Niger

• desert;
• mostly hot, dry, dusty;
• tropical in extreme south

• predominately desert plains and sand dunes;
• flat to rolling plains in south;
• hills in north

• overgrazing;
• soil erosion;
• deforestation;
• desertification;
• wildlife populations (such as elephant, hippopotamus, giraffe, and lion) threatened because of poaching and habitat destruction

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified:

Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea

0-14 years:

48% (male 2,445,536; female 2,346,844)

15-64 years:

50% (male 2,421,971; female 2,518,248)

65 years and over:

2% (male 121,253; female 108,390) (1999 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:

1.12 male(s)/female

total population:

1 male(s)/female (1999 est.)

noun:

Nigerien(s)

adjective:

Nigerien

conventional long form:

Republic of Niger

conventional short form:

Niger

local long form:

Republique du Niger

local short form:

Niger

• 7 departments (departements, singular--departement), and 1 capital district* (capitale district);
• Agadez, Diffa, Dosso, Maradi, Niamey*, Tahoua, Tillaberi, Zinder

chief of state:

President Ibrahim BARE Mainassara (since 28 January 1996); note--the president is both chief of state and head of government

head of government:

• President Ibrahim BARE Mainassara (since 28 January 1996);
• note--Ibrahim MAYAKI (since 27 November 1997) was appointed prime minister by the president but does not exercise any executive authority and is only the implementor of the president's programs;
• the president is both chief of state and head of government

note: President Ibrahim BARE was assasinated on the 9 April 1999

cabinet:

Council of Ministers appointed by the president

elections:

• president elected by popular vote for a five-year term;
• last held 7-8 July 1996 (next to be held NA 2001);
• note--Ibrahim BARE Mainassara initially became president when he ousted President Mahamane OUSMANE in a coup on 27 January 1996 and subsequently defeated him in the flawed election of July 1996

election results:

percent of vote--Ibrahim BARE Mainassara 52.22%, Mahamane OUSMANE 19.75%, Tandja MAMADOU 15.65%, Mahamadou ISSOUFOU 7.60%, Moumouni AMADOU Djermakoye 4.77%

• two-chamber National Assembly;
• one chamber with 83 seats (members elected by popular vote for five-year terms);
• selection process for second chamber not established

elections:

last held 23 November 1996 (next to be held NA 2001)

election results:

percent of vote by party--NA; seats by party--UNIRD 59, ANDPS-Zaman Lahiya 8, UDPS-Amana 3, coalition of independents 3, MDP-Alkwali 1, UPDP-Shamuwa 4, DARAJA 3, PMT-Albarka 2

• Alliance for Democracy and TALBA, chairman];
• Democratic and Social Convention-Rahama or MAMADOU, chairman];
• National Union of Independents for Democratic Nigerien Party for Democracy and Socialism-Tarayya or PNDS-Tarayya Patriots, Democrats, and Progressives-Shamuwa or UPDP-Shamuwa NA]

chief of mission:

Ambassador Joseph DIATTA

chancery:

2204 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008

chief of mission:

Ambassador Charles O. CECIL

embassy:

Rue Des Ambassades, Niamey

mailing address:

B. P. 11201, Niamey

• 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

lowest 10%:

3%

highest 10%:

29.3% (1992)

total:

10,100 km

paved:

798 km

unpaved:

9,302 km (1996 est.)

• Libya claims about 19,400 sq km in northern Niger;
• delimitation of international boundaries in the vicinity of Lake Chad, the lack of which led to border incidents in the past, is completed and awaits ratification by Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria