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Flag Of Niger Independent Niger (1960–present)
President Hamani Diori and visiting German President Heinrich Lubke greet crowds on a state visit to Niamey, 1969. Diori's single party rule was characterised by good relations with the West and a preoccupation with foreign affairs.
Diori years (1960–74)
President Hamani Diori and visiting German President
Heinrich Lubke greet crowds on a state visit to Niamey, 1969. Diori's single party rule was
characterised by good relations with the West and a preoccupation with foreign
affairs.
For its first 14 years as an independent state Niger was run
by a single-party civilian regime under the presidency of Hamani Diori. The
1960s were largely peaceful, and saw a large expansion of the education system
and some limited economic development and industrialization. Links with France remained deep, with Diori allowing the
development of French-led uranium mining in Arlit and supporting France in the
Algerian War. Relations with other African states were mostly positive, with
the exception of Dahomey (Benin), owing to an ongoing border dispute. Niger remained
a one-party state throughout this period, with Diori surviving a planned coup
in 1963 and an assassination attempt in 1965; much of this activity was masterminded
by Djibo Bakary's MSA-Sawaba group, which had launched an abortive rebellion in
1964. In the early 1970s, a combination of economic difficulties, devastating
droughts and accusations of rampant corruption and mismanagement of food
supplies resulted in a coup d'état that overthrew the Diori regime.
First military regime: The Supreme Military Council and Second Republic
(1974–1991)
The coup had been masterminded by Col. Seyni Kountche and a
small military group under the name of the Conseil Militaire Supreme, with
Kountché going on to rule the country until his death in 1987. The first action
of the military government was to address the food crisis. Whilst political
prisoners of the Diori regime were released after the coup and the country was
stabilised, political and individual freedoms in general deteriorated during
this period. There were several attempted coups (in 1975, 1976 and 1984) which
were thwarted, their instigators being severely punished.
Despite the restriction in freedom, the country enjoyed
improved economic development as Kountche sought to create a 'development
society', funded largely by the uranium mines in Agadez Region. Several
parastatal companies were created, major infrastructure (building and new
roads, schools, health centres) constructed, and there was minimal corruption
in government agencies, which Kountché did not hesitate to punish severely. In
the 1980s Kountche began cautiously loosening the grip of the military, with
some relaxation of state censorship and attempts made to 'civilianise' the
regime. However the economic boom ended following the collapse in uranium
prices, and IMF-led austerity and privatisation measures provoked opposition by
many Nigeriens. In 1985 a small Tuareg revolt in Tchintabaraden was suppressed.
Kountche died in November 1987 from a brain tumour, and was succeeded by his
chief of staff, Col. Ali Saibou, who was confirmed as Chief of the Supreme
Military Council four days later.
Saibou significantly curtailed the most repressive aspects of
the Kountche era (such as the secret police and media censorship), and set
about introducing a process of political reform under the overall direction of
a single party (the Mouvement National pour la Society du Developpement, or
MNSD). A Second Republic was declared and a new
constitution was drawn up, which was adopted following a referendum in 1989.
General Saibou became the first president of the Second Republic after winning
the presidential election on 10 December 1989.
President Saibou's efforts to control political reforms
failed in the face of trade union and student demands to institute a
multi-party democratic system. On 9 February 1990, a violently repressed
student march in Niamey
led to the death of three students, which led to increased national and
international pressure for further democratic reform. The Saibou regime
acquiesced to these demands by the end of 1990. Meanwhile, trouble re-emerged
in Agadez Region when a group of armed Tuaregs attacked the town of Tchintabaraden (generally
seen as the start of the first Tuareg Rebellion), prompting a severe military
crackdown which led to many deaths (the precise numbers are disputed, with
estimates ranging from 70 to up to 1,000).
National Conference and Third Republic
(1991–1996)
The National Sovereign Conference of 1991 marked a turning
point in the post-independence history of Niger and brought about multi-party
democracy. From 29 July to 3 November, a national conference gathered together
all elements of society to make recommendations for the future direction of the
country. The conference was presided over by Prof. Andre Salifou and developed
a plan for a transitional government; this was then installed in November 1991
to manage the affairs of state until the institutions of the Third Republic
were put into place in April 1993. After the National Sovereign Conference, the
transitional government drafted a new constitution that eliminated the previous
single-party system of the 1989 Constitution and guaranteed more freedoms. The
new constitution was adopted by a referendum on 26 December 1992. Following
this, presidential elections were held and Mahamane Ousmane became the first
president of the Third
Republic on 27 March 1993.
