:Niger Geography

Total area:
1,267,000 km2
Land area:
1,266,700 km2
Comparative area:
slightly less than twice the size of Texas
Land boundaries:
5,697 km total; Algeria 956 km, Benin 266 km, Burkina 628 km, Chad 1,175 km,
Libya 354 km, Mali 821 km, Nigeria 1,497 km
Coastline:
none - landlocked
Maritime claims:
none - landlocked
Disputes:
Libya claims about 19,400 km2 in northern Niger; demarcation of
international boundaries in Lake Chad, the lack of which has led to border
incidents in the past, is completed and awaiting ratification by Cameroon,
Chad, Niger, and Nigeria; Burkina and Mali are proceeding with boundary
demarcation, including the tripoint with Niger
Climate:
desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south
Terrain:
predominately desert plains and sand dunes; flat to rolling plains in south;
hills in north
Natural resources:
uranium, coal, iron ore, tin, phosphates
Land use:
arable land 3%; permanent crops 0%; meadows and pastures 7%; forest and
woodland 2%; other 88%; includes irrigated NEGL%
Environment:
recurrent drought and desertification severely affecting marginal
agricultural activities; overgrazing; soil erosion
Note:
landlocked

:Niger People

Population:
8,052,945 (July 1992), growth rate 3.5% (1992)
Birth rate:
58 births/1,000 population (1992)
Death rate:
23 deaths/1,000 population (1992)
Net migration rate:
0 migrants/1,000 population (1992)
Infant mortality rate:
115 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)
Life expectancy at birth:
42 years male, 45 years female (1992)
Total fertility rate:
7.4 children born/woman (1992)
Nationality:
noun - Nigerien(s); adjective - Nigerien
Ethnic divisions:
Hausa 56%; Djerma 22%; Fula 8.5%; Tuareg 8%; Beri Beri (Kanouri) 4.3%; Arab,
Toubou, and Gourmantche 1.2%; about 4,000 French expatriates
Religions:
Muslim 80%, remainder indigenous beliefs and Christians
Languages:
French (official); Hausa, Djerma
Literacy:
28% (male 40%, female 17%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
Labor force:
2,500,000 wage earners (1982); agriculture 90%, industry and commerce 6%,
government 4%; 51% of population of working age (1985)
Organized labor:
negligible

:Niger Government

Long-form name:
Republic of Niger
Type:
as of November 1991, transition government appointed b