Niger is a landlocked Sub-Sahara African nation. It is considered by many standards to be the poorest nation in the world and a perfect example of a fourth-world country. What economy Niger maintains centres on subsistence agriculture, animal husbandry, re-export trade, and a declining export of uranium. The 50% devaluation of the West African CFA franc in January 1994 boosted exports of livestock, cowpeas, onions, and the products of Niger's small cotton industry. The government relies on bilateral and multilateral aid - which was suspended following the April 1999 coup d'état - for operating expenses and public investment. Short-term prospects depend on upcoming negotiations with the World Bank and the IMF on debt relief and extended aid. Sub-Saharan Africa, Africa south of the Sahara Desert, is the term used to describe those countries of Africa that are not part of North Africa. ... Least Developed Countries (LDCs or Fourth World countries) are countries which according to the United Nations exhibit the lowest indicators of socioeconomic development, with the lowest Human Development Index ratings of all countries in the world. ... General Name, Symbol, Number uranium, U, 92 Chemical series actinides Group, Period, Block n/a, 7, f Appearance silvery gray metallic; corrodes to a spalling black oxide coat in air Standard atomic weight 238. ... The West African CFA franc (XOF) is just known in French as the Franc CFA, where CFA stands for Communauté financière dAfrique (Financial Community of Africa). It is issued by the BCEAO (Banque Centrale des États de lAfrique de lOuest, i. ... Sheep are commonly bred as livestock. ... Binomial name Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp. ... Binomial name Allium cepa L. Percentages are relative to US recommendations for adults. ... Cotton ready for harvest. ... Logo of the World Bank The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD, in Romance languages: BIRD), better known as the World Bank, is an international organization whose original mission was to finance the reconstruction of nations devastated by WWII. Now, its mission has expanded to fight poverty by means... The flag of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is the international organization entrusted with overseeing the global financial system by monitoring foreign exchange rates and balance of payments, as well as offering technical and financial assistance when asked. ... Debt relief is the partial or total forgiveness of debt, or the slowing or stopping of debt growth, owed by individuals, corporations, or nations. ...

Macro-economic trend

This is a chart of trend of gross domestic product of Niger at market prices estimated by the International Monetary Fund with figures in millions of CFA Francs.

In Greater Depth

One of the poorest countries in the world, Niger's economy is based largely on subsistence crops, livestock, and some of the world's largest uranium deposits. Drought cycles, desertification, a 3.4% population growth rate and the drop in world demand for uranium have undercut an already marginal economy. Traditional subsistence farming, herding, small trading, and informal markets dominate an economy that generates few formal sector jobs. Like most farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa, this Cameroonian man cultivates at the subsistence level. ... A drought is a period of time when there is not enough water to support agricultural, urban, human, or environmental water needs. ... This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ...

Current GDP per capita of Niger grew 10% in the Sixties reaching a peak growth of 187% in the Seventies. But this proved unsustainable and it consequently shrank by 27% in the Eighties and a further 48% in the Nineties.

Niger's agricultural and livestock sectors are the mainstay of all but 18% of the population. Fourteen percent of Niger's GDP is generated by livestock production (camels, goats, sheep and cattle), said to support 29% of the population. The 15% of Niger's land that is arable is found mainly along its southern border with Nigeria. Rainfall varies and when insufficient, Niger has difficulty feeding its population and must rely on grain purchases and food aid to meet food requirements. Although the rains in 2000 were not good, those in 2001 were plentiful and well distributed. Pearl millet, sorghum, and cassava are Niger's principal rain-fed subsistence crops. Irrigated rice for internal consumption, while expensive, has, since the devaluation of the CFA franc, sold for below the price of imported rice, encouraging additional production. Cowpeas and onions are grown for commercial export, as are small quantities of garlic, peppers, potatoes, and wheat. Binomial name Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br. ...

Of Niger's exports, foreign exchange earnings from livestock, although impossible to quantify, are second only to those from uranium. Actual exports far exceed official statistics, which often fail to detect large herds of animals informally crossing into Nigeria. Some hides and skins are exported and some are transformed into handicrafts.

