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Niger
Niger is located in West Africa, on a southern edge of Sahara. Two thirds of Niger is desert,
while the rest is semi-arid Sahel. In almost all possible international surveys Niger
gets bottom rankings: eg. Niger is the world's second poorest country right after
Sierra Leone.
It is also worth mentioning that Niger is not the capital of Nigeria but a
fully independent country north of Nigeria. Niger River flows thru both countries.
| Area | 1 267 000 km2 |
| Population | 10 078 000 |
| Pop. density | 7,8 persons per km2 |
| Capital | Niamey (650 000) |
| Official language | french |
| Local languages | hausa, djerma, fula, tamashek |
| Currency | West African CFA franc, tied to euro: 1 euro = CFA656 |
| Life expectancy | 48,5 years |
| Infant mortality | 11,5% |
| Literacy rate | 13,6% (6,6% women) |
| Religions | muslims 95%, animists 4% |
| Ethnic groups | hausa 55,6%, djerma-songhai 22%, fula 8,5%, touareg 7,9% |
| Previous coup | april 1999 |
(above information collected from Lonely Planet West Africa (5th Edition) and Le Petit Futé Country Guide Niger)
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