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Compare Lesotho (2007) - Niger (2004)
Compare Lesotho (2007) z Niger (2004)
| Lesotho (2007) | Niger (2004) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohale's Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka | 7 departments (departements, singular - departement) and 1 capital district* (capitale district); Agadez, Diffa, Dosso, Maradi, Niamey*, Tahoua, Tillaberi, Zinder |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 35.7% (male 382,308/female 377,303)
15-64 years: 59.3% (male 613,979/female 645,818) 65 years and over: 5% (male 42,621/female 63,233) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 47.5% (male 2,749,039; female 2,643,479)
15-64 years: 50.4% (male 2,799,125; female 2,925,133) 65 years and over: 2.1% (male 128,101; female 115,661) (2004 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock | cowpeas, cotton, peanuts, millet, sorghum, cassava (tapioca), rice; cattle, sheep, goats, camels, donkeys, horses, poultry |
| Airports | 28 (2007) | 27 (2003 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 25
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 21 (2007) |
total: 18
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
| Area | total: 30,355 sq km
land: 30,355 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 1.267 million sq km
land: 1,266,700 sq km water: 300 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly less than twice the size of Texas |
| Background | Basutoland was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho upon independence from the UK in 1966. The Basuto National Party ruled for the first two decades. King MOSHOESHOE was exiled in 1990, but returned to Lesotho in 1992 and reinstated in 1995. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after 7 years of military rule. In 1998, violent protests and a military mutiny following a contentious election prompted a brief but bloody intervention by South African and Botswanan military forces under the aegis of the Southern African Development Community. Constitutional reforms have since restored political stability; peaceful parliamentary elections were held in 2002. | Not until 1993, 33 years after independence from France, did Niger hold its first free and open elections. A 1995 peace accord ended a five-year Tuareg insurgency in the north. Coups in 1996 and 1999 were followed by the creation of a National Reconciliation Council that effected a transition to civilian rule by December 1999. Niger is one of the poorest countries in the world with minimal government services and insufficient funds to develop its resource base. The largely agrarian and subsistence-based economy is frequently disrupted by extended droughts common to the Sahel region of Africa. |
| Birth rate | 24.72 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 48.91 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $995.8 million
expenditures: $763.2 million (2006 est.) |
revenues: $320 million - including $134 million from foreign sources
expenditures: $320 million, including capital expenditures of $178 million (2002 est.) |
| Capital | name: Maseru
geographic coordinates: 29 19 S, 27 29 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Niamey |
| Climate | temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers | desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 0 km (landlocked) |
| Constitution | 2 April 1993 | a new constitution was adopted 18 July 1999 |
| Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Lesotho
conventional short form: Lesotho local long form: Kingdom of Lesotho local short form: Lesotho former: Basutoland |
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 | 22.49 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 21.51 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Debt - external | $652 million (2006 est.) | $1.6 billion (1999 est.) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador June Carter PERRY
embassy: 254 Kingsway, Maseru West (Consular Section) mailing address: P. O. Box 333, Maseru 100, Lesotho telephone: [266] 22 312666 FAX: [266] 22 310116 |
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 Molelekeng E. RAPOLAKI
chancery: 2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 797-5533 through 5536 FAX: [1] (202) 234-6815 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Joseph DIATTA
chancery: 2204 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4224 through 4227 FAX: [1] (202)483-3169 |
| Disputes - international | none | Libya claims about 25,000 sq km in a currently dormant dispute; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated, and ICJ ad hoc judges have been selected to rule on disputed Niger and Mekrou 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 | $68.82 million (2005) | $341 million (1997) |
| Economy - overview | Small, landlocked, and mountainous, Lesotho relies on remittances from miners employed in South Africa and customs duties from the Southern Africa Customs Union for the majority of government revenue. However, the government has recently strengthened its tax system to reduce dependency on customs duties. Completion of a major hydropower facility in January 1998 now permits the sale of water to South Africa and also generates royalties for Lesotho. Lesotho produces about 90% of its own electrical power needs. As the number of mineworkers has declined steadily over the past several years, a small manufacturing base has developed based on farm products that support the milling, canning, leather, and jute industries, as well as a rapidly expanding apparel-assembly sector. The latter has grown significantly mainly due to Lesotho qualifying for the trade benefits contained in the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act. The economy is still primarily based on subsistence agriculture, especially livestock, although drought has decreased agricultural activity. The extreme inequality in the distribution of income remains a major drawback. Lesotho has signed an Interim Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility with the IMF. | 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 | 338.5 million kWh (2005) | 325.1 million kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - imports | 13 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2005) | 100 million kWh (2001) |
