Niger (2002) | Madagascar (2004) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | 7 departments (departements, singular - departement) and 1 capital district* (capitale district); Agadez, Diffa, Dosso, Maradi, Niamey*, Tahoua, Tillaberi, Zinder | 6 provinces (faritany); Antananarivo, Antsiranana, Fianarantsoa, Mahajanga, Toamasina, Toliara |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 47.9% (male 2,594,932; female 2,503,867)
15-64 years: 49.8% (male 2,594,307; female 2,706,164) 65 years and over: 2.3% (male 125,898; female 114,576) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 44.9% (male 3,935,523; female 3,922,077)
15-64 years: 52% (male 4,509,877; female 4,596,662) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 245,168; female 292,564) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cowpeas, cotton, peanuts, millet, sorghum, cassava (tapioca), rice; cattle, sheep, goats, camels, donkeys, horses, poultry | coffee, vanilla, sugarcane, cloves, cocoa, rice, cassava (tapioca), beans, bananas, peanuts; livestock products |
Airports | 26 (2001) | 116 (2003 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 (2002) |
total: 29
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 20 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 18
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 2 (2002) |
total: 87
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 42 under 914 m: 43 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 1.267 million sq km
land: 1,266,700 sq km water: 300 sq km |
total: 587,040 sq km
land: 581,540 sq km water: 5,500 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Texas | slightly less than twice the size of Arizona |
Background | Not until 1993, 35 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. | Formerly an independent kingdom, Madagascar became a French colony in 1896, but regained its independence in 1960. During 1992-93, free presidential and National Assembly elections were held, ending 17 years of single-party rule. In 1997, in the second presidential race, Didier RATSIRAKA, the leader during the 1970s and 1980s, was returned to the presidency. The 2001 presidential election was contested between the followers of Didier RATSIRAKA and Marc RAVALOMANANA, nearly causing secession of half of the country. In April 2002, the High Constitutional Court announced RAVALOMANANA the winner. |
Birth rate | 49.95 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 41.91 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $320 million, including $134 million from foreign sources
expenditures: $320 million, including capital expenditures of $178 million (2002 est.) |
revenues: $739.6 million
expenditures: $1.071 billion, including capital expenditures of $331 million (2003) |
Capital | Niamey | Antananarivo |
Climate | desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south | tropical along coast, temperate inland, arid in south |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 4,828 km |
Constitution | the constitution of January 1993 was revised by national referendum on 12 May 1996 and again by referendum on 18 July 1999 | 19 August 1992 by national referendum |
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: Republic of Madagascar
conventional short form: Madagascar local long form: Republique de Madagascar local short form: Madagascar former: Malagasy Republic |
Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States | Malagasy franc (MGF) |
Death rate | 22.25 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 11.62 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.6 billion (1999 est.) | $4.6 billion (2002) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | 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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Wanda L. NESBITT
embassy: 14-16 Rue Rainitovo, Antsahavola, Antananarivo 101 mailing address: B. P. 620, Antsahavola, Antananarivo telephone: [261] (20) 22-212-57, 22-212-73, 22-209-56 FAX: [261] (20) 22-345-39 |
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 FAX: [1] (202)483-3169 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Rajaonarivony NARISOA
chancery: 2374 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-5525, 5526 FAX: [1] (202) 483-7603 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | Niger and Benin have refered to the ICJ the dispute over l'Ete and 14 smaller islands in the Niger River, which has never been delimited; the Benin-Niger-Nigeria tripoint remains undemarcated; Lake Chad Basin Commission urges signatories Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria to ratify delimitation treaty over lake region, the site of continuing armed clashes; Libya claims about 19,400 sq km in northern Niger in a currently dormant dispute | claims Bassas da India, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, and Juan de Nova Island (all administered by France) |
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 (1997) |
$354 million (2001) |
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 2000-01, 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. | Having discarded past socialist economic policies, Madagascar has since the mid 1990s followed a World Bank and IMF led policy of privatization and liberalization. This strategy has placed the country on a slow and steady growth path from an extremely low level. Agriculture, including fishing and forestry, is a mainstay of the economy, accounting for more than one-fourth of GDP and employing four-fifths of the population. Exports of apparel have boomed in recent years primarily due to duty-free access to the United States. Deforestation and erosion, aggravated by the use of firewood as the primary source of fuel are serious concerns. President RAVALOMANANA has worked aggressively to revive the economy following the 2002 political crisis, which triggered a 12% drop in GDP that year. Poverty reduction and combating corruption will be the centerpieces of economic policy for the next few years. |