The persistent uranium price slump has brought lower revenues for Niger's uranium sector, although uranium still provides 72% of national export proceeds. The nation enjoyed substantial export earnings and rapid economic growth during the 1960s and 1970s after the opening of two large uranium mines near the northern town of Arlit. When the uranium-led boom ended in the early 1980s, however, the economy stagnated and new investment since then has been limited. Niger's two uranium mines (SOMAIR's open pit mine and COMINAK's underground mine) are owned by a French-led consortium and operated by French interests.

Exploitable deposits of gold are known to exist in Niger in the region between the Niger River and the border with Burkina Faso. Substantial deposits of phosphates, coal, iron, limestone, and gypsum also have been found. Numerous foreign companies, including American firms, have taken out exploration licenses for concessions in the gold seam in western Niger, which also contains deposits of other minerals. Several oil companies have explored for petroleum since 1992 in the Djado plateau in north-eastern Niger and the Agadem basin, north of Lake Chad but have made no discoveries worth developing. Niger's known coal reserves, with low energy and high ash content, cannot compete against higher quality coal on the world market. However, the parastatal SONICHAR (Société nigérienne de charbon) in Tchirozerine (north of Agadez) extracts coal from an open pit and fuels an electricity generating plant that supplies energy to the uranium mines. Map of Niger River with Niger River basin in green The Niger River is the principal river of western Africa, extending over 2500 miles (about 4180 km). ... Above is a ball-and-stick model of the inorganic hydrogenphosphate anion (HPO42−). Colour coding: P (orange); O (red); H (white). ... Coal Coal (IPA: ) is a fossil fuel formed in swamp ecosystems where plant remains were saved by water and mud from oxidization and biodegradation. ... General Name, Symbol, Number iron, Fe, 26 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 8, 4, d Appearance lustrous metallic with a grayish tinge Standard atomic weight 55. ... Limey shale overlaid by limestone. ... Gypsum is a very soft mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate, with the chemical formula CaSO4·2H2O. // Heating gypsum to between 100°C and 150°C (302°F) partially dehydrates the mineral by driving off exactly 75% of the water contained in its chemical structure. ... Agadez is the largest city in northern Niger, lying in the Sahara and is the capital of Aïr, one of the traditional Tuareg federations. ...

After the economic competitiveness created by the January 1994 CFA franc devaluation contributed to an annual average economic growth of 3.5% throughout the mid-1990s, the economy stagnated due the sharp reduction in foreign aid in 1999, which gradually resumed in 2000, and poor rains in 2000. Reflecting the importance of the agricultural sector, the return of good rains was the primary factor underlying a projected growth of 4.5% for 2001. Devaluation is a reduction in the value of a currency with respect to other monetary units. ...

In recent years, the Government of Niger promulgated revisions to the investment code (1997 and 2000), petroleum code (1992), and mining code (1993), all with attractive terms for investors. The present government actively seeks foreign private investment and considers it key to restoring economic growth and development. With the assistance of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), it has undertaken a concerted effort to revitalize the private sector. Nigers new constitution was approved in July 1999. ... The United Nations Development Programe (UNDP), the United Nations global development network, is the largest multilateral source of development assistance in the world. ...

Niger shares a common currency, the CFA franc, and a common central bank, the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO), with six other members of the West African Monetary Union. The Treasury of the Government of France supplements the BCEAO's international reserves in order to maintain a fixed rate of 100 CFA (Communauté financière africaine) to the French franc (to the Euro as of January 1, 2002). now. ... The Banque Centrale des États de lAfrique de lOuest, or the Central Bank of West African States in English, is a central bank serving eight west African countries: Benin Burkina Faso Cote dIvoire Guinea Bissau Mali Niger Senegal Togo The name of the bank is abbreviated to... Staates of UEMOA The West African Monetary Union (or UEMOA from its name in French, Union économique et monétaire ouest-africaine) is an organization of states of West Africa established to promote economic integration among countries that share a common currency, the CFA Franc. ... ISO 4217 Code EUR User(s) Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Kosovo, Luxembourg, Monaco, Montenegro, the Netherlands, Portugal, San Marino, Slovenia, Spain, Vatican City Inflation 1. ...

