Iceland (2004) | Niger (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 8 regions; Austurland, Hofudhborgarsvaedhi, Nordhurland Eystra, Nordhurland Vestra, Sudhurland, Sudhurnes, Vestfirdhir, Vesturland | 7 departments (departements, singular - departement), and 1 capital district* (capitale district); Agadez, Diffa, Dosso, Maradi, Niamey*, Tahoua, Tillaberi, Zinder |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 22.5% (male 33,522; female 32,489)
15-64 years: 65.8% (male 98,091; female 95,450) 65 years and over: 11.7% (male 15,552; female 18,862) (2004 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 | potatoes, green vegetables, mutton, dairy products, fish | cowpeas, cotton, peanuts, millet, sorghum, cassava (tapioca), rice; cattle, sheep, goats, camels, donkeys, horses, poultry |
Airports | 100 (2003 est.) | 27 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 5
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
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: 93
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 29 under 914 m: 61 (2004 est.) |
total:
18 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 103,000 sq km
land: 100,250 sq km water: 2,750 sq km |
total:
1.267 million sq km land: 1,266,700 sq km water: 300 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Kentucky | slightly less than twice the size of Texas |
Background | Settled by Norwegian and Celtic (Scottish and Irish) immigrants during the late 9th and 10th centuries A.D., Iceland boasts the world's oldest functioning legislative assembly, the Althing, established in 930. Independent for over 300 years, Iceland was subsequently ruled by Norway and Denmark. Fallout from the Askja volcano of 1875 devastated the Icelandic economy and caused widespread famine. Over the next quarter century, 20% of the island's population emigrated, mostly to Canada and the US. Limited home rule from Denmark was granted in 1874 and complete independence attained in 1944. Literacy, longevity, income, and social cohesion are first-rate by world standards. | 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 | 13.83 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 50.68 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $4.205 billion
expenditures: $4.405 billion, including capital expenditures of $467 million (2003) |
revenues:
$377 million, including $146 million from foreign sources expenditures: $377 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1999 est.) |
Capital | Reykjavik | Niamey |
Climate | temperate; moderated by North Atlantic Current; mild, windy winters; damp, cool summers | desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south |
Coastline | 4,988 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 16 June 1944, effective 17 June 1944 | 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 Iceland
conventional short form: Iceland local long form: Lydhveldidh Island local short form: Island |
conventional long form:
Republic of Niger conventional short form: Niger local long form: Republique du Niger local short form: Niger |
Currency | Icelandic krona (ISK) | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States |
Death rate | 6.57 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 22.71 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.6 billion (1999) | $1.3 billion (1999 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador James I. GADSDEN
embassy: Laufasvegur 21, 101 Reykjavik mailing address: US Embassy, PSC 1003, Box 40, FPO AE 09728-0340 telephone: [354] 562-9100 FAX: [354] 562-9118 |
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 Helgi AGUSTSSON
chancery: Suite 1200, 1156 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005-1704 telephone: [1] (202) 265-6653 FAX: [1] (202) 265-6656 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Joseph DIATTA chancery: 2204 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4224 through 4227 |
Disputes - international | Rockall continental shelf dispute involving Denmark, Iceland, and the UK (Ireland and the UK have signed a boundary agreement in the Rockall area) remains dormant; dispute with Denmark over the Faroe Islands' fisheries median line boundary within 200 nm; disputes with Denmark, the UK, and Ireland over the Faroe Islands continental shelf boundary outside 200 nm | 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 - donor | NA | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $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 | Iceland's Scandinavian-type economy is basically capitalistic, yet with an extensive welfare system (including generous housing subsidies), low unemployment, and remarkably even distribution of income. In the absence of other natural resources (except for abundant geothermal power), the economy depends heavily on the fishing industry, which provides 70% of export earnings and employs 12% of the work force. The economy remains sensitive to declining fish stocks as well as to fluctuations in world prices for its main exports: fish and fish products, aluminum, and ferrosilicon. Government policies include reducing the budget and current account deficits, limiting foreign borrowing, containing inflation, revising agricultural and fishing policies, diversifying the economy, and privatizing state-owned industries. The government remains opposed to EU membership, primarily because of Icelanders' concern about losing control