Niger (2005) | Bosnia and Herzegovina (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | 8 regions (regions, singular - region) includes 1 capital district* (commune urbaine); Agadez, Diffa, Dosso, Maradi, Niamey*, Tahoua, Tillaberi, Zinder | 2 first-order administrative divisions and 1 internationally supervised district* - Brcko district (Brcko Distrikt)*, the Bosniak/Croat Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Federacija Bosna i Hercegovina) and the Bosnian Serb-led Republika Srpska; note - Brcko district is in northeastern Bosnia and is an administrative unit under the sovereignty of Bosnia and Herzegovina; the district remains under international supervision |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 47.3% (male 2,811,539/female 2,704,498)
15-64 years: 50.6% (male 2,890,119/female 3,009,281) 65 years and over: 2.1% (male 130,953/female 119,547) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 15.5% (male 359,739/female 336,978)
15-64 years: 70.1% (male 1,590,923/female 1,564,665) 65 years and over: 14.4% (male 265,637/female 381,034) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cowpeas, cotton, peanuts, millet, sorghum, cassava (tapioca), rice; cattle, sheep, goats, camels, donkeys, horses, poultry | wheat, corn, fruits, vegetables; livestock |
Airports | 27 (2004 est.) | 28 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 3 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 18
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total: 20
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 12 (2006) |
Area | total: 1.267 million sq km
land: 1,266,700 sq km water: 300 sq km |
total: 51,129 sq km
land: 51,129 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Texas | slightly smaller than West Virginia |
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 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. | Bosnia and Herzegovina's declaration of sovereignty in October 1991 was followed by a declaration of independence from the former Yugoslavia on 3 March 1992 after a referendum boycotted by ethnic Serbs. The Bosnian Serbs - supported by neighboring Serbia and Montenegro - responded with armed resistance aimed at partitioning the republic along ethnic lines and joining Serb-held areas to form a "Greater Serbia." In March 1994, Bosniaks and Croats reduced the number of warring factions from three to two by signing an agreement creating a joint Bosniak/Croat Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. On 21 November 1995, in Dayton, Ohio, the warring parties initialed a peace agreement that brought to a halt three years of interethnic civil strife (the final agreement was signed in Paris on 14 December 1995). The Dayton Peace Accords retained Bosnia and Herzegovina's international boundaries and created a joint multi-ethnic and democratic government charged with conducting foreign, diplomatic, and fiscal policy. Also recognized was a second tier of government comprised of two entities roughly equal in size: the Bosniak/Croat Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Bosnian Serb-led Republika Srpska (RS). The Federation and RS governments were charged with overseeing most government functions. The Office of the High Representative (OHR) was established to oversee the implementation of the civilian aspects of the agreement. In 1995-96, a NATO-led international peacekeeping force (IFOR) of 60,000 troops served in Bosnia to implement and monitor the military aspects of the agreement. IFOR was succeeded by a smaller, NATO-led Stabilization Force (SFOR) whose mission was to deter renewed hostilities. European Union peacekeeping troops (EUFOR) replaced SFOR in December 2004; their mission is to maintain peace and stability throughout the country. |
Birth rate | 48.3 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 8.77 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $320 million - including $134 million from foreign sources
expenditures: $320 million, including capital expenditures of $178 million (2002 est.) |
revenues: $4.373 billion
expenditures: $4.401 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.) |
Capital | Niamey | name: Sarajevo
geographic coordinates: 43 52 N, 18 25 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
Climate | desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south | hot summers and cold winters; areas of high elevation have short, cool summers and long, severe winters; mild, rainy winters along coast |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 20 km |
Constitution | new constitution adopted 18 July 1999 | the Dayton Agreement, signed 14 December 1995, included a new constitution now in force; note - each of the entities also has its own constitution |
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: Bosnia and Herzegovina local long form: none local short form: Bosna i Hercegovina former: People's Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina |
Death rate | 21.33 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 8.27 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.6 billion (1999 est.) | $3.116 billion (2005 est.) |
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 Douglas L. McELHANEY
embassy: Alipasina 43, 71000 Sarajevo mailing address: use street address telephone: [387] (33) 445-700 FAX: [387] (33) 659-722 branch office(s): Banja Luka, Mostar |
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 Bisera TURKOVIC
chancery: 2109 E Street NW, Washington, DC 20037 telephone: [1] (202) 337-1500 FAX: [1] (202) 337-1502 consulate(s) general: Chicago, New York |
Disputes - international | Libya claims about 25,000 sq km in a currently dormant dispute; much of Benin-Niger boundary, including tripoint with Nigeria, remains undemarcated, and states expect a ruling in 2005 from the ICJ over the disputed Niger and Mekrou River islands; only Nigeria and Cameroon have heeded the Lake Chad Commission's admonition to ratify the delimitation treaty which also includes Chad and Niger | Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia and Montenegro have delimited most of their boundary, but sections along the Drina River remain in dispute; discussions continue with Croatia on several small disputed sections of the boundary related to maritime access that hinder ratification of the 1999 border agreement |
Economic aid - recipient | $341 million (1997) | $650 million (2001 est.) |
Economy - overview | Niger is one of the poorest countries in the world, a landlocked Sub-Saharan nation, whose economy centers on subsistence crops, livestock, and some of the world's largest uranium deposits. Drought cycles, desertification, a 3.3% population growth rate, and the drop in world demand for uranium 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. 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. | Bosnia and Herzegovina ranked next to Macedonia as the poorest republic in the old Yugoslav federation. Although agriculture is almost all in private hands, farms are small and inefficient, and the republic traditionally is a net importer of food. Industry remains greatly overstaffed, a holdover from the socialist economic structure of Yugoslavia. TITO had pushed the development of military industries in the republic with the result that Bosnia was saddled with a host of industrial firms with little commercial potential. The interethnic warfare in Bosnia caused production to plummet by 80% from 1992 to 1995 and unemployment to soar. With an uneasy peace in place, output recovered in 1996-99 at high percentage rates from a low base; but output growth slowed in 2000-02. Part of the lag in output was made up in 2003-05. National-level statistics are limited and do not capture the large share of black market activity. The konvertibilna marka (convertible mark or BAM)- the national currency introduced in 1998 - is pegged to the euro, and confidence in the currency and the banking sector has increased. Implementation of privatization, however, has been slow, and local entities only reluctantly support national-level institutions. Banking reform accelerated in 2001 as all the Communist-era payments bureaus were shut down; foreign banks, primarily from Western Europe, now control most of the banking sector. A sizeable current account deficit and high unemployment rate remain the two most serious economic problems. The country receives substantial amounts of reconstruction assistance and humanitarian aid from the international community but will have to prepare for an era of declining assistance. |
Electricity - consumption | 327.6 million kWh (2002) | 8.849 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | 3.2 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 80 million kWh (2002) | 2.271 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 266.2 million kWh (2002) | 10.51 billion kWh (2003) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Niger River 200 m
highest point: Mont Bagzane 2,022 m |
lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Maglic 2,386 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 | air pollution from metallurgical plants; sites for disposing of urban waste are limited; water shortages and destruction of infrastructure because of the 1992-95 civil strife; deforestation |
Environment - international agreements | 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 |
party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, 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 | Bosniak 48%, Serb 37.1%, Croat 14.3%, other 0.6% (2000)
note: Bosniak has replaced Muslim as an ethnic term in part to avoid confusion with the religious term Muslim - an adherent of Islam |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000) | marka per US dollar - 1.5727 (2005), 1.5752 (2004), 1.7329 (2003), 2.0782 (2002), 2.1857 (2001)