Economic Reform

In January 2000, Niger's newly elected government inherited serious financial and economic problems including a virtually empty treasury, past-due salaries (11 months of arrears) and scholarship payments, increased debt, reduced revenue performance, and lower public investment. In December 2000, Niger qualified for enhanced debt relief under the International Monetary Fund program for Highly Indebted Poor Countries and concluded an agreement with the Fund on a Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF). “IMF” redirects here. ... The Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative aims at assisting the worlds poorest countries by bringing their external debt to sustainable levels, conditional on their governments showing satisfactory performance levels. ... The Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) is an arm of the International Monetary Fund which lends to the worlds poorest countries. ...

In addition to strengthening the budgetary process and public finances, the new government has pursued economic reform with the privatization of water distribution and telecommunications and the implementation of flexible a petroleum product pricing structure tied to world market prices. Further privatizations of public enterprises are in the works. In its effort to consolidate macroeconomic stability under the PRGF, the government also is taking actions to reduce corruption and, as the result of a participatory process encompassing civil society, has devised a Poverty Reduction Strategy Plan that focuses on improving health, primary education, rural infrastructure, and judicial reform.

Foreign Aid

The most important donors in Niger are France, the European Union, the World Bank, the IMF and other United Nations agencies (UNDP, UNICEF, FAO, WFP, and UNFPA). Other principal donors include the United States, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, Canada, and Saudi Arabia. While USAID does not have an office in Niger, the United States is a major donor, contributing nearly $10 million each year to Niger’s development. The U.S. also is a major partner in policy coordination in such areas as food security and HIV/AIDS. The importance of external support for Niger's development is demonstrated by the fact that about 45% of the government's FY 2002 budget, including 80% of its capital budget, derives from donor resources. In 2005 the UN drew attention to the increased need for foreign aid given severe problems with drought and locusts resulting in a famine endangering the lives around a million people. Logo of the World Bank The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD, in Romance languages: BIRD), better known as the World Bank, is an international organization whose original mission was to finance the reconstruction of nations devastated by WWII. Now, its mission has expanded to fight poverty by means... The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is the largest multilateral source of grant technical assistance in the world. ... UNICEF Logo The United Nations Childrens Fund or UNICEF (Arabic: ; French: ; Spanish: ) was established by the United Nations General Assembly on December 11, 1946. ... Possible meanings: Faro Airport (Portugal) Federation of Astrobiology Organizations Financial Aid Office Food and Agriculture Organization This page expands a three-character combination which might be any or all of: an abbreviation, an acronym, an initialism, a word in English, or a word in another language. ... The World Food Programme (WFP) is an agency of the United Nations which distributes food commodities to support development projects, to long-term refugees and displaced persons and as emergency food assistance in situations of natural and man-made disasters. ... The United Nations Fund for Population Activities was started in 1969 and renamed the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in 1987. ... The United States Agency for International Development (or USAID) is the US government organization responsible for most non-military foreign aid. ... Species Human immunodeficiency virus 1 Human immunodeficiency virus 2 Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS, a condition in humans in which the immune system begins to fail, leading to life-threatening opportunistic infections). ... Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS or Aids) is a collection of symptoms and infections resulting from the specific damage to the immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A drought is a period of time when there is not enough water to support agricultural, urban, human, or environmental water needs. ... For other meanings of the word Locust, see Locust (disambiguation). ... A famine is a social and economic crisis that is commonly accompanied by widespread malnutrition, starvation, epidemic and increased mortality. ...

Statistics

GDP: purchasing power parity - $9.6 billion (9.6 G$) (1999 est.) One thousand million (1,000,000,000) is the natural number following 999,999,999 and preceding 1,000,000,001. ...

GDP - real growth rate: 2% (1999 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $1,000 (1999 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 40%
industry: 18%
services: 42% (1998)

Population below poverty line: NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 29.3% (1992)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 4.8% (1999)

Labour force: 70,000 receive regular wages or salaries

Labour force - by occupation: agriculture 90%, industry and commerce 6%, government 4%

Unemployment rate: NA%

Budget:
revenues: $377 million, including $146 million from foreign sources
expenditures: $377 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1999 est.)

Industries: uranium mining, cement, brick, textiles, food processing, chemicals, slaughterhouses General Name, Symbol, Number uranium, U, 92 Chemical series actinides Group, Period, Block n/a, 7, f Appearance silvery gray metallic; corrodes to a spalling black oxide coat in air Standard atomic weight 238. ... In the most general sense of the word, cement is a binder, a substance which sets and hardens independently, and can bind other materials together. ... This article is about the type of fabric. ... Workers and cattle in a slaughterhouse. ...