| Electricity - production | 350 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2005) | 242 million kWh (2001) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: junction of the Orange and Makhaleng Rivers 1,400 m
highest point: Thabana Ntlenyana 3,482 m |
lowest point: Niger River 200 m
highest point: Mont Bagzane 2,022 m |
| Environment - current issues | population pressure forcing settlement in marginal areas results in overgrazing, severe soil erosion, and soil exhaustion; desertification; Highlands Water Project controls, stores, and redirects water to South Africa | 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, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea |
| Ethnic groups | Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%, | 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 | maloti per US dollar - 6.85 (2006), 6.3593 (2005), 6.4597 (2004), 7.5648 (2003), 10.541 (2002) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 581.2 (2003), 696.988 (2002), 733.039 (2001), 711.976 (2000), 615.699 (1999) |
| Executive branch | chief of state: King LETSIE III (since 7 February 1996); note - King LETSIE III formerly occupied the throne from November 1990 to February 1995 while his father was in exile
head of government: Prime Minister Pakalitha MOSISILI (since 23 May 1998) cabinet: Cabinet elections: none - according to the constitution, the leader of the majority party in the Assembly automatically becomes prime minister; the monarch is hereditary, but, under the terms of the constitution, that came into effect after the March 1993 election, the monarch is a "living symbol of national unity" with no executive or legislative powers; under traditional law the college of chiefs has the power to depose the monarch, determine who is next in the line of succession, or who shall serve as regent in the event that the successor is not of mature age |
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; second round last held 4 December 2004 (next to be held December 2009); prime minister appointed by the president election results: TANDJA Mamadou reelected president; percent of vote - TANDJA Mamadou 65.5%, Mahamadou ISSOUFOU 34.5% |
| Exports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
| Exports - commodities | manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals (2000) | uranium ore, livestock, cowpeas, onions |
| Exports - partners | US 81.9%, Belgium 15%, Canada 1.9% (2006) | France 42.2%, Nigeria 28.9%, Japan 17.2%, Spain 4.4% (2003) |
| Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
| Flag description | three horizontal stripes of blue (top), white, and green in the proportions of 3:4:3; the colors represent rain, peace, and prosperity respectively; centered in the white stripe is a black Basotho hat representing the indigenous people; the flag was unfurled in October 2006 to celebrate 40 years of independence | 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 - $9.062 billion (2003 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 18.2%
industry: 40.8% services: 41% (2006 est.) |
agriculture: 39%
industry: 17% services: 44% (2001) |
| GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $800 (2003 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 6.2% (2006 est.) | 3.8% (2003 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 29 30 S, 28 30 E | 16 00 N, 8 00 E |
| Geography - note | landlocked, completely surrounded by South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 meters above sea level | 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%: 0.9%
highest 10%: 43.4% (2002 est.) |
lowest 10%: 0.8%
highest 10%: 35.4% (1995) |
| Imports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
| Imports - commodities | food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products | foodstuffs, machinery, vehicles and parts, petroleum, cereals |
| Imports - partners | Hong Kong 33.4%, China 31.2%, Germany 7.7%, India 7.3% (2006) | France 16.4%, Cote d'Ivoire 13.8%, China 10.5%, Nigeria 7.7%, US 5.5%, Japan 4.9% (2003) |
| Independence | 4 October 1966 (from UK) | 3 August 1960 (from France) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 15.5% (1999) | NA (2001 est.) |
| Industries | food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts, construction, tourism | uranium mining, cement, brick, textiles, food processing, chemicals, slaughterhouses |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 79.85 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 84.4 deaths/1,000 live births female: 75.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 122.66 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 126.96 deaths/1,000 live births female: 118.24 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6.1% (2006 est.) | 3% (2002 est.) |
| International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MONUC, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
| Irrigated land | 30 sq km (2003) | 660 sq km (1998 est.) |
| Judicial branch | High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch acting on the advice of the Prime Minister); Court of Appeal; Magistrate Courts; customary or traditional court | State Court or Cour d'Etat; Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel |
| Labor force | 838,000 (2000) | 70,000 receive regular wages or salaries (2002 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 86% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa
industry and services: 14% (2002 est.) |
agriculture 90%, industry and commerce 6%, government 4% |
| Land boundaries | total: 909 km
border countries: South Africa 909 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: 10.87%
permanent crops: 0.13% other: 89% (2005) |
arable land: 3.54%
permanent crops: 0.01% other: 96.45% (2001) |
| Languages | Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa | French (official), Hausa, Djerma |
| Legal system | based on English common law and Roman-Dutch law; judicial review of legislative acts in High Court and Court of Appeal; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations | based on French civil law system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (33 members - 22 principal chiefs and 11 other members appointed by the ruling party) and the Assembly (120 seats, 80 by popular vote and 40 by proportional vote; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms)
