Uruguay (2001) | Niger (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | 19 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento); Artigas, Canelones, Cerro Largo, Colonia, Durazno, Flores, Florida, Lavalleja, Maldonado, Montevideo, Paysandu, Rio Negro, Rivera, Rocha, Salto, San Jose, Soriano, Tacuarembo, Treinta y Tres | 8 regions (regions, singular - region) includes 1 capital district* (commune urbaine); Agadez, Diffa, Dosso, Maradi, Niamey*, Tahoua, Tillaberi, Zinder |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
24.39% (male 419,932; female 399,605) 15-64 years: 62.61% (male 1,038,785; female 1,064,891) 65 years and over: 13% (male 180,130; female 256,762) (2001 est.) |
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.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, rice, barley, corn, sorghum; livestock; fish | cowpeas, cotton, peanuts, millet, sorghum, cassava (tapioca), rice; cattle, sheep, goats, camels, donkeys, horses, poultry |
Airports | 64 (2000 est.) | 27 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
15 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 8 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 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
49 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 16 under 914 m: 31 (2000 est.) |
total: 18
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
176,220 sq km land: 173,620 sq km water: 2,600 sq km |
total: 1.267 million sq km
land: 1,266,700 sq km water: 300 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than the state of Washington | slightly less than twice the size of Texas |
Background | A violent Marxist urban guerrilla movement, the Tupamaros, launched in the late 1960s, led Uruguay's president to agree to military control of his administration in 1973. By the end of the year the rebels had been crushed, but the military continued to expand its hold throughout the government. Civilian rule was not restored until 1985. Uruguay's political and labor conditions are among the freest on the continent. | 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. |
Birth rate | 17.36 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 48.3 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$4 billion expenditures: $4.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $500 million (2000 est.) |
revenues: $320 million - including $134 million from foreign sources
expenditures: $320 million, including capital expenditures of $178 million (2002 est.) |
Capital | Montevideo | Niamey |
Climate | warm temperate; freezing temperatures almost unknown | desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south |
Coastline | 660 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 27 November 1966, effective February 1967, suspended 27 June 1973, new constitution rejected by referendum 30 November 1980; two constitutional reforms approved by plebiscite 26 November 1989 and 7 January 1997 | new constitution adopted 18 July 1999 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Oriental Republic of Uruguay conventional short form: Uruguay local long form: Republica Oriental del Uruguay local short form: Uruguay former: Banda Oriental, Cisplatine Province |
conventional long form: Republic of Niger
conventional short form: Niger local long form: Republique du Niger local short form: Niger |
Currency | Uruguayan peso (UYU) | - |
Death rate | 9.03 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 21.33 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $8 billion (2000 est.) | $1.6 billion (1999 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Christopher C. ASHBY embassy: Lauro Muller 1776, Montevideo 11100 mailing address: APO AA 34035 telephone: [598] (2) 408-777, 203-6061 FAX: [598] (2) 48 86 11 |
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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Hugo FERNANDEZ Faingold chancery: 2715 M Street, NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 331-1313 through 1316 FAX: [1] (202) 331-8142 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, and New York |
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 |
Disputes - international | none | 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 |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $341 million (1997) |
Economy - overview | Uruguay's economy is characterized by an export-oriented agricultural sector, a well-educated workforce, relatively even income distribution, and high levels of social spending. After averaging growth of 5% annually in 1996-98, in 1999-2000 the economy suffered from lower demand in Argentina and Brazil, which together account for about half of Uruguay's exports. Despite the severity of the trade shocks, Uruguay's financial indicators remained more stable than those of its neighbors, a reflection of its solid reputation among investors and its investment-grade sovereign bond rating - one of only two in Latin America. Challenges for the government of President Jorge BATLLE include expanding Uruguay's trade ties beyond its MERCOSUR trade partners and reducing the costs of public services. GDP fell by 1.1% in 2000 and will grow by perhaps 1.5% in 2001. | 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 5.89 billion kWh (1999) | 327.6 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 215 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 800 million kWh (1999) | 80 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 5.704 billion kWh (1999) | 266.2 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
3.86% hydro: 95.44% nuclear: 0% other: 0.7% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Cerro Catedral 514 m |
lowest point: Niger River 200 m
highest point: Mont Bagzane 2,022 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution from meat packing/tannery industry; inadequate solid/hazardous waste disposal | 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:
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban |
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 |
Ethnic groups | white 88%, mestizo 8%, black 4%, Amerindian, practically nonexistent | 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 | Uruguayan pesos per US dollar - 12.5610 (January 2001), 12.0996 (2000), 11.3393 (1999), 10.4719 (1998), 9.4418 (1997), 7.9718 (1996) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Jorge BATLLE (since 1 March 2000) and Vice President Luis HIERRO (since 1 March 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Jorge BATLLE (since 1 March 2000) and Vice President Luis HIERRO (since 1 March 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president with parliamentary approval elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms; election last held 31 October 1999 with run-off election on 28 November 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Jorge BATLLE elected president; percent of vote - Jorge BATLLE 52% in a runoff against Tabare VAZQUEZ 44% |
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% |
Exports | $2.6 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA |
Exports - commodities | meat, rice, leather products, vehicles, dairy products, wool, electricity | uranium ore, livestock, cowpeas, onions |
Exports - partners | MERCOSUR partners 45%, EU 20%, US 7% (1999 est.) | France 41%, Nigeria 22.4%, Japan 15.3%, Switzerland 6%, Spain 4.1%, Ghana 4% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | nine equal horizontal stripes of white (top and bottom) alternating with blue; there is a white square in the upper hoist-side corner with a yellow sun bearing a human face known as the Sun of May and 16 rays alternately triangular and wavy | 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 - $31 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
10% industry: 28% services: 62% (1999) |
agriculture: 39%