Ousmane's presidency was characterised by political turbulence, with four
government changes and early legislative elections in 1995, as well a severe
economic slump which the coalition government proved unable to effectively
address.
Second military regime, Fourth Republic
and third military regime (1996–1999)
The governmental paralysis prompted the military to
intervene; on 27 January 1996, Col. Ibrahim Bare Mainassara led a coup that
deposed President Ousmane and ended the Third Republic.
Mainassara headed a Conseil de Salut National (National Salvation Council)
composed of military official which carried out a six-month transition period,
during which a new constitution was drafted and adopted on 12 May 1996.
Presidential campaigns were organised in the months that
followed. Mainassara entered the campaign as an independent candidate and won
the election on 8 July 1996, however the elections were viewed nationally and
internationally as irregular, as the electoral commission was replaced during
the campaign. Meanwhile, Mainassara instigated an IMF and World Bank-approved
privatisation programme which enriched many of his supporters but were opposed
by the trade unions. Following fraudulent local elections in 1999 the
opposition ceased any cooperation with the Mainassara regime. In unclear
circumstance (possibly attempting to flee the country), Mainassara was
assassinated at Niamey
Airport on 9 April 1999.
Maj. Daouda Malam Wanke then took over, establishing a
transitional National Reconciliation Council to oversee the drafting of a
constitution with a French-style semi-presidential system. This was adopted on
9 August 1999 and was followed by presidential and legislative elections in
October and November of the same year. The elections were generally found to be
free and fair by international observers. Wanke then withdrew from governmental
affairs.
Fifth Republic
(1999–2009)
After winning the election in November 1999, President
Tandja Mamadou was sworn in office on 22 December 1999 as the first president
of the Fifth Republic. Mamadou brought about many
administrative and economic reforms that had been halted due to the military
coups since the Third Republic, as well as helped peacefully resolve a
decades-long boundary dispute with Benin. In August 2002, serious
unrest within military camps occurred in Niamey, Diffa, and Nguigmi, but the
government was able to restore order within several days. On 24 July 2004, the
first municipal elections in the history of Niger were held to elect local
representatives, previously appointed by the government. These elections were
followed by presidential elections, in which Mamadou was re-elected for a
second term, thus becoming the first president of the republic to win
consecutive elections without being deposed by military coups. The legislative
and executive configuration remained quite similar to that of the first term of
the president: Hama Amadou was reappointed as prime minister and Mahamane
Ousmane, the head of the CDS party, was re-elected as the president of the
National Assembly (parliament) by his peers.
By 2007, the relationship between President Tandja Mamadou
and his prime minister had deteriorated, leading to the replacement of the
latter in June 2007 by Seyni Oumarou following a successful vote of no
confidence at the Assembly. The political environment worsened in the following
year as President Tandja Mamadou sought out to extend his presidency by
modifying the constitution which limited presidential terms in Niger.
Proponents of the extended presidency, rallied behind the 'Tazartche' (Hausa
for 'overstay') movement, were countered by opponents ('anti-Tazartche')
composed of opposition party militants and civil society activists.
The situation in the north also deteriorated significantly
in this period, resulting in the outbreak of a Second Tuareg Rebellion in 2007
led by the Movement des Nigerians pour la justice (MNJ). Despite a number of
high-profile kidnappings the rebellion had largely fizzled out inconclusively
by 2009. However the poor security situation in the region is thought to have
allowed elements of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) to gain a foothold
in the country.
Sixth Republic and
fourth military regime (2009–2010)
In 2009, President Tandja Mamadou decided to organize a
constitutional referendum seeking to extend his presidency, which was opposed
by other political parties, as well as being against the decision of the Constitutional Court
which had ruled that the referendum would be unconstitutional. Mamadou then
modified and adopted a new constitution by referendum, which was declared
illegal by the Constitutional
Court, prompting Mamadou to dissolve the Court and
assume emergency powers. The opposition boycotted the referendum and the new
constitution was adopted with 92.5% of voters and a 68% turnout, according to
official results. The adoption of the new constitution created a Sixth
Republic, with a presidential system, as well as the suspension of the 1999
Constitution and a three-year interim government with Tandja Mamadou as
president. The events generated severe political and social unrest throughout
the country.