Electricity - consumption | 404.6 million kWh (2000) | 772.1 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 200 million kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 220 million kWh (2000) | 830.2 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Niger River 200 m
highest point: Mont Bagzane 2,022 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Maromokotro 2,876 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 | soil erosion results from deforestation and overgrazing; desertification; surface water contaminated with raw sewage and other organic wastes; several species of flora and fauna unique to the island are endangered |
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 |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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 | Malayo-Indonesian (Merina and related Betsileo), Cotiers (mixed African, Malayo-Indonesian, and Arab ancestry - Betsimisaraka, Tsimihety, Antaisaka, Sakalava), French, Indian, Creole, Comoran |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 742.79 (January 2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997); note - from 1 January 1999, the XOF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF per euro | Malagasy francs per US dollar - 6,210 (2003), 6,831.96 (2002), 6,588.49 (2001), 6,767.48 (2000), 6,283.77 (1999) |
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 cabinet: 23-member Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; last held 24 November 1999 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Mamadou TANDJA elected president; percent of vote - Mamadou TANDJA 59.9%, Mahamadou ISSOUFOU 40.1% |
chief of state: President Marc RAVALOMANANA (since 6 May 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Jacques SYLLA (27 May 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 16 December 2001 (next to be held NA November 2006); prime minister appointed by the president election results: percent of vote - Didier RATSIRAKA (AREMA) 37.7%, Marc RAVALOMANANA (TIM) 50.5% |
Exports | $246 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | uranium ore 65%, livestock products, cowpeas, onions (1998 est.) | coffee, vanilla, shellfish, sugar; cotton cloth, chromite, petroleum products |
Exports - partners | France 43.4%, Nigeria 35.0%, Spain 4.5%, US 3.9% (2000) | France 37.4%, US 29.2%, Germany 5.5%, Mauritius 5.2% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
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 | two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green with a vertical white band of the same width on hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $8.4 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $13.02 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 41%
industry: 17% services: 42% (2000) |
agriculture: 34.5%
industry: 7.8% services: 57.7% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $820 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $800 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.1% (2001 est.) | 6% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 16 00 N, 8 00 E | 20 00 S, 47 00 E |
Geography - note | 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 | world's fourth-largest island; strategic location along Mozambique Channel |
Highways | total: 10,100 km
paved: 798 km unpaved: 9,302 km (1996) |
total: 49,827 km
paved: 5,780 km unpaved: 44,047 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 35% (1995) (1995) |
lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 29% (1999) |
Illicit drugs | - | illicit producer of cannabis (cultivated and wild varieties) used mostly for domestic consumption; transshipment point for heroin |
Imports | $331 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | consumer goods, primary materials, machinery, vehicles and parts, petroleum, cereals | capital goods, petroleum, consumer goods, food |
Imports - partners | France 16.8%, Cote d'Ivoire 13.4%, US 9.6%, Nigeria 7.6% (2000) | China 14.2%, France 13.2%, South Africa 6.4%, Iran 6.2% (2003) |
Independence | 3 August 1960 (from France) | 26 June 1960 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 3% (2000 est.) |
Industries | uranium mining, cement, brick, textiles, food processing, chemicals, slaughterhouses | meat processing, soap, breweries, tanneries, sugar, textiles, glassware, cement, automobile assembly plant, paper, petroleum, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 122.23 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 78.52 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 86.84 deaths/1,000 live births female: 69.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.2% (2001 est.) | 8% (2003 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, Interpol, IOC, ITU, MIPONUH, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ABEDA, ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2002) | - |
Irrigated land | 660 sq km (1998 est.) | 10,900 sq km (2000 est.) |
Judicial branch | State Court or Cour d'Etat; Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Constitutional Court or Haute Cour Constitutionnelle |
Labor force | 70,000 receive regular wages or salaries | 7.3 million (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 90%, industry and commerce 6%, government 4% | - |