note: the marka is pegged to the euro |
Executive branch | 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: 27-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% |
chief of state: Chairman of the Presidency Nebojsa RADMANOVIC (chairman since 6 November 2006; presidency member since 1 October 2006 - Serb); other members of the three-member presidency rotating (every eight months): Zeljko KOMSIC (since 1 October 2006 - Croat) and Haris SILAJDZIC (since 1 October 2006 - Bosniak)
head of government: Chairman of the Council of Ministers Adnan TERZIC (since 20 December 2002) cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the council chairman; approved by the National House of Representatives elections: the three members of the presidency (one Bosniak, one Croat, one Serb) are elected by popular vote for a four-year term (eligible for a second term, but then ineligible for four years); the member with the most votes becomes the chairman unless he or she was the incumbent chairman at the time of the election, but the chairmanship rotates every eight months; election last held 1 October 2006 (next to be held in 2010); the chairman of the Council of Ministers is appointed by the presidency and confirmed by the National House of Representatives election results: percent of vote - Nebojsa RADMANOVIC with 53.3% of the Serb vote; Zeljko KOMSIC received 39.6% of the Croat vote; Haris SILAJDZIC received 62.8% of the Bosniak vote note: President of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina: Niko LOZANCIC (since 27 January 2003); Vice Presidents Sahbaz DZIHANOVIC (since in 2003) and Desnica RADIVOJEVIC (since in 2003); President of the Republika Srpska: Milan JELIC (since 9 November 2006) |
Exports | NA | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | uranium ore, livestock, cowpeas, onions | metals, clothing, wood products |
Exports - partners | France 41%, Nigeria 22.4%, Japan 15.3%, Switzerland 6%, Spain 4.1%, Ghana 4% (2004) | Croatia 18.4%, Italy 17.1%, Slovenia 14.6%, Germany 12.8%, Austria 6.5%, Hungary 5.2%, China 4.2% (2005) |
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 | a wide medium blue vertical band on the fly side with a yellow isosceles triangle abutting the band and the top of the flag; the remainder of the flag is medium blue with seven full five-pointed white stars and two half stars top and bottom along the hypotenuse of the triangle |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 39%
industry: 17% services: 44% (2001) |
agriculture: 14.2%
industry: 30.8% services: 55% (2002) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $900 (2004 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.5% (2004 est.) | 5% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 16 00 N, 8 00 E | 44 00 N, 18 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 | within Bosnia and Herzegovina's recognized borders, the country is divided into a joint Bosniak/Croat Federation (about 51% of the territory) and the Bosnian Serb-led Republika Srpska or RS (about 49% of the territory); the region called Herzegovina is contiguous to Croatia and Serbia and Montenegro (Montenegro), and traditionally has been settled by an ethnic Croat majority in the west and an ethnic Serb majority in the east |
Heliports | - | 5 (2006) |
Highways | total: 10,100 km
paved: 798 km unpaved: 9,302 km (1999 est.) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 0.8%
highest 10%: 35.4% (1995) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | minor transit point for marijuana and opiate trafficking routes to Western Europe; remains highly vulnerable to money-laundering activity given a primarily cash-based and unregulated economy, weak law enforcement, and instances of corruption |
Imports | NA | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery, vehicles and parts, petroleum, cereals | machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | France 14.4%, US 10.3%, French Polynesia 9.4%, Nigeria 7.8%, Cote d'Ivoire 7.5%, Japan 5.2%, China 5.1%, Thailand 4.1% (2004) | Croatia 24.7%, Germany 13.7%, Slovenia 13.1%, Italy 11%, Austria 6.9%, Hungary 5.5% (2005) |
Independence | 3 August 1960 (from France) | 1 March 1992 (from Yugoslavia; referendum for independence was completed 1 March 1992; independence was declared 3 March 1992) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA (2001 est.) | 5.5% (2003 est.) |
Industries | uranium mining, cement, brick, soap, textiles, food processing, chemicals, slaughterhouses | steel, coal, iron ore, lead, zinc, manganese, bauxite, vehicle assembly, textiles, tobacco products, wooden furniture, tank and aircraft assembly, domestic appliances, oil refining |
