopted in February 2005 permits the post-transition president to be elected by a two-thirds majority of the legislature |
chief of state: President Mamadou TANDJA (since 22 December 1999)
head of government: Prime Minister Seyni OUMAROU (since 3 June 2007); appointed by the president and shares some executive responsibilities with the president cabinet: 26-member Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); second round of election last held 4 December 2004 (next to be held December 2009) election results: Mamadou TANDJA reelected president; percent of vote - Mamadou TANDJA 65.5%, Mahamadou ISSOUFOU 34.5% |
Exports | 0 bbl/day (2004) | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | coffee, tea, sugar, cotton, hides | uranium ore, livestock, cowpeas, onions |
Exports - partners | Switzerland 33.7%, UK 12.2%, Pakistan 8.5%, Rwanda 5.3%, Egypt 4.2% (2006) | France 34.8%, US 26.6%, Nigeria 18.3%, Russia 11.3% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | divided by a white diagonal cross into red panels (top and bottom) and green panels (hoist side and fly side) with a white disk superimposed at the center bearing three red six-pointed stars outlined in green arranged in a triangular design (one star above, two stars below) | 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 - composition by sector | agriculture: 44.9%
industry: 20.9% services: 34.1% (2006 est.) |
agriculture: 39%
industry: 17% services: 44% (2001) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.5% (2007 est.) | 4.5% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 3 30 S, 30 00 E | 16 00 N, 8 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; straddles crest of the Nile-Congo watershed; the Kagera, which drains into Lake Victoria, is the most remote headstream of the White Nile | 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 |
Heliports | 1 (2007) | - |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1.7%
highest 10%: 32.8% (1998) |
lowest 10%: 0.8%
highest 10%: 35.4% (1995) |
Imports | 2,687 bbl/day (2004) | 5,412 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | capital goods, petroleum products, foodstuffs | foodstuffs, machinery, vehicles and parts, petroleum, cereals |
Imports - partners | Saudi Arabia 12.6%, Kenya 8.2%, Japan 7.8%, Russia 4.7%, UK 4.6%, France 4.4%, China 4.4% (2006) | US 14.1%, France 12.1%, China 7.8%, Nigeria 7.7%, French Polynesia 7.7%, Cote d'Ivoire 4.9% (2006) |
Independence | 1 July 1962 (from UN trusteeship under Belgian administration) | 3 August 1960 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7.5% (2007 est.) | 5.1% (2003 est.) |
Industries | light consumer goods such as blankets, shoes, soap; assembly of imported components; public works construction; food processing | uranium mining, cement, brick, soap, textiles, food processing, chemicals, slaughterhouses |
Infant mortality rate | total: 61.93 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 68.91 deaths/1,000 live births female: 54.75 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 116.83 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 120.78 deaths/1,000 live births female: 112.76 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 7% (2007 est.) | 0.2% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, CEPGL, COMESA, EAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (subscriber), ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 210 sq km (2003) | 730 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; Constitutional Court; Courts of Appeal (there are three in separate locations); Tribunals of First Instance (17 at the province level and 123 small local tribunals) | State Court or Cour d'Etat; Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | 2.99 million (2002) | 70,000 salaried workers, 60% of whom are employed in the public sector (1995) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 93.6%
industry: 2.3% services: 4.1% (2002 est.) |
agriculture: 90%
industry: 6% services: 4% (1995) |
Land boundaries | total: 974 km
border countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo 233 km, Rwanda 290 km, Tanzania 451 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: 35.57%
permanent crops: 13.12% other: 51.31% (2005) |
arable land: 11.43%
permanent crops: 0.01% other: 88.56% (2005) |
Languages | Kirundi (official), French (official), Swahili (along Lake Tanganyika and in the Bujumbura area) | French (official), Hausa, Djerma |
Legal system | based on German and Belgian civil codes 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 | bicameral Parliament or Parlement, consists of a National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (minimum 100 seats, 60% Hutu and 40% Tutsi with at least 30% being women; additional seats appointed by a National Independent Electoral Commission to ensure ethnic representation; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and a Senate (54 seats; 34 members elected by indirect vote to serve five-year terms, with remaining seats assigned to ethnic groups and former chiefs of state)
elections: National Assembly - last held 4 July 2005 (next to be held in 2010); Senate - last held 29 July 2005 (next to be held in 2010) election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - CNDD-FDD 58.6%, FRODEBU 21.7%, UPRONA 7.2%, CNDD 4.1%, MRC-Rurenzangemero 2.1%, others 6.2%; seats by party - CNDD-FDD 59, FRODEBU 25, UPRONA 10, CNDD 4, MRC-Rurenzangemero 2; Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - CNDD-FDD 30, FRODEBU 3, CNDD 1 |
