Niger (2005) | Marshall Islands (2007) | |
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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 | 33 municipalities; Ailinginae, Ailinglaplap, Ailuk, Arno, Aur, Bikar, Bikini, Bokak, Ebon, Enewetak, Erikub, Jabat, Jaluit, Jemo, Kili, Kwajalein, Lae, Lib, Likiep, Majuro, Maloelap, Mejit, Mili, Namorik, Namu, Rongelap, Rongrik, Toke, Ujae, Ujelang, Utirik, Wotho, Wotje |
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: 38.3% (male 12,061/female 11,622)
15-64 years: 58.9% (male 18,634/female 17,775) 65 years and over: 2.8% (male 832/female 891) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cowpeas, cotton, peanuts, millet, sorghum, cassava (tapioca), rice; cattle, sheep, goats, camels, donkeys, horses, poultry | coconuts, tomatoes, melons, taro, breadfruit, fruits; pigs, chickens |
Airports | 27 (2004 est.) | 15 (2007) |
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: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007) |
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: 11
914 to 1,523 m: 10 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
Area | total: 1.267 million sq km
land: 1,266,700 sq km water: 300 sq km |
total: 11,854.3 sq km
land: 181.3 sq km water: 11,673 sq km (note - lagoon waters) note: includes the atolls of Bikini, Enewetak, Kwajalein, Majuro, Rongelap, and Utirik |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of Texas | about 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 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. | After almost four decades under US administration as the easternmost part of the UN Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, the Marshall Islands attained independence in 1986 under a Compact of Free Association. Compensation claims continue as a result of US nuclear testing on some of the atolls between 1947 and 1962. The Marshall Islands hosts the US Army Kwajalein Atoll (USAKA) Reagan Missile Test Site, a key installation in the US missile defense network. |
Birth rate | 48.3 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 32.37 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $320 million - including $134 million from foreign sources
expenditures: $320 million, including capital expenditures of $178 million (2002 est.) |
revenues: $42 million
expenditures: $40 million (1999) |
Capital | Niamey | name: Majuro
geographic coordinates: 7 06 N, 171 23 E time difference: UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south | tropical; hot and humid; wet season May to November; islands border typhoon belt |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 370.4 km |
Constitution | new constitution adopted 18 July 1999 | 1 May 1979 |
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 the Marshall Islands
conventional short form: Marshall Islands local long form: Republic of the Marshall Islands local short form: Marshall Islands abbreviation: RMI former: Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, Marshall Islands District |
Death rate | 21.33 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 4.66 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.6 billion (1999 est.) | $86.5 million (FY99/00 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 Clyde BISHOP
embassy: Oceanside, Mejen Weto, Long Island, Majuro mailing address: P. O. Box 1379, Majuro, Republic of the Marshall Islands 96960-1379 telephone: [692] 247-4011 FAX: [692] 247-4012 |
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 Banny DE BRUM
chancery: 2433 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5414 FAX: [1] (202) 232-3236 consulate(s) general: Honolulu |
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 | claims US territory of Wake Island |
Economic aid - recipient | $341 million (1997) | $56.56 million more than $1 billion from the US, 1986-2002 (2005) |
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. | US Government assistance is the mainstay of this tiny island economy. Agricultural production, primarily subsistence, is concentrated on small farms; the most important commercial crops are coconuts and breadfruit. Small-scale industry is limited to handicrafts, tuna processing, and copra. The tourist industry, now a small source of foreign exchange employing less than 10% of the labor force, remains the best hope for future added income. The islands have few natural resources, and imports far exceed exports. Under the terms of the Amended Compact of Free Association, the US will provide millions of dollars per year to the Marshall Islands (RMI) through 2023, at which time a Trust Fund made up of US and RMI contributions will begin perpetual annual payouts. Government downsizing, drought, a drop in construction, the decline in tourism, and less income from the renewal of fishing vessel licenses have held GDP growth to an average of 1% over the past decade. |
Electricity - consumption | 327.6 million kWh (2002) | - |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2002) | - |
Electricity - imports | 80 million kWh (2002) | - |
Electricity - production | 266.2 million kWh (2002) | - |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Niger River 200 m
