:

16 00 N, 8 00 E

Map references:

Africa

Area:

total: 1.267 million sq km
land: 1,266,700 sq km
water: 300 sq km

Area - comparative:

slightly less than twice the size of Texas

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

Coastline:

0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims:

none (landlocked)

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

Elevation extremes:

lowest point: Niger River 200 m
highest point: Mont Bagzane 2,022 m

Natural resources:

uranium, coal, iron ore, tin, phosphates, gold, molybdenum, gypsum,
salt, petroleum

Land use:

arable land: 11.43%
permanent crops: 0.01%
other: 88.56% (2005)

Irrigated land:

730 sq km (2003)

Total renewable water resources:

33.7 cu km (2003)

Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):

total: 2.18 cu km/yr (4%/0%/95%)
per capita: 156 cu m/yr (2000)

Natural hazards:

recurring droughts

Environment - current issues:

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, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea

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

People
Niger

Population:

13,272,679 (July 2008 est.)

Age structure:

0-14 years: 47% (male 3,174,834/female 3,057,003)
15-64 years: 50.6% (male 3,450,393/female 3,267,496)
65 years and over: 2.4% (male 159,945/female 163,008) (2008 est.)

Median age:

total: 16.4 years
male: 16.5 years
female: 16.4 years (2008 est.)

Population growth rate:

2.878% (2008 est.)

Birth rate:

49.62 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Death rate:

20.26 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Net migration rate:

-0.57 migrant(s)/1,000 population (200