Infant mortality rate | total: 121.69 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 125.93 deaths/1,000 live births female: 117.33 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 9.82 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 11.26 deaths/1,000 live births female: 8.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (2002 est.) | 4.4% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | 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 | BIS, CE, CEI, EBRD, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM (guest), OAS (observer), OIC (observer), OPCW, OSCE, SECI, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer) |
Irrigated land | 660 sq km (1998 est.) | 30 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | State Court or Cour d'Etat; Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | BH Constitutional Court (consists of nine members: four members are selected by the Bosniak/Croat Federation's House of Representatives, two members by the Republika Srpska's National Assembly, and three non-Bosnian members by the president of the European Court of Human Rights); BH State Court (consists of nine judges and three divisions - Administrative, Appellate and Criminal - having jurisdiction over cases related to state-level law and appellate jurisdiction over cases initiated in the entities); note - a War Crimes Chamber opened in March 2005
note: the entities each have a Supreme Court; each entity also has a number of lower courts; there are 10 cantonal courts in the Federation, plus a number of municipal courts; the Republika Srpska has five municipal courts |
Labor force | 70,000 receive regular wages or salaries (2002 est.) | 1.026 million (2001) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 90%, industry and commerce 6%, government 4% | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
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 |
total: 1,459 km
border countries: Croatia 932 km, Montenegro 225 km, Serbia 302 km |
Land use | arable land: 3.54%
permanent crops: 0.01% other: 96.45% (2001) |
arable land: 19.61%
permanent crops: 1.89% other: 78.5% (2005) |
Languages | French (official), Hausa, Djerma | Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian |
Legal system | based on French civil law system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on civil law system |
Legislative branch | 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, RSD 7, RDP 6, ANDP 5, Party for Socialism and Democracy in Niger 1, other 8 |
bicameral Parliamentary Assembly or Skupstina consists of the national House of Representatives or Predstavnicki Dom (42 seats - elected by proportional representation, 28 seats allocated from the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and 14 seats from the Republika Srpska; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); and the House of Peoples or Dom Naroda (15 seats - 5 Bosniak, 5 Croat, 5 Serb; members elected by the Bosniak/Croat Federation's House of Representatives and the Republika Srpska's National Assembly to serve four-year terms); note - Bosnia's election law specifies four-year terms for the state and first-order administrative division entity legislatures
elections: national House of Representatives - elections last held 1 October 2006 (next to be held in 2010); House of Peoples - last constituted in January 2003 (next to be constituted in 2007) election results: national House of Representatives - percent of vote by party/coalition - NA%; seats by party/coalition - SDA 9, SBiH 8, SNSD 7, SDP 5, SDS 3, HDZ-BH 3, other 7; House of Peoples - percent of vote by party/coalition - NA; seats by party/coalition - NA note: the Bosniak/Croat Federation has a bicameral legislature that consists of a House of Representatives (98 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); elections last held 1 October 2006 (next to be held in October 2010); percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party/coalition - SDA 28, SBiH 24, SDP 17, HDZ-BH 8, HDZ100 7, other 14; and a House of Peoples (60 seats - 30 Bosniak, 30 Croat); last constituted December 2002; the Republika Srpska has a National Assembly (83 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); elections last held 1 October 2006 (next to be held in the fall of 2010); percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party/coalition - SNSD 41, SDS 17, PDP 8, DNS 4, SBH 4, SPRS 3, SDA 3, other 3; as a result of the 2002 constitutional reform process, a 28-member Republika Srpska Council of Peoples (COP) was established in the Republika Srpska National Assembly including eight Croats, eight Bosniaks, eight Serbs, and four members of the smaller communities |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 43.5 years
male: 43.54 years female: 43.45 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 78 years
