Niger (2001) | Saint Helena (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 7 departments (departements, singular - departement), and 1 capital district* (capitale district); Agadez, Diffa, Dosso, Maradi, Niamey*, Tahoua, Tillaberi, Zinder | 1 administrative area and 2 dependencies*; Ascension*, Saint Helena, Tristan da Cunha* |
Age structure | 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.) |
0-14 years:
19.08% (male 699; female 687) 15-64 years: 71.72% (male 2,711; female 2,500) 65 years and over: 9.2% (male 286; female 383) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cowpeas, cotton, peanuts, millet, sorghum, cassava (tapioca), rice; cattle, sheep, goats, camels, donkeys, horses, poultry | corn, potatoes, vegetables; timber; fish, crawfish (on Tristan da Cunha) |
Airports | 27 (2000 est.) | 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
9 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total:
1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
18 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
- |
Area | total:
1.267 million sq km land: 1,266,700 sq km water: 300 sq km |
total:
410 sq km land: 410 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes St. Helena Island, Ascension, and the island group of Tristan da Cunha, which consists of Tristan da Cunha Island, Gough Island, Inaccessible Island, and the three Nightingale Islands |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Texas | slightly more than two times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | 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. | Uninhabited when first discovered by the Portuguese in 1502, St. Helena was garrisoned by the British during the 17th century. It acquired fame as the place of Napoleon BONAPARTE's exile, from 1815 until his death in 1821, but its importance as a port of call declined after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. Ascension Island is the site of a US Air Force auxiliary airfield; Gough Island has a meteorological station. |
Birth rate | 50.68 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 13.49 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$377 million, including $146 million from foreign sources expenditures: $377 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1999 est.) |
revenues:
$11.2 million expenditures: $11 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY92) |
Capital | Niamey | Jamestown |
Climate | desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south | Saint Helena - tropical; marine; mild, tempered by trade winds; Tristan da Cunha - temperate; marine, mild, tempered by trade winds (tends to be cooler than Saint Helena) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 60 km |
Constitution | the constitution of January 1993 was revised by national referendum on 12 May 1996 and again by referendum on 18 July 1999 | 1 January 1989 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Niger conventional short form: Niger local long form: Republique du Niger local short form: Niger |
conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Saint Helena |
Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States | Saint Helenian pound (SHP) |
Death rate | 22.71 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.33 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.3 billion (1999 est.) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
Diplomatic representation from the US | 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 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Joseph DIATTA chancery: 2204 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4224 through 4227 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | 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 | none |
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 |
$12.6 million (1995); note - $5.3 million from UK (1997) |
Economy - overview | 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. | The economy depends largely on financial assistance from the UK, which amounted to about $5 million in 1997 or almost one-half of annual budgetary revenues. The local population earns income from fishing, the raising of livestock, and sales of handicrafts. Because there are few jobs, 25% of the work force has left to seek employment on Ascension Island, on the Falklands, and in the UK. |
Electricity - consumption | 401 million kWh (1999) | 5.6 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 215 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 200 million kWh (1999) | 6 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Niger River 200 m highest point: Mont Greboun 1,944 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Queen Mary's Peak on Tristan da Cunha 2,060 m |
Environment - current issues | overgrazing; soil erosion; deforestation; desertification; wildlife populations (such as elephant, hippopotamus, giraffe, and lion) threatened because of poaching and habitat destruction | NA |
Environment - international 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 | 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 | African descent 50%, white 25%, Chinese 25% |
Exchange rates | 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 | Saint Helenian pounds per US dollar - 0.6764 (January 2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998), 0.6047 (1997), 0.6403 (1996); note - the Saint Helenian pound is at par with the British pound |
Executive branch | 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% |
chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952) head of government: Governor and Commander in Chief David HOLLAMBY (since NA June 1999) cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, two ex officio officers, and six elected members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor is appointed by the monarch |
Exports | $385 million (f.o.b., 1999) | $704,000 (f.o.b., 1995) |
Exports - commodities | uranium ore 65%, livestock products, cowpeas, onions (1998 est.) | fish (frozen, canned, and salt-dried skipjack, tuna), coffee, handicrafts |
Exports - partners | France 45%, Nigeria 27%, UK 11% (1999) | South Africa, UK |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | 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 | blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Saint Helenian shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield features a rocky coastline and three-masted sailing ship |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $10 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $18 million (1998 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
40% industry: 18% services: 42% (1998) |
agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,500 (1998 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.5% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 16 00 N, 8 00 E | 15 56 S, 5 42 W |
Geography - note | landlocked | harbors at least 40 species of plants unknown anywhere else in the world; Ascension is a breeding ground for sea turtles and sooty terns |
Highways | total:
10,100 km paved: 798 km unpaved: 9,302 km (1996) |
total:
158 km (Saint Helena 118 km, Ascension 40 km, Tristan da Cunha 0 km) paved: 138 km (Saint Helena 98km, Ascension 40 km, Tristan da Cunha 0 km) unpaved: NA km 20 km (Saint Helena 20 km, Ascension 0 km, Tristan da Cunha 0 km) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
0.8% highest 10%: 35.4% (1995) |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $317 million (f.o.b., 1999) | $14.434 million (c.i.f., 1995) |
Imports - commodities | consumer goods, primary materials, machinery, vehicles and parts, petroleum, cereals | food, beverages, tobacco, fuel oils, animal feed, building materials, motor vehicles and parts, machinery and parts |
Imports - partners | France 22%, Cote d'Ivoire 15%, Nigeria 8%, US 3% (1999) | UK, South Africa |
Independence | 3 August 1958 (from France) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | NA% |
Industries | uranium mining, cement, brick, textiles, food processing, chemicals, slaughterhouses | construction, crafts (furniture, lacework, fancy woodwork), fishing |
Infant mortality rate | 123.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 22.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.8% (2000 est.) | 3.2% (1997 est.) |
International organization participation | 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 | ICFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 660 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | State Court or Cour d'Etat; Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | Supreme Court; Magistrate's Court; Small Debts Court; Juvenile Court |
Labor force | 70,000 receive regular wages or salaries | 3,500 (1998 est.)
note: 1,200 of whom are working offshore |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 90%, industry and commerce 6%, government 4% | agriculture and fishing 6%, industry (mainly construction) 48%, services 46% (1987 est.) |
Land boundaries | 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 |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
3% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 7% forests and woodland: 2% other: 88% (1993 est.) |
arable land:
6% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 6% forests and woodland: 6% other: 82% (1993 est.) |
Languages | French (official), Hausa, Djerma | English |
Legal system | based on French civil law system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | NA |
Legislative branch | 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 |
unicameral Legislative Council (15 seats, including the speaker, 3 ex officio and 12 elected members; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 9 July 1997 (next to be held NA August 2001) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 15 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
41.59 years male: 41.74 years female: 41.44 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
77.01 years male: 74.13 years female: 80.04 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 13.6% male: 20.9% female: 6.6% (1995 est.) |
definition:
age 20 and over can read and write total population: 97% male: 97% female: 98% (1987 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, southeast of Algeria | islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, about mid-way between South America and Africa |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | exclusive fishing zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2000 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Army, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, Republican Guard, National Police | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $20 million (FY96) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.1% (FY96) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
2,202,608 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | 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 | Republic Day, 18 December (1958) | Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926) |
Nationality | noun:
Nigerien(s) adjective: Nigerien |
noun:
Saint Helenian(s) adjective: Saint Helenian |
Natural hazards | recurring droughts | active volcanism on Tristan da Cunha |
Natural resources | uranium, coal, iron ore, tin, phosphates, gold, petroleum | fish |
Net migration rate | -0.73 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | 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] | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | none |
Population | 10,355,156 (July 2001 est.) | 7,266 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 63% (1993 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.72% (2001 est.) | 0.72% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | Georgetown (on Ascension), Jamestown |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 5, FM 5, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 680,000 (1997) | 3,000 (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | 0 km |
Religions | Muslim 80%, remainder indigenous beliefs and Christians | Anglican (majority), Baptist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic |
Sex ratio | 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.) |
at birth:
1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | NA years of age |
Telephone system | 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) |
general assessment:
can communicate with any place in the world domestic: automatic network international: HF radiotelephone from Saint Helena to Ascension which is a major coaxial submarine cable relay point between South Africa, Portugal, and UK ; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 16,000 (1997) | 2,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 13,000 (1995) | 0 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 10 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (1997) | 0 (1997) |
Terrain | predominately desert plains and sand dunes; flat to rolling plains in south; hills in north | Saint Helena - rugged, volcanic; small scattered plateaus and plains
note: the other islands of the group have a volcanic origin |
Total fertility rate | 7.08 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.53 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 14% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | 300 km
note: the Niger River is navigable from Niamey to Gaya on the Benin frontier from mid-December through March |
none |