industry: 17% services: 44% (2001) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $9,300 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $900 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -1.1% (2000 est.) | 3.5% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 33 00 S, 56 00 W | 16 00 N, 8 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 |
Highways | total:
8,983 km paved: 8,085 km unpaved: 898 km (1999) |
total: 10,100 km
paved: 798 km unpaved: 9,302 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 0.8%
highest 10%: 35.4% (1995) |
Imports | $3.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA |
Imports - commodities | road vehicles, electrical machinery, metal manufactures, heavy industrial machinery, crude petroleum | foodstuffs, machinery, vehicles and parts, petroleum, cereals |
Imports - partners | MERCOSUR partners 43%, EU 20%, US 11% (1999 est.) | 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) |
Independence | 25 August 1825 (from Brazil) | 3 August 1960 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | -2.1% (2000 est.) | NA (2001 est.) |
Industries | food processing, electrical machinery, transportation equipment, petroleum products, textiles, chemicals, beverages | uranium mining, cement, brick, soap, textiles, food processing, chemicals, slaughterhouses |
Infant mortality rate | 14.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 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.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.8% (2000 est.) | 3% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-11, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMOGIP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | 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 |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 7 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 7,700 sq km (1997 est.) | 660 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are nominated by the president and elected for 10-year terms by the General Assembly) | State Court or Cour d'Etat; Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | 1.5 million (1999 est.) | 70,000 receive regular wages or salaries (2002 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | agriculture 90%, industry and commerce 6%, government 4% |
Land boundaries | total:
1,564 km border countries: Argentina 579 km, Brazil 985 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:
7% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 77% forests and woodland: 6% other: 10% (1997 est.) |
arable land: 3.54%
permanent crops: 0.01% other: 96.45% (2001) |
Languages | Spanish, Portunol, or Brazilero (Portuguese-Spanish mix on the Brazilian frontier) | French (official), Hausa, Djerma |
Legal system | based on Spanish civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on French civil law system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | bicameral General Assembly or Asamblea General consists of Chamber of Senators or Camara de Senadores (30 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and Chamber of Representatives or Camara de Representantes (99 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Chamber of Senators - last held 31 October 1999 (next to be held NA 2004); Chamber of Representatives - last held 31 October 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Chamber of Senators - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Encuentro Progresista 12, Colorado Party 10, Blanco 7, New Sector/Space Coalition 1; Chamber of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Encuentro Progresista 40, Colorado Party 33, Blanco 22, New Sector/Space Coalition 4 |
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 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
75.44 years male: 72.11 years female: 78.96 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 43.5 years
male: 43.54 years female: 43.45 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97.3% male: 96.9% female: 97.7% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 17.6% male: 25.8% female: 9.7% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Argentina and Brazil | Western Africa, southeast of Algeria |
Map references | South America | Africa |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total:
2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 7,752 GRT/5,228 DWT ships by type: petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 (2000 est.) |
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Military branches | Army, Navy (includes Naval Air Arm, Coast Guard, Marines), Air Force, Police (Coracero Guard, Grenadier Guard) | Niger Armed Forces (Forces Armees Nigeriennes, FAN): Army, National Air Force (2005) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $172 million (FY98) | $33.3 million (2004) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.9% (FY98) | 1.1% (2004) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
817,535 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
661,777 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 25 August (1825) | Republic Day, 18 December (1958) |
Nationality | noun:
Uruguayan(s) adjective: Uruguayan |
noun: Nigerien(s)
adjective: Nigerien |
Natural hazards | seasonally high winds (the pampero is a chilly and occasional violent wind which blows north from the Argentine pampas), droughts, floods; because of the absence of mountains, which act as weather barriers, all locations are particularly vulnerable to rapid changes in weather fronts | recurring droughts |
Natural resources | arable land, hydropower, minor minerals, fisheries | uranium, coal, iron ore, tin, phosphates, gold, molybdenum, gypsum, salt, petroleum |
Net migration rate | -0.51 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -0.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Colorado Party [Jorge BATLLE]; National Party or Blanco [Alberto VOLONTE]; New Sector/Space Coalition or Nuevo Espacio [Rafael MICHELINI]; Progressive Encounter in the Broad Front or Encuentro Progresista [Tabare VAZQUEZ] | 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] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 3,360,105 (July 2001 est.) | 11,665,937 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 63% (1993 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.78% (2001 est.) | 2.63% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Fray Bentos, Montevideo, Nueva Palmira, Paysandu, Punta del Este, Colonia, Piriapolis | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 94, FM 115, shortwave 14 (seven are inactive) (1998) | AM 5, FM 6, shortwave 4 (2001) |
Radios | 1.97 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
2,073 km standard gauge: 2,073 km 1.435-m gauge (2000) |
- |
Religions | Roman Catholic 66% (less than one-half of the adult population attends church regularly), Protestant 2%, Jewish 1%, nonprofessing or other 31% | Muslim 80%, remainder indigenous beliefs and Christian |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 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 (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
some modern facilities domestic: most modern facilities concentrated in Montevideo; new nationwide microwave radio relay network international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
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) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 850,000 (2000) | 22,400 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 300,000 (2000) | 24,000 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 26 (plus ten low-power repeaters for the Montevideo station) (1997) | 3 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (2002) |
Terrain | mostly rolling plains and low hills; fertile coastal lowland | predominately desert plains and sand dunes; flat to rolling plains in south; hills in north |
Total fertility rate | 2.36 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 6.75 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 14% (2000 est.) | NA (2002 est.) |
Waterways | 1,600 km ( used by coastal and shallow-draft river craft) | 300 km
note: Niger River is navigable to Gaya between September and March (2004) |