Tajikistan (2001) | Niger (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 2 oblasts (viloyatho, singular - viloyat) and one autonomous oblast* (viloyati mukhtori); Viloyati Mukhtori Kuhistoni Badakhshon* (Khorugh - formerly Khorog), Viloyati Khatlon (Qurghonteppa - formerly Kurgan-Tyube), Viloyati Leninobod (Khujand - formerly Leninabad)
note: the administrative center name follows in parentheses |
7 departments (departements, singular - departement), and 1 capital district* (capitale district); Agadez, Diffa, Dosso, Maradi, Niamey*, Tahoua, Tillaberi, Zinder |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
41.18% (male 1,367,194; female 1,341,967) 15-64 years: 54.22% (male 1,773,605; female 1,793,345) 65 years and over: 4.6% (male 131,009; female 171,561) (2001 est.) |
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.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, grain, fruits, grapes, vegetables; cattle, sheep, goats | cowpeas, cotton, peanuts, millet, sorghum, cassava (tapioca), rice; cattle, sheep, goats, camels, donkeys, horses, poultry |
Airports | 53 (2000 est.) | 27 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total:
9 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
51 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 36 (2000 est.) |
total:
18 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
Area | total:
143,100 sq km land: 142,700 sq km water: 400 sq km |
total:
1.267 million sq km land: 1,266,700 sq km water: 300 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Wisconsin | slightly less than twice the size of Texas |
Background | Tajikistan has experienced three changes in government and a five-year civil war since it gained independence in 1991 from the USSR. A peace agreement among rival factions was signed in 1997, and implementation reportedly completed by late 1999. Part of the agreement required the legalization of opposition political parties prior to the 1999 elections, which occurred, but such parties have made little progress in successful participation in government. Random criminal and political violence in the country remains a complication impairing Tajikistan's ability to engage internationally. | 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. |
Birth rate | 33.23 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 50.68 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$146 million expenditures: $196 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues:
$377 million, including $146 million from foreign sources expenditures: $377 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1999 est.) |
Capital | Dushanbe | Niamey |
Climate | midlatitude continental, hot summers, mild winters; semiarid to polar in Pamir Mountains | desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 6 November 1994 | the constitution of January 1993 was revised by national referendum on 12 May 1996 and again by referendum on 18 July 1999 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Tajikistan conventional short form: Tajikistan local long form: Jumhurii Tojikiston local short form: none former: Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic |
conventional long form:
Republic of Niger conventional short form: Niger local long form: Republique du Niger local short form: Niger |
Currency | somoni | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States |
Death rate | 8.57 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 22.71 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.3 billion (1999 est.) | $1.3 billion (1999 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Robert P. J. FINN embassy: temporarily collocated with the US Embassy in Almaty (Kazakhstan) mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: NA FAX: NA |
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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | Tajikistan does not have an embassy in the US, but does have a permanent mission to the UN: address - 136 East 67th Street, New York, NY 10021, telephone - [1] (212) 472-7645, FAX - [1] (212) 628-0252; permanent representative to the UN is Rashid ALIMOV | chief of mission:
Ambassador Joseph DIATTA chancery: 2204 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4224 through 4227 |
Disputes - international | portions of Tajikistan's northern and western border with Uzbekistan and its eastern border with China have not been officially demarcated; territorial dispute with Kyrgyzstan on northern boundary in Isfara Valley area | 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 |
Economic aid - recipient | $64.7 million (1995) | $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 |
Economy - overview | Tajikistan has the lowest per capita GDP among the 15 former Soviet republics. Cotton is the most important crop. Mineral resources, varied but limited in amount, include silver, gold, uranium, and tungsten. Industry consists only of a large aluminum plant, hydropower facilities, and small obsolete factories mostly in light industry and food processing. The Tajikistani economy has been gravely weakened by six years of civil conflict and by the loss of subsidies from Moscow and of markets for its products. Most of its people live in abject poverty. Tajikistan depends on aid from Russia and Uzbekistan and on international humanitarian assistance for much of its basic subsistence needs. The future of Tajikistan's economy and the potential for attracting foreign investment depend upon stability and continued progress in the peace process. | 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 14.729 billion kWh (1999) | 401 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 3.9 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 4.1 billion kWh (1999) | 215 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 15.623 billion kWh (1999) | 200 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
1.9% hydro: 98.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Syrdariya 300 m highest point: Pik Imeni Ismail Samani 7,495 m |