elections: last held 17 February 2007 (next to be held in 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - LCD 61, NIP 21, ABC 17, LWP 10, ACP 4, BNP 3, other 4 |
unicameral National Assembly (113 seats; note - expanded from 83 seats; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms)
elections: last held 4 December 2004 (next to be held December 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MNSD 47, CDS 22, PNDS 17, Social Democratic Rally 7 RDP 6i ANDP 5, Party for Socialism and Democarcy in Niger 1, other 8 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 39.97 years
male: 40.73 years female: 39.18 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 42.18 years
male: 42.38 years female: 41.97 years (2004 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 84.8% male: 74.5% female: 94.5% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 17.6% male: 25.8% female: 9.7% (2003 est.) |
| Location | Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa | Western Africa, southeast of Algeria |
| Map references | Africa | Africa |
| Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
| Military - note | the Lesotho Government in 1999 began an open debate on the future structure, size, and role of the armed forces, especially considering the Lesotho Defense Force's (LDF) history of intervening in political affairs | - |
| Military branches | Lesotho Defense Force (LDF): Army and Air Wing | Army, Air Force, National Intervention and Security Force |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $21.7 million (2003) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.6% (2006) | 1.1% (2003) |
| Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 2,460,637 (2004 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 1,333,027 (2004 est.) |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 122,363 (2004 est.) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 4 October (1966) | Republic Day, 18 December (1958) |
| Nationality | noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural)
adjective: Basotho |
noun: Nigerien(s)
adjective: Nigerien |
| Natural hazards | periodic droughts | recurring droughts |
| Natural resources | water, agricultural and grazing land, diamonds, sand, clay, building stone | uranium, coal, iron ore, tin, phosphates, gold, petroleum |
| Net migration rate | -0.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -0.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Political parties and leaders | Alliance of Congress Parties or ACP; All Basotho Convention or ABC [Thomas THABANE]; Basotholand African Congress or BAC [Khauhelo RALITAPOLE]; Basotho Congress Party or BCP [Ntsukunyane MPHANYA]; Basotho National Party or BNP [Maj. Gen. Justin Metsing LEKHANYA]; Kopanang Basotho Party or KPB [Pheelo MOSALA]; Lesotho Congress for Democracy or LCD (the governing party) [Pakalitha MOSISILI]; Lesotho Education Party or LEP [Thabo PITSO]; Lesotho Workers Party or LWP [Macaefa BILLY]; Marematlou Freedom Party or MFP [Vincent MALEBO]; National Independent Party or NIP [Anthony MANYELI]; New Lesotho Freedom Party or NLFP [Manapo MAJARA]; Popular Front for Democracy or PFD [Lekhetho RAKUOANE]; Sefate Democratic Union or SDU [Bofihla NKUEBE]; Social Democratic Party of SDP [Masitise SELESO] | Alliance for Democracy and Progress or ANDP [leader NA]; Democratic Rally of the People-Jama'a or RDP-Jama'a [Hamid ALGABID]; Democratic and Social Convention-Rahama or CDS-Rahama [Mahamane OUSMANE]; National Movement for a Developing Society-Nassara or MNSD-Nassara [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]; Party for Socialism and Democracy in Niger [leader NA]; Rally for Democracy and Progress or RDP [leader NA]; Union of Democratic Patriots and Progressives-Chamoua or UPDP-Chamoua [Professor Andre' SALIFOU, chairman] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
| Population | 2,125,262
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.) |
11,360,538 (July 2004 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 49% (1999) | 63% (1993 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 0.144% (2007 est.) | 2.67% (2004 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | - | none |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 5, FM 6, shortwave 4 (2001) |
| Religions | Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20% | Muslim 80%, remainder indigenous beliefs and Christian |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.013 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.951 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.674 male(s)/female total population: 0.956 male(s)/female (2007 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: 1.11 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment: rudimentary system consisting of a modest but growing number of landlines, a small microwave radio relay system, and a small radiotelephone communication system; mobile-cellular telephone system is expanding
domestic: privatized in 2001, Telecom Lesotho tasked with providing an additional 50,000 fixed-line connections within five years, a target not met; mobile-cellular service is expanding with a subscribership approaching 15 per 100 persons; rural services are scant international: country code - 266; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: small system of wire, radio telephone communications, and microwave radio relay links concentrated in the southwestern area of Niger
domestic: wire, radiotelephone communications, and microwave radio relay; domestic satellite system with 3 earth stations and 1 planned international: country code - 227; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 48,000 (2005) | 22,400 (2002) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 249,800 (2005) | 24,000 (2003) |
| Television broadcast stations | 1 (2000) | 3 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (2002) |
| Terrain | mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains | predominately desert plains and sand dunes; flat to rolling plains in south; hills in north |
| Total fertility rate | 3.21 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 6.83 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 45% (2002) | NA (2002 est.) |
| Waterways | - | 300 km
note: Niger River is navigable to Gaya between September and March (2004) |
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