Niger
Niger is a landlocked country in western Africa. It gained its independence from France in 1960, but it still has close ties with its former colonial ruler through bilateral agreements for economic and cultural issues. Niger was under single party military rule until 1991, and has had 2 coups since then, but has been functioning as a Democracy since the end of 1999.[1]
With a size of 1,266,902 square kilometers (only 300 of which are water), Niger is a little less than twice the size of Texas and has a population of nearly 13 million people. The Average life expectancy is only 44 years on average.
The capital of Niger is Niamey.
Its economy is based on subsistence farming, as well as the export of uranium.[2] Niger is currently the poorest country in the world, ranking last on the United Nations Development Fund index of human development. Fully 42% of the government's budget comes from foreign donations. [3]
In his 2003 state of the union address, President Bush announced that Saddam Hussein was attempting to buy uranium from Niger based on a British intelligence report. The accuracy of this intelligence was later questioned.
Notes
- â https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ng.html
- â "Niger's economy of only $9 billion (£5.15 billion) depends on its main export, uranium." http://www.afbis.com/articles/articles/11012075034.html
- â https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ng.html