lowest point:
Niger River 200 m highest point: Mont Greboun 1,944 m |
Environment - current issues | inadequate sanitation facilities; increasing levels of soil salinity; industrial pollution; excessive pesticides; part of the basin of the shrinking Aral Sea suffers from severe overutilization of available water for irrigation and associated pollution | overgrazing; soil erosion; deforestation; desertification; wildlife populations (such as elephant, hippopotamus, giraffe, and lion) threatened because of poaching and habitat destruction |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: none of the selected 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 | Tajik 64.9%, Uzbek 25%, Russian 3.5% (declining because of emigration), other 6.6% | Hausa 56%, Djerma 22%, Fula 8.5%, Tuareg 8%, Beri Beri (Kanouri) 4.3%, Arab, Toubou, and Gourmantche 1.2%, about 1,200 French expatriates |
Exchange rates | Tajikistani somoni per US dollar - 2.2 (January 2001), 1550 (January 2000), 998 (January 1999), 350 (January 1997), 284 (January 1996)
note: the new unit of exchange was introduced on 30 October 2000, with one somoni equal to 1,000 of the old Tajikistani rubles |
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 |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Emomali RAHMONOV (since 6 November 1994; head of state and Supreme Assembly chairman since 19 November 1992) head of government: Prime Minister Oqil OQILOV (since 20 January 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president, approved by the Supreme Assembly elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 6 November 1999 (next to be held NA 2006); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Emomali RAHMONOV elected president; percent of vote - Emomali RAHMONOV 97%, Davlat USMON 2% |
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% |
Exports | $761 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $385 million (f.o.b., 1999) |
Exports - commodities | aluminum, electricity, cotton, fruits, vegetable oil, textiles | uranium ore 65%, livestock products, cowpeas, onions (1998 est.) |
Exports - partners | Liechtenstein 26%, Uzbekistan 20%, Russia 8% (1998) | France 45%, Nigeria 27%, UK 11% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three horizontal stripes of red (top), a wider stripe of white, and green; a gold crown surmounted by seven gold, five-pointed stars is located in the center of the white stripe | three equal horizontal bands of orange (top), white, and green with a small orange disk (representing the sun) centered in the white band; similar to the flag of India, which has a blue spoked wheel centered in the white band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $7.3 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $10 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
19.8% industry: 18.1% services: 62.1% (1998) |
agriculture:
40% industry: 18% services: 42% (1998) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,140 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.1% (2000 est.) | 3.5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 39 00 N, 71 00 E | 16 00 N, 8 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked | landlocked |
Highways | total:
29,900 km paved: 21,400 km (these roads are said to be hard-surfaced, and include, in addition to conventionally paved roads, some that are surfaced with gravel or other coarse aggregate, making them trafficable in all weather) unpaved: 8,500 km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1990) |
total:
10,100 km paved: 798 km unpaved: 9,302 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
0.8% highest 10%: 35.4% (1995) |
Illicit drugs | major transshipment zone for heroin and opiates from Afghanistan going to Russia and Western Europe; limited illicit cultivation of cannabis, mostly for domestic consumption | - |
Imports | $782 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $317 million (f.o.b., 1999) |
Imports - commodities | electricity, petroleum products, aluminum oxide, machinery and equipment, foodstuffs | consumer goods, primary materials, machinery, vehicles and parts, petroleum, cereals |
Imports - partners | Europe 32.3%, Uzbekistan 29%, Russia 13.6% (1998) | France 22%, Cote d'Ivoire 15%, Nigeria 8%, US 3% (1999) |
Independence | 9 September 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 3 August 1958 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 10% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Industries | aluminum, zinc, lead, chemicals and fertilizers, cement, vegetable oil, metal-cutting machine tools, refrigerators and freezers | uranium mining, cement, brick, textiles, food processing, chemicals, slaughterhouses |
Infant mortality rate | 116.09 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 123.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 33% (2000 est.) | 2.8% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | AsDB, CCC, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, IOC, IOM, ITU, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) | 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 |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | NA | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 6,390 sq km (1993 est.) | 660 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president) | State Court or Cour d'Etat; Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | 1.9 million (1996) | 70,000 receive regular wages or salaries |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 50%, industry 20%, services 30% (1997 est.) | agriculture 90%, industry and commerce 6%, government 4% |
Land boundaries | total:
3,651 km border countries: Afghanistan 1,206 km, China 414 km, Kyrgyzstan 870 km, Uzbekistan 1,161 km |
total:
5,697 km border countries: Algeria 956 km, Benin 266 km, Burkina Faso 628 km, Chad 1,175 km, Libya 354 km, Mali 821 km, Nigeria 1,497 km |
Land use | arable land:
6% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 25% forests and woodland: 4% other: 65% (1993 est.) |