highest point: Mont Bagzane 2,022 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Likiep 10 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 | inadequate supplies of potable water; pollution of Majuro lagoon from household waste and discharges from fishing vessels |
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: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
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 | Micronesian |
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) | the US dollar is used |
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: President Kessai Hesa NOTE (since 5 January 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Kessai Hesa NOTE (since 5 January 2004) cabinet: Cabinet selected by the president from among the members of the legislature elections: president elected by Parliament from among its members for a four-year term; election last held 17 November 2003 (next to be held in November 2007) election results: Kessai Hesa NOTE elected president; percent of Parliament vote - 100% |
Exports | NA | $9.1 million f.o.b. (2000) |
Exports - commodities | uranium ore, livestock, cowpeas, onions | copra cake, coconut oil, handicrafts, fish |
Exports - partners | France 41%, Nigeria 22.4%, Japan 15.3%, Switzerland 6%, Spain 4.1%, Ghana 4% (2004) | US, Japan, Australia, China (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 October - 30 September |
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 two stripes radiating from the lower hoist-side corner - orange (top) and white; there is a white star with four large rays and 20 small rays on the hoist side above the two stripes |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 39%
industry: 17% services: 44% (2001) |
agriculture: 31.7%
industry: 14.9% services: 53.4% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $900 (2004 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.5% (2004 est.) | 3.5% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 16 00 N, 8 00 E | 9 00 N, 168 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 | Bikini and Enewetak are former US nuclear test sites; Kwajalein, the famous World War II battleground, is used as a US missile test range; island city of Ebeye is the second largest settlement in the Marshall Islands, after the capital of Majuro, and one of the most densely populated locations in the Pacific |
Highways | total: 10,100 km
paved: 798 km unpaved: 9,302 km (1999 est.) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 0.8%
highest 10%: 35.4% (1995) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | NA | $54.7 million f.o.b. (2000) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery, vehicles and parts, petroleum, cereals | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels, beverages and tobacco |
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) | US, Japan, Australia, NZ, Singapore, Fiji, China, Philippines (2006) |
Independence | 3 August 1960 (from France) | 21 October 1986 (from the US-administered UN trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA (2001 est.) | NA% |
Industries | uranium mining, cement, brick, soap, textiles, food processing, chemicals, slaughterhouses | copra, tuna processing, tourism, craft items from seashells, wood, and pearls |
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: 27.3 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 30.62 deaths/1,000 live births female: 23.82 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (2002 est.) | 3% (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 | ACP, AsDB, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, IDA, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO |
Irrigated land | 660 sq km (1998 est.) | 0 sq km |
Judicial branch | State Court or Cour d'Etat; Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | Supreme Court; High Court; Traditional Rights Court |
Labor force | 70,000 receive regular wages or salaries (2002 est.) | 14,680 (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 90%, industry and commerce 6%, government 4% | agriculture: 21.4%
industry: 20.9% services: 57.7% (2000) |
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: 3.54%
permanent crops: 0.01% other: 96.45% (2001) |
arable land: 11.11%
permanent crops: 44.44% other: 44.45% (2005) |
Languages | French (official), Hausa, Djerma | Marshallese (official) 98.2%, other languages 1.8% (1999 census)
note: English (official), widely spoken as a second language |
Legal system | based on French civil law system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on adapted Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws |
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 |
unicameral legislature or Nitijela (33 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 17 November 2003 (next to be held by November 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - independents 33 note: the Council of Chiefs or Ironij is a 12-member body comprised of tribal chiefs that advises on matters affecting customary law and practice |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 43.5 years
male: 43.54 years female: 43.45 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 70.61 years
male: 68.61 years female: 72.71 years (2007 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: 93.7% male: 93.6% female: 93.7% (1999) |
Location | Western Africa, southeast of Algeria | Oceania, two archipelagic island chains of 29 atolls, each made up of many small islets, and five single islands in the North Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Australia |
Map references | Africa | Oceania |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | - | total: 902 ships (1000 GRT or over) 33,260,440 GRT/55,644,008 DWT
by type: barge carrier 2, bulk carrier 215, cargo 61, carrier 1, chemical tanker 165, combination ore/oil 6, container 171, liquefied gas 28, passenger 6, petroleum tanker 228, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 10, specialized tanker 2, vehicle carrier 5 foreign-owned: 857 (Australia 1, Belgium 1, Bermuda 5, Canada 4, Chile 4, China 3, Croatia 4, Cyprus 39, Denmark 9, Finland 2, Germany 214, Greece 226, Hong Kong 4, Italy 3, Japan 5, South Korea 3, Latvia 10, Malaysia 3, Monaco 7, Netherlands 5, Norway 62, Romania 1, Russia 4, Saudi Arabia 4, Singapore 12, Slovenia 3, Spain 3, Sweden 1, Switzerland 14, Turkey 41, UAE 14, UK 17, US 129) (2007) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the US |
Military branches | Niger Armed Forces (Forces Armees Nigeriennes, FAN): Army, National Air Force (2005) | no regular military forces; under the 1983 Compact of Free Association, the US has full authority and responsibility for security and defense of the Marshall Islands; Marshall Islands Police (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $33.3 million (2004) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.1% (2004) | NA |
National holiday | Republic Day, 18 December (1958) | Constitution Day, 1 May (1979) |
Nationality | noun: Nigerien(s)
adjective: Nigerien |
noun: Marshallese (singular and plural)
adjective: Marshallese |
Natural hazards | recurring droughts | infrequent typhoons |
Natural resources | uranium, coal, iron ore, tin, phosphates, gold, molybdenum, gypsum, salt, petroleum | coconut products, marine products, deep seabed minerals |
Net migration rate | -0.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | -5.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 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] | traditionally there have been no formally organized political parties; what has existed more closely resembles factions or interest groups because they do not have party headquarters, formal platforms, or party structures; the following two "groupings" have competed in legislative balloting in recent years - Aelon Kein Ad Party [Michael KABUA] and United Democratic Party or UDP [Litokwa TOMEING] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 11,665,937 (July 2005 est.) | 61,815 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 63% (1993 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.63% (2005 est.) | 2.207% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 5, FM 6, shortwave 4 (2001) | AM 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (additionally, the US Armed Forces Radio and Television Services (Central Pacific Network) operate one FM and one AM station on Kwajalein) (2005) |
Religions | Muslim 80%, remainder indigenous beliefs and Christian | Protestant 54.8%, Assembly of God 25.8%, Roman Catholic 8.4%, Bukot nan Jesus 2.8%, Mormon 2.1%, other Christian 3.6%, other 1%, none 1.5% (1999 census) |
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: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.038 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.048 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.934 male(s)/female total population: 1.041 male(s)/female (2007 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: digital switching equipment; modern services include telex, cellular, internet, international calling, caller ID, and leased data circuits
domestic: Majuro Atoll and Ebeye and Kwajalein islands have regular, seven-digit, direct-dial telephones; other islands interconnected by high frequency radiotelephone (used mostly for government purposes) and mini-satellite telephones international: country code - 692; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean); US Government satellite communications system on Kwajalein (2001) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 22,400 (2002) | 4,500 (2004) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 24,000 (2003) | 600 (2004) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (2002) | 2 (both are US military stations; Marshalls Broadcasting Service, a cable company, operates on Majuro) (2005) |
Terrain | predominately desert plains and sand dunes; flat to rolling plains in south; hills in north | low coral limestone and sand islands |
Total fertility rate | 6.75 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 3.76 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA (2002 est.) | 30.9% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | 300 km
note: Niger River is navigable to Gaya between September and March (2004) |
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