male: 74.39 years female: 81.88 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 17.6% male: 25.8% female: 9.7% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 94.6% male: 98.4% female: 91.1% (2000 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, southeast of Algeria | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Croatia |
Map references | Africa | Europe |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | no data available |
Military branches | Niger Armed Forces (Forces Armees Nigeriennes, FAN): Army, National Air Force (2005) | VF Army (the air and air defense forces are subordinate commands within the Army), VRS Army (the air and air defense forces are subordinate commands within the Army) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $33.3 million (2004) | $234.3 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.1% (2004) | 4.5% (FY02) |
National holiday | Republic Day, 18 December (1958) | National Day, 25 November (1943) |
Nationality | noun: Nigerien(s)
adjective: Nigerien |
noun: Bosnian(s), Herzegovinian(s)
adjective: Bosnian, Herzegovinian |
Natural hazards | recurring droughts | destructive earthquakes |
Natural resources | uranium, coal, iron ore, tin, phosphates, gold, molybdenum, gypsum, salt, petroleum | coal, iron ore, bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, chromite, cobalt, manganese, nickel, clay, gypsum, salt, sand, forests, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -0.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 13.01 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | 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 [TANDJA Mamadou, 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 Social Democracy or RSD [Cheiffou AMADOU]; Union of Democratic Patriots and Progressives-Chamoua or UPDP-Chamoua [Professor Andre' SALIFOU, chairman] | Alliance of Independent Social Democrats or SNSD [Milorad DODIK]; Bosnian Party or BOSS [Mirnes AJANOVIC]; Civic Democratic Party or GDS [Ibrahim SPAHIC]; Croat Christian Democratic Union of Bosnia and Herzegovina or HKDU [Marin TOPIC]; Croat Party of Rights or HSP [Zvonko JURISIC]; Croat Peasants Party or HSS [Marko TADIC]; Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia and Herzegovina or HDZ-BH [Dragan COVIC]; Croatian Democratic Union 100 or HDZ100; Croatian Peoples Union [Milenko BRKIC]; Democratic National Union or DNZ [Rifet DOLIC]; Democratic Peoples Alliance or DNS [Marko PAVIC]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDS [Rasim KADIC]; New Croat Initiative or NHI [Kresimir ZUBAK]; Party for Bosnia and Herzegovina or SBiH [Haris SILAJDZIC]; Party for Democratic Action or SDA [Sulejman TIHIC]; Party of Democratic Progress or PDP [Mladen IVANIC]; Serb Democratic Party or SDS [Dragan CAVIC]; Serb Radical Party of the Republika Srpska or SRS-RS [Milanko MIHAJLICA]; Serb Radical Party-Dr. Vojislav Seselj or SRS-VS [Radislav KANJERIC]; Social Democratic Party of BIH or SDP [Zlatko LAGUMDZIJA]; Social Democratic Union or SDU [Sejfudin TOKIC]; Socialist Party of Republika Srpska or SPRS [Petar DJOKIC] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 11,665,937 (July 2005 est.) | 4,498,976 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 63% (1993 est.) | 25% (2004 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.63% (2005 est.) | 1.35% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 5, FM 6, shortwave 4 (2001) | AM 8, FM 16, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Railways | - | total: 608 km (777 km electrified)
standard gauge: 608 km 1.435-m gauge (2005) |
Religions | Muslim 80%, remainder indigenous beliefs and Christian | Muslim 40%, Orthodox 31%, Roman Catholic 15%, other 14% |
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 (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2006 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: country code - 227; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) |
general assessment: telephone and telegraph network needs modernization and expansion; many urban areas are below average as contrasted with services in other former Yugoslav republics
domestic: NA international: country code - 387; no satellite earth stations |
Telephones - main lines in use | 22,400 (2002) | 968,900 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 24,000 (2003) | 1.594 million (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (2002) | 33 (plus 277 repeaters) (September 1995) |
Terrain | predominately desert plains and sand dunes; flat to rolling plains in south; hills in north | mountains and valleys |
Total fertility rate | 6.75 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 1.22 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA (2002 est.) | 45.5% official rate; grey economy may reduce actual unemployment to 25-30% (31 December 2004 est.) |
Waterways | 300 km
note: Niger River is navigable to Gaya between September and March (2004) |
Sava River (northern border) open to shipping but use limited (2006) |