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: 3.94%
permanent crops: 0% other: 96.06% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 5.07%
permanent crops: 1.03% other: 93.91% (2001) |
Languages | French (official), Hausa, Djerma | French (official), Malagasy (official) |
Legal system | based on French civil law system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on French civil law system and traditional Malagasy law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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 |
bicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (160 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); Senate (100 seats; two-thirds of the seats filled by regional assemblies whose members will be elected by popular vote; the remaining one-third of the seats appointed by the president; all members will serve four-year terms)
elections: National Assembly - last held 15 December 2002 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - TIM 103, FP 22, AREMA 3, LEADER/Fanilo 2, RPSD 5, others 3, independents 22 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 41.91 years
male: 42.04 years female: 41.77 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 56.54 years
male: 54.19 years female: 58.96 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 15.3% male: 21.2% female: 9.4% (2002) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 68.9% male: 75.5% female: 62.5% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, southeast of Algeria | Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Mozambique |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or 100 nm from the 2,500-m deep isobath |
Merchant marine | - | total: 11 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 14,865 GRT/17,936 DWT
by type: cargo 8, chemical tanker 1, roll on/roll off 2 registered in other countries: 2 (2004 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Air Force, Gendarmerie, National Intervention and Security Force | People's Armed Forces: comprising Intervention Force, Development Force, and Aeronaval - Navy and Air - Force; National Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $20.9 million (FY01) | $69.8 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.3% (FY01) | 1.2% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 2,270,793 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 4,004,242 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,227,994 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49: 2,373,342 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 108,993 (2002 est.) | males: 169,186 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Republic Day, 18 December (1958) | Independence Day, 26 June (1960) |
Nationality | noun: Nigerien(s)
adjective: Nigerien |
noun: Malagasy (singular and plural)
adjective: Malagasy |
Natural hazards | recurring droughts | periodic cyclones, drought, and locust infestation |
Natural resources | uranium, coal, iron ore, tin, phosphates, gold, petroleum | graphite, chromite, coal, bauxite, salt, quartz, tar sands, semiprecious stones, mica, fish, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -0.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 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] | Association for the Rebirth of Madagascar or AREMA [Pierrot RAJAONARIVO]; Economic Liberalism and Democratic Action for National Recovery or LEADER/Fanilo [Herizo RAZAFIMAHALEO]; Fihaonana Party or FP [Guy-Willy RAZANAMASY]; I Love Madagascar or TIM [Marc RAVALOMANANA]; Renewal of the Social Democratic Party or RPSD [Evariste MARSON] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Committee for the Defense of Truth and Justice or KMMR; Committee for National Reconciliation or CRN [Albert Zafy]; National Council of Christian Churches or FFKM |
Population | 10,639,744 (July 2002 est.) | 17,501,871 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 63% (1993 est.) | 71% (1999 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.7% (2002 est.) | 3.03% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | Antsiranana, Antsohimbondrona, Mahajanga, Toamasina, Toliara |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 5, FM 6, shortwave 4 (2001) | AM 2 (plus a number of repeater stations), FM 9, shortwave 6 (2001) |
Radios | 680,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km (2002) | total: 732 km
narrow gauge: 732 km 1.000-m gauge (2003) |
Religions | Muslim 80%, remainder indigenous beliefs and Christian | indigenous beliefs 52%, Christian 41%, Muslim 7% |
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 (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
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: system is above average for the region
domestic: open-wire lines, coaxial cables, microwave radio relay, and tropospheric scatter links connect regions international: country code - 261; submarine cable to Bahrain; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 20,000 (2001) | 59,600 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 6,700 (2002) | 279,500 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (2002) | 1 (plus 36 repeaters) (2001) |
Terrain | predominately desert plains and sand dunes; flat to rolling plains in south; hills in north | narrow coastal plain, high plateau and mountains in center |
Total fertility rate | 7 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 5.7 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 5.9% (1998) |
Waterways | 300 km
note: the Niger River is navigable from Niamey to Gaya on the Benin frontier from mid-December through March |
600 km (2004) |