over their fishing resources. Iceland's economy has been diversifying into manufacturing and service industries in the last decade, and new developments in software production, biotechnology, and financial services are taking place. The tourism sector is also expanding, with the recent trends in ecotourism and whale watching. Growth had been remarkably steady in 1996-2001 at 3%-5%, but could not be sustained in 2002 in an environment of global recession. Growth resumed in 2003, and inflation dropped back from 5% to 2%. | 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 | 7.341 billion kWh (2001) | 401 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 215 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 7.894 billion kWh (2001) | 200 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Hvannadalshnukur 2,119 m (at Vatnajokull glacier) |
lowest point:
Niger River 200 m highest point: Mont Greboun 1,944 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution from fertilizer runoff; inadequate wastewater treatment | 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: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Transboundary Air Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Environmental Modification, Marine Life Conservation |
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 | homogeneous mixture of descendants of Norse and Celts 94%, population of foreign origin 6% | 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 | Icelandic kronur per US dollar - 76.709 (2003), 91.6617 (2002), 97.4246 (2001), 78.6159 (2000), 72.3353 (1999) | 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: President Olafur Ragnar GRIMSSON (since 1 August 1996)
head of government: Prime Minister Halldor ASGRIMSSON (since 15 September 2004); note - Former Prime Minister David ODDSSON switched positions with former Foreign Minister Halldor ASGRIMMSON cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister and approved by Parliament elections: president, which is largely a ceremonial post, elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 26 June 2004 (next to be held June 2008); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Olafur Ragnar GRIMSSON wins with 85.6% of the vote, Baldur AGUSTSSON 12.5%, Astthor MAGNUSSON 1.9% |
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 | 0 bbl/day (2001) | $385 million (f.o.b., 1999) |
Exports - commodities | fish and fish products 70%, animal products, aluminum, diatomite, ferrosilicon | uranium ore 65%, livestock products, cowpeas, onions (1998 est.) |
Exports - partners | Germany 17.4%, UK 17.4%, Netherlands 11.2%, US 9.8%, Spain 6.3%, Denmark 5%, Norway 4.5%, France 4% (2003) | France 45%, Nigeria 27%, UK 11% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | blue with a red cross outlined in white extending to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag) | 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 - $8.678 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $10 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 9.2% (includes fishing 12%)
industry: 26.7% services: 64.2% (2003 est.) |
agriculture:
40% industry: 18% services: 42% (1998) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $30,900 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.6% (2003 est.) | 3.5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 65 00 N, 18 00 W | 16 00 N, 8 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location between Greenland and Europe; westernmost European country; Reykjavik is the northernmost national capital in the world; more land covered by glaciers than in all of continental Europe | landlocked |
Highways | total: 12,955 km
paved/oiled gravel: 3,863 km unpaved: 9,092 km (2003) |
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) |
Imports | 15,470 bbl/day (2001) | $317 million (f.o.b., 1999) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, petroleum products; foodstuffs, textiles | consumer goods, primary materials, machinery, vehicles and parts, petroleum, cereals |
Imports - partners | Germany 11.8%, Denmark 8%, US 7.5%, UK 7.5%, Norway 7%, Sweden 6.5%, Netherlands 6.2%, Italy 4.7% (2003) | France 22%, Cote d'Ivoire 15%, Nigeria 8%, US 3% (1999) |
Independence | 1 December 1918 (became a sovereign state under the Danish Crown); 17 June 1944 (from Denmark) | 3 August 1958 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 8.1% (2003 est.) | NA% |
Industries | fish processing; aluminum smelting, ferrosilicon production, geothermal power; tourism | uranium mining, cement, brick, textiles, food processing, chemicals, slaughterhouses |
Infant mortality rate | total: 3.31 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 3.44 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
123.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.1% (2003 est.) | 2.8% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EFTA, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCO, WEU (associate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | 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) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 660 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Haestirettur (justices are appointed for life by the Minister of Justice); eight district courts (justices are appointed for life by the Minister of Justice) | State Court or Cour d'Etat; Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | 160,000 (2003) | 70,000 receive regular wages or salaries |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 5.1%, fishing and fish processing 11.8%, manufacturing 12.9%, construction 10.7%, services 59.5% (1999) | 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: 0.07%
