Niger
Niger is situated in Northern West Africa, it is a landlocked country. To the north is Algeria and Libya, to the east , Chad, to the south, Nigeriaand to the west Benin, Burkina Faso and Mali
Total Area:1.267 million sq km
Land Borders: Algeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad, Libya, Mali, Nigeria
Population: 12,525,094
Life Expectancy: 43 years
HIV % Total Poulation:1.2%
Ethnic Groups: 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
Languages:French (official), Hausa, Djerma
President:Mamadou TANDJA
GDP - Per Capita: $900
Niger became independent from France in 1960 and experienced single-party and military rule until 1991, when Gen. Ali SAIBOU was forced by public pressure to allow multiparty elections, which resulted in a democratic government in 1993. Political infighting brought the government to a standstill and in 1996 led to a coup by Col. Ibrahim BARE. In 1999 BARE was killed in a coup by military officers who promptly restored democratic rule and held elections that brought Mamadou TANDJA to power in December of that year. TANDJA was reelected in 2004. 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.