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

Electricity - production: 180 GWh (1998)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1998)

Electricity - consumption: 363 GWh (1998)

Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998)

Electricity - imports: 196 GWh (1998)

Agriculture - products: cowpeas, cotton, peanuts, pearl millet, sorghum, cassava (tapioca), rice; cattle, sheep, goats, camels, donkeys, horses, poultry Binomial name Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp. ... Cotton ready for harvest. ... Binomial name Arachis hypogaea L. The peanut, or groundnut (Arachis hypogaea) is a species in the legume family Fabaceae native to South America. ... Binomial name Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br. ... Species About 30 species, see text Sorghum is a genus of about 30 species of grasses raised for grain, native to tropical and subtropical regions of Eastern Africa, with one species native to Mexico. ... Binomial name Manihot esculenta Crantz The cassava, casava, or manioc (Manihot esculenta) is a woody shrub of the Euphorbiaceae (spurge family) native to South America that is extensively cultivated as an annual crop in tropical and subtropical regions for its edible starchy tuberous root, a major source of carbohydrate. ... Tapioca is an essentially flavourless starchy ingredient, or fecula, produced from treated and dried cassava (manioc) root and used in cooking. ... Species Oryza glaberrima Oryza sativa Brown basmati rice Terrace of paddy fields in Yunnan Province, southern China. ... Binomial name Bos taurus Linnaeus, 1758 Cattle (often called cows in vernacular and contemporary usage, or kye as the Scots plural of cou) are domesticated ungulates, a member of the subfamily Bovinae of the family Bovidae. ... “Lamb” redirects here. ... For other uses of the term, see goat (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Camel (disambiguation). ... Binomial name Equus asinus Linnaeus, 1758 For other uses, see Donkey (disambiguation). ... Binomial name Equus caballus Linnaeus, 1758 The horse (Equus caballus, sometimes seen as a subspecies of the Wild Horse, Equus ferus caballus) is a large odd-toed ungulate mammal, one of ten modern species of the genus Equus. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Exports: $269 million (f.o.b., 1997)

Exports - commodities: uranium ore 65%, livestock products, cowpeas, onions (1998 est.)

Exports - partners: US, Greece, Japan, France, Nigeria, Benin Motto: (Out Of Many, One) (traditional) In God We Trust (1956 to date) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington D.C. Largest city New York City None at federal level (English de facto) Government Federal constitutional republic  - President George Walker Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence from...

Imports: $295 million (c.i.f., 1997)

Imports - commodities: consumer goods, primary materials, machinery, vehicles and parts, petroleum, cereals Pumpjack pumping an oil well near Lubbock, Texas Ignacy Łukasiewicz - inventor of the refining of kerosene from crude oil. ... Cereal crops are mostly grasses cultivated for their edible seeds (actually a fruit called a grain, technically a caryopsis). ...

Imports - partners: France, Côte d'Ivoire, US, Benelux, Nigeria Satellite image of the Benelux countries Belgium Netherlands Luxembourg Benelux Benelux (or Bénélux) is an economic union in Western Europe comprising three neighbouring monarchies, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. ...

Debt - external: $1.3 billion (1999 est.)

Economic aid - recipient: $222 million (1995)

Currency: 1 Communauté financière africaine franc (CFAF) = 100 centimes The countries using the CFA franc The CFA franc (in French: franc CFA, or just franc in everyday conversation if no ambiguity is possible) is a currency used in 12 formerly French-ruled African countries, as well as in Guinea-Bissau (former Portuguese colony) and in Equatorial Guinea (former Spanish...

Exchange rates: Communauté financière africaine francs (CFAF) per US$1 - 670 (January 2000), 560.01 (January 1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997), 511.55 (1996), 499.15 (1995)
note: since 1 January 1999, the CFAF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 CFA francs per euro January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... ISO 4217 Code EUR User(s) Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Kosovo, Luxembourg, Monaco, Montenegro, the Netherlands, Portugal, San Marino, Slovenia, Spain, Vatican City Inflation 1. ...

Fiscal year: calendar year

See also

• Economy of Africa
• List of Nigerien companies

The economy of Africa consists of the trade, industry, and resources of the peoples of Africa. ...

External links

• Nigers marginal income tax rate is 52% once income exceeds US$600 per year.