permanent crops: 0% other: 99.93% (2001) |
arable land:
3% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 7% forests and woodland: 2% other: 88% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Icelandic, English, Nordic languages, German widely spoken | French (official), Hausa, Djerma |
Legal system | civil law system based on Danish 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 Parliament or Althing (63 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 10 May 2003 (next to be held by May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - Independence Party 33.7%, Social Democratic Alliance 31.0%, Progressive Party 17.7%, Left-Green Alliance 8.8%, Liberal Party 7.4%; seats by party - Independence Party 22, Social Democratic Alliance 20, Progressive Party 12, Left-Green Alliance 5, Liberal Party 4 |
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: 80.18 years
male: 78.18 years female: 82.27 years (2004 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: 99.9% (1997 est.) male: NA female: NA |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 13.6% male: 20.9% female: 6.6% (1995 est.) |
Location | Northern Europe, island between the Greenland Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, northwest of the UK | Western Africa, southeast of Algeria |
Map references | Arctic Region | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 4,341 GRT/6,019 DWT
by type: petroleum tanker 1 registered in other countries: 26 (2004 est.) |
- |
Military - note | defense is provided by the US-manned Icelandic Defense Force (IDF) headquartered at Keflavik | - |
Military branches | no regular armed forces; Police, Coast Guard | Army, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, Republican Guard, National Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | 0 | $20 million (FY96) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.1% (FY96) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 75,568 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49:
2,202,608 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 66,503 (2004 est.) | males age 15-49:
1,190,787 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
108,993 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 17 June (1944) | Republic Day, 18 December (1958) |
Nationality | noun: Icelander(s)
adjective: Icelandic |
noun:
Nigerien(s) adjective: Nigerien |
Natural hazards | earthquakes and volcanic activity | recurring droughts |
Natural resources | fish, hydropower, geothermal power, diatomite | uranium, coal, iron ore, tin, phosphates, gold, petroleum |
Net migration rate | 2.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | -0.73 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Independence Party or IP [David ODDSSON]; Left-Green Alliance or LGP [Steingrimur SIGFUSSON]; Liberal Party or LP [Gudjon KRISTJANSSON]; Progressive Party or PP [Halldor ASGRIMSSON]; Social Democratic Alliance (includes People's Alliance or PA, Social Democratic Party or SDP, Women's List) or SDA [Ossur SKARPHEDINSSON] | 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 | 293,966 (July 2004 est.) | 10,355,156 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | 63% (1993 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.97% (2004 est.) | 2.72% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Akureyri, Hornafjordhur, Isafjordhur, Keflavik, Raufarhofn, Reykjavik, Seydhisfjordhur, Straumsvik, Vesttmannaeyjar | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM about 70 (including repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 5, FM 5, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | - | 680,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | Evangelical Lutheran 87.1%, other Protestant 4.1%, Roman Catholic 1.7%, other 7.1% (2002) | Muslim 80%, remainder indigenous beliefs and Christians |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 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 | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: extensive domestic service
domestic: the trunk network consists of coaxial and fiber-optic cables and microwave radio relay links international: country code - 354; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions); note - Iceland shares the Inmarsat earth station with the other Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden) |
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 | 190,700 (2003) | 16,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 279,100 (2003) | 13,000 (1995) |
Television broadcast stations | 14 (plus 156 low-power repeaters) (1997) | 10 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly plateau interspersed with mountain peaks, icefields; coast deeply indented by bays and fiords | predominately desert plains and sand dunes; flat to rolling plains in south; hills in north |
Total fertility rate | 1.93 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 7.08 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 3.4% (2003 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | - | 300 km
note: the Niger River is navigable from Niamey to Gaya on the Benin frontier from mid-December through March |