arable land:
3% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 7% forests and woodland: 2% other: 88% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Tajik (official), Russian widely used in government and business | French (official), Hausa, Djerma |
Legal system | based on civil law system; no judicial review of legislative acts | based on French civil law system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral Supreme Assembly or Majlisi Oli consists of the Assembly of Representatives (lower chamber) or Majlisi Namoyandagon (63 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and National Assembly (upper chamber) or Majlisi Milliy (33 seats; members are indirectly elected, 25 selected by local deputies, 8 appointed by the president; all to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 27 February and 12 March 2000 for the Assembly of Representatives (next to be held NA 2005) and 23 March 2000 for the National Assembly (next to be held NA 2005) election results: Assembly of Representatives - percent of vote by party - PDPT 65%, Communist Party 20%, Islamic Rebirth Party 7.5%, other 7.5%; seats by party - NA; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA |
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 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
64.18 years male: 61.09 years female: 67.42 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
41.59 years male: 41.74 years female: 41.44 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: 99% female: 97% (1989 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 13.6% male: 20.9% female: 6.6% (1995 est.) |
Location | Central Asia, west of China | Western Africa, southeast of Algeria |
Map references | Commonwealth of Independent States | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
Military branches | Army, Air Force, Air Defense Forces, Presidential National Guard, Security Forces (internal and border troops) | Army, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, Republican Guard, National Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $17 million (FY97) | $20 million (FY96) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.8% (FY97) | 1.1% (FY96) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,586,700 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49:
2,202,608 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,300,252 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49:
1,190,787 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
72,056 (2001 est.) |
males:
108,993 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 9 September (1991) | Republic Day, 18 December (1958) |
Nationality | noun:
Tajikistani(s) adjective: Tajikistani |
noun:
Nigerien(s) adjective: Nigerien |
Natural hazards | NA | recurring droughts |
Natural resources | hydropower, some petroleum, uranium, mercury, brown coal, lead, zinc, antimony, tungsten, silver, gold | uranium, coal, iron ore, tin, phosphates, gold, petroleum |
Net migration rate | -3.49 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -0.73 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | natural gas 400 km (1992) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Congress of People's Unity of Tajikistan [Saiffidin TURAYEV]; Democratic Party or TDP [Mahmadruzi ISKANDAROV, chairman]; Islamic Rebirth Party [Muhammadsharif HIMMAT-ZODA, chairman]; Lali Badakhshan Movement [Atobek AMIRBEKOV]; National Movement Party [Hakim MUHHABATOV]; Party of Justice and Development [Rahmatullo ZOIROV]; People's Democratic Party of Tajikistan or PDPT [Emomali RAHMONOV]; Rastokhez (Rebirth) Movement [Tohiri ABDUJABBOR]; Socialist Party [Sherali KENJAEV]; Tajik Communist Party or CPT [Shodi SHABDOLOV]; Adolatho "Justice" Party [Abdurahmon KARIMOV, chairman] | 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] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 6,578,681 (July 2001 est.) | 10,355,156 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 80% (2000 est.) | 63% (1993 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.12% (2001 est.) | 2.72% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 9, FM 6, shortwave 5 (1998) | AM 5, FM 5, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | 1.291 million (1991) | 680,000 (1997) |
Railways | total:
480 km in common carrier service; does not include industrial lines (1990) |
0 km |
Religions | Sunni Muslim 80%, Shi'a Muslim 5% | Muslim 80%, remainder indigenous beliefs and Christians |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.1 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
poorly developed and not well maintained; many towns are not reached by the national network domestic: cable and microwave radio relay international: linked by cable and microwave radio relay to other CIS republics and by leased connections to the Moscow international gateway switch; Dushanbe linked by Intelsat to international gateway switch in Ankara (Turkey); satellite earth stations - 1 Orbita and 2 Intelsat |
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) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 363,000 (1997) | 16,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,500 (1997) | 13,000 (1995) |
Television broadcast stations | 0 (there are, however, repeaters that relay programs from Russia, Iran, and Turkey) (1997) | 10 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | Pamir and Alay mountains dominate landscape; western Fergana Valley in north, Kofarnihon and Vakhsh Valleys in southwest | predominately desert plains and sand dunes; flat to rolling plains in south; hills in north |
Total fertility rate | 4.29 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 7.08 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 5.7% includes only officially registered unemployed; also large numbers of underemployed workers and unregistered unemployed people (December 1998) | NA% |
Waterways | none | 300 km
note: the Niger River is navigable from Niamey to Gaya on the Benin frontier from mid-December through March |