In a coup state in
February 2010, a military junta led by captain Salou Djibo was established in
response to Tandja's attempted extension of his political term by modifying the
constitution. The Supreme Council for the Restoration of Democracy, led by
General Salou Djibo, carried out a one-year transition plan, drafted a new
constitution and held elections in 2011 that were judged internationally as
free and fair.
Seventh Republic
(2010–present)
Following the adoption of a new constitution in 2010 and
presidential elections a year later, Mahamadou Issoufou was elected as the
first president of the Seventh
Republic; he was then
re-elected in 2016. The constitution also restored the semi-presidential system
which had been abolished a year earlier. An attempted coup against him in 2011
was thwarted and its ringleaders arrested. Issoufou's time in office has been
marked by numerous threats to the country's security, stemming from the fallout
from the Libyan Civil War and Northern Mali conflict, a rise in attacks by
AQIM, the use of Niger as a transit country for migrants (often organised by
criminal gangs), and the spillover of Nigeria's Boko Haram insurgency into
south-eastern Niger. French and American forces are currently assisting Niger in
countering these threats.
On 27 December 2020, Nigeriens went to the polls after
Issoufou announced he would step down, paving the way to Niger's first
ever peaceful transition of power. However, no candidate won an absolute
majority in the vote: Mohamed Bazoum came closest with 39.33%. As per the
constitution, a run-off election was held on 20 February 2021, with Bazoum
taking 55.75% of the vote and opposition candidate (and former President)
Mahamane Ousmane taking 44.25%, according to the electoral commission.
On 31 March 2021, Niger’s
security forces thwarted an attempted coup by a military unit in the capital, Niamey. Heavy gunfire was
heard in the early hours near the country's presidential palace. The attack
took place just two days before newly-elected president, Mohamed Bazoum, was
due to be sworn into office. The Presidential Guard arrested several people
during the incident.
Geography, climate, and ecology
Niger is
a landlocked nation in West Africa located along the border between the Sahara and Sub-Saharan regions. It borders Nigeria and Benin
to the south, Burkina Faso
and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya
to the north and Chad
to the east.
Niger
lies between latitudes 11° and 24°N, and longitudes 0° and 16°E. Niger's area is
1,267,000 square kilometres (489,191 sq mi) of which 300 square kilometres (116
sq mi) is water. This makes it slightly less than twice the size of France, and the
world's twenty-second largest country.
Niger
borders seven countries and has a total perimeter of 5,697 kilometres (3,540
mi). The longest border is with Nigeria
to the south (1,497 km or 930 mi). This is followed by Chad to the east, at 1,175 km (730 mi), Algeria to the north-northwest (956 km or 594
mi), and Mali
at 821 km (510 mi). Niger
also has small borders in its far southwest with Burkina
Faso at 628 km (390 mi) and Benin
at 266 km (165 mi) and to the north-northeast Libya at 354 km (220 mi).
The lowest point is the Niger River,
with an elevation of 200 metres (656 ft). The highest point is Mont Idoukal-n-Taghes in the Air Mountains
at 2,022 m (6,634 ft).
Climate
Niger's
climate is mainly very hot and very dry, with much desert area. In the extreme
south there is a tropical climate on the edges of the Niger River basin.
The terrain is predominantly desert plains and sand dunes, with flat to rolling
savanna in the south and hills in the north.
Environment
The territory of Niger contains five terrestrial ecoregions: Sahelian
Acacia savanna, West Sudanian savanna, Lake Chad
flooded savanna, South Saharan steppe and woodlands, and West Saharan montane
xeric woodlands.
The north of Niger
is covered by large deserts and semi deserts. The typical mammal fauna consists
of addax antelopes, scimitar-horned oryx, gazelles, and in the mountains,
Barbary sheep. One of the largest reserves of the world, the Air and Tenere
National Nature Reserve, was founded in the northern parts of the Niger to
protect these rare species.
The southern parts of Niger are naturally dominated
savannahs. The W National Park, situated in the bordering area to Burkina Faso and Benin,
belongs to one of the most important areas for wildlife in Western
Africa, which is called the WAP (W–Arli–Pendjari) Complex. It has
the most important population of the rare West African lion and one of the last
populations of the Northwest African cheetah.
