unds for expenditures on basic health care,
primary education, HIV/AIDS prevention, rural infrastructure, and
other programs geared at poverty reduction. In December 2005, Niger
received 100% multilateral debt relief from the IMF, which
translates into the forgiveness of approximately $86 million USD in
debts to the IMF, excluding the remaining assistance under HIPC.
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. Uranium prices have
increased sharply in the last few years. A drought and locust
infestation in 2005 led to food shortages for as many as 2.5 million
Nigeriens.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$12.23 billion (2006 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):
$3.638 billion (2006 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
3.5% (2006 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):
$1,000 (2006 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 39%
industry: 17%
services: 44% (2001)

Labor force:
70,000 salaried workers, 60% of whom are employed in the public
sector (2002 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 90%
industry: 6%
services: 4%

Unemployment rate:
NA%

Population below poverty line:
63% (1993 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 0.8%
highest 10%: 35.4% (1995)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
50.5 (1995)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
0.2% (2004 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $320 million - including $134 million from foreign sources
expenditures: $320 million; including capital expenditures of $178
million (2002 est.)

Agriculture - products:
cowpeas, cotton, peanuts, millet, sorghum, cassava (tapioca), rice;
cattle, sheep, goats, camels, donkeys, horses, poultry

Industries:
uranium mining, cement, brick, soap, textiles, food processing,
chemicals, slaughterhouses

Industrial production growth rate:
5.1% (2003 est.)

Electricity - production:
232 million kWh (2004)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
415.8 million kWh (2004)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2004)

Electricity - imports:
200 million kWh (2004)

Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil - consumption:
5,500 bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA bbl/day