unicameral National Assembly (113 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 4 December 2004 (next to be held in December 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - MNSD 47, PNDS 25, CDS 22, RSD 7, RDP 6, ANDP 5, PSDN 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 51.29 years
male: 50.48 years female: 52.12 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 44.03 years
male: 44.05 years female: 44 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 59.3% male: 67.3% female: 52.2% (2000 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 28.7% male: 42.9% female: 15.1% (2005 est.) |
Location | Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo | Western Africa, southeast of Algeria |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
Military branches | National Defense Force (Forces de Defense Nationales, FDN): Army (includes Naval Detachment and Air Wing) (2008) | Nigerien Armed Forces (Forces Armees Nigeriennes, FAN): Army, Niger Air Force (2007) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 5.9% (2006 est.) | 1.3% (2006) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 July (1962) | Republic Day, 18 December (1958) |
Nationality | noun: Burundian(s)
adjective: Burundian |
noun: Nigerien(s)
adjective: Nigerien |
Natural hazards | flooding, landslides, drought | recurring droughts |
Natural resources | nickel, uranium, rare earth oxides, peat, cobalt, copper, platinum, vanadium, arable land, hydropower, niobium, tantalum, gold, tin, tungsten, kaolin, limestone | uranium, coal, iron ore, tin, phosphates, gold, molybdenum, gypsum, salt, petroleum |
Net migration rate | 7.13 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -0.59 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | governing parties: Burundi Democratic Front or FRODEBU [Leonce NGENDAKUMANA]; National Council for the Defense of Democracy - Front for the Defense of Democracy or CNDD-FDD [Jeremie NGENDAKUMANA]; Unity for National Progress or UPRONA [Aloys RUBUKA]
note: a multiparty system was introduced after 1998, included are: National Council for the Defense of Democracy or CNDD [Leonard NYANGOMA]; National Resistance Movement for the Rehabilitation of the Citizen or MRC-Rurenzangemero [Epitace BANYAGANAKANDI]; Party for National Redress or PARENA [Jean-Baptiste BAGAZA] |
Democratic and Social Convention-Rahama or CDS-Rahama [Mahamane OUSMANE]; National Movement for a Developing Society-Nassara or MNSD-Nassara [Hama AMADOU]; Niger Social Democratic Party or PSDN; Nigerien Alliance for Democracy and Social Progress-Zaman Lahiya or ANDP-Zaman Lahiya [Moumouni DJERMAKOYE]; Nigerien Party for Autonomy or PNA-Alouma'a [Sanousi JACKOU]; Nigerien Party for Democracy and Socialism or PNDS-Tarrayya [Issifou MAHAMADOU]; Nigerien Progressive Party or PPN-RDA [Abdoulaye DIORI]; Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP-jama'a [Hamid ALGABID]; Social and Democratic Rally or RSD-Gaskiyya [Cheiffou AMADOU] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | The Nigerien Movement for Justice or MNJ, a predominantly Tuareg rebel group demanding concessions including a greater share of the country's uranium revenues from the government |
Population | 8,390,505
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 2007 est.) |
12,894,865 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 68% (2002 est.) | 63% (1993 est.) |
Population growth rate | 3.593% (2007 est.) | 2.898% (2007 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001) | AM 5, FM 6, shortwave 4 (2001) |
Religions | Christian 67% (Roman Catholic 62%, Protestant 5%), indigenous beliefs 23%, Muslim 10% | Muslim 80%, other (includes indigenous beliefs and Christian) 20% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.011 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.986 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.664 male(s)/female total population: 0.988 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.039 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.057 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.987 male(s)/female total population: 1.047 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | NA years of age; universal (adult) | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: primitive system; telephone density one of the lowest in the world; fixed-line connections stand at well less than 1 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular usage is increasing but remains at a meager 2 per 100 persons
domestic: sparse system of open-wire, radiotelephone communications, and low-capacity microwave radio relay international: country code - 257; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) (2007) |
general assessment: inadequate; small system of wire, radio telephone communications, and microwave radio relay links concentrated in the southwestern area of Niger
domestic: combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular teledensity is less than 3 per 100 persons; 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 | 31,100 (2005) | 24,000 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 153,000 (2005) | 323,900 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2001) | 5 (2007) |
Terrain | hilly and mountainous, dropping to a plateau in east, some plains | predominately desert plains and sand dunes; flat to rolling plains in south; hills in north |
Total fertility rate | 6.48 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 7.37 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | NA% |
Waterways | mainly on Lake Tanganyika (2005) | 300 km (the Niger, the only major river, is navigable to Gaya between September and March) (2005) |