Other wildlife includes elephants, buffaloes, roan
antelopes, kob antelopes and warthogs. The West African giraffe is currently
not found in the W National Park, but further north in Niger, where it
has its last relict population.
Environmental issues in Niger include destructive farming
practices as a result of population pressure. Illegal hunting, bush fires in
some areas and human encroachment upon the flood plains of the Niger River for paddy cultivation are environmental
issues. Dams constructed on the Niger River in the neighboring countries of Mali and Guinea
and also within Niger itself
are also cited as a reason for a reduction of water flow in the Niger River—which has a direct effect upon the
environment. A lack of adequate staff to guard wildlife in the parks and
reserves is another factor cited for loss of wildlife.
Governance and politics
Niger's
new constitution was approved on 31 October 2010. It restored the
semi-presidential system of government of the 1999 constitution (Fifth
Republic) in which the president of the republic, elected by universal suffrage
for a five-year term, and a prime minister named by the president share executive
power.
As a reflection of Niger's increasing population, the
unicameral National Assembly was expanded in 2004 to 113 deputies elected for a
five-year term under a majority system of representation. Political parties
must attain at least 5 percent of the vote in order to gain a seat in the
legislature.
The constitution also provides for the popular election of
municipal and local officials, and the first-ever successful municipal
elections took place on 24 July 2004. The National Assembly passed in June 2002
a series of decentralization bills. As a first step, administrative powers will
be distributed among 265 communes (local councils); in later stages, regions
and departments will be established as decentralized entities. A new electoral
code was adopted to reflect the decentralization context. The country is
currently divided into 8 regions, which are subdivided into 36 districts
(departments). The chief administrator (governor) in each department is
appointed by the government and functions primarily as the local agent of the
central authorities.
On 26 May 2009, President Tandja dissolved parliament after
the country's constitutional court ruled against plans to hold a referendum on
whether to allow him a third term in office. According to the constitution, a
new parliament was elected within three months. This began a political struggle
between Tandja, trying to extend his term-limited authority beyond 2009 through
the establishment of a Sixth Republic, and his opponents who demanded that he
step down at the end of his second term in December 2009. See 2009 Nigerien
constitutional crisis. The military took over the country and President Tandja
was put in prison, charged with corruption.
The military kept their promise to return the country to
democratic civilian rule. A constitutional referendum and national elections
were held. A presidential election was held on 31 January 2011, but as no clear
winner emerged, run-off elections were held on 12 March 2011. Mahamadou
Issoufou of the Nigerien Party for Democracy and Socialism was elected
president. A parliamentary election was held at the same time.
Foreign relations
Niger
pursues a moderate foreign policy and maintains friendly relations with the
West and the Islamic world as well as non-aligned countries. It belongs to the
UN and its main specialized agencies and in 1980–81 served on the UN Security
Council. Niger maintains a
special relationship with former colonial power France and has close relations with
its West African neighbors.
It is a charter member of the African Union and the West
African Monetary Union and also belongs to the Niger Basin Authority and Lake
Chad Basin Commission, the Economic Community of West African States, the
Non-Aligned Movement, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and the
Organization for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa (OHADA). The
westernmost regions of Niger
are joined with contiguous regions of Mali
and Burkina Faso
under the Liptako-Gourma Authority.
The border dispute with Benin,
inherited from colonial times and concerning inter alia Summer
Island in the Niger River, was solved
by the International Court of Justice in 2005 to Niger's advantage.
Military
The Niger Armed Forces are the military and paramilitary
forces of Niger,
under the president as supreme commander. They consist of the Niger Army the
Niger Air Force and the auxiliary paramilitary forces, such as the National
Gendarmerie (Gendarmerie nationale) and the National Guard (Garde Nationale).
Both paramilitary forces are trained in military fashion and have some military
responsibilities in wartime. In peace time their duties are mostly policing
duties.
The armed forces are composed of approximately 12,900
personnel, including 3,700 gendarmes, 3200 national guards, 300 air force
personnel, and 6,000 army personnel. The armed forces of Niger have been
involved several military coups over the years with the most recent in 2010. Niger's armed forces have a long history of
military cooperation with France
and the United States.
As of 2013, Niamey is home to a U.S.
drone base.
Administrative divisions
Niger
is divided into 7 Regions and one capital district. These Regions are
subdivided into 36 departments. The 36 Departments are currently broken down
into Communes of varying types. As of 2006 there were 265 communes, including
communes urbaines (Urban Communes: as subdivisions of major cities), communes
rurales (Rural Communes), in sparsely populated areas and postes administratifs
(Administrative Posts) for largely uninhabited desert areas or military zones.
Rural communes may contain official villages and
settlements, while Urban Communes are divided into quarters. Niger
subvisions were renamed in 2002, in the implementation of a decentralisation
project, first begun in 1998. Previously, Niger was divided into 7
Departments, 36 Arrondissements, and Communes. These subdivisions were
administered by officials appointed by the national government. These offices
will be replaced in the future by democratically elected councils at each
level.
Economy
The economy of Niger centers on subsistence crops,
livestock, and some of the world's largest uranium deposits. Drought cycles,
desertification, a 2.9% population growth rate, and the drop in world demand
for uranium have undercut the economy.
Niger
shares a common currency, the CFA franc, and a common central bank, the Central
Bank of West African States (BCEAO), with seven other members of the West
African Monetary Union. Niger
is also a member of the Organization for the Harmonization of Business Law in
Africa (OHADA).
In December 2000, Niger qualified for enhanced debt
relief under the International Monetary Fund program for Heavily Indebted Poor
Countries (HIPC) and concluded an agreement with the Fund for Poverty Reduction
and Growth Facility (PRGF). Debt relief provided under the enhanced HIPC
initiative significantly reduces Niger's annual debt service
obligations, freeing funds for expenditures on basic health care, primary
education, HIV/AIDS prevention, rural infrastructure, and other programs geared
at poverty reduction.
In December 2005, it was announced that Niger had
received 100% multilateral debt relief from the IMF, which translates into the
forgiveness of approximately US$86 million in debts to the IMF, excluding the
remaining assistance under HIPC. Nearly half of the government's budget is
derived from foreign donor resources. Future growth may be sustained by
exploitation of oil, gold, coal, and other mineral resources. Uranium prices
have recovered somewhat in the last few years. A drought and locust infestation
in 2005 led to food shortages for as many as 2.5 million Nigerians.
Demographics
Fulani women with traditional facial tattoos.
As of 2018, the population of Niger
was 22,442,831Expanding from a population of 3.4 million in 1960, Niger's
population has rapidly increased with a current growth rate of 3.3% (7.1
children per mother).
This growth rate is one of the highest in the world and is a
source of concern for the government and international agencies. The population
is predominantly young, with 49.2% under 15 years old and 2.7% over 65 years,
and predominantly rural with only 21% living in urban areas.
A 2005 study stated that over 800,000 people (nearly 8% of
the population) in Niger
are enslaved.
Languages
French, inherited from the colonial period, is the official
language. It is spoken mainly as a second language by people who have received
a formal western education and serves as the administrative language. Niger has been
a member of the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie since 1970.
Niger
has ten recognized national languages, namely Arabic, Buduma, Fulfulde,
Gourmanchema, Hausa, Kanuri, Zarma & Songhay, Tamasheq, Tassawaq, Tebu.
Each is spoken as a first language primarily by the ethnic group with which it
is associated. Hausa and Zarma-Songhai, the two most spoken languages, are
widely spoken throughout the country as first or second languages.
Religion
Niger is
a secular country and separation of state and religion is guaranteed by
Articles 3 and 175 of the 2010 Constitution, which dictate that future
amendments or revisions may not modify the secular nature of the republic of Niger. Religious freedom is protected by
Article 30 of the same constitution. Islam, widespread in the region since the
10th century, has greatly shaped the culture and mores of the people of Niger. Islam is
the most dominant religion, practiced by 99.3% of the population according to
the 2012 census.
The other two main religions of Niger are Christianity, practiced
by 0.3% of the population, and Animism (traditional indigenous religious
beliefs), practiced by 0.2% of the population. Christianity was established
earlier in the country by missionaries during the French colonial years. Other
urban Christian expatriate communities from Europe and West
Africa are also present. Religious persecution is rare in Niger which is
ranked last (#50) on the World Watch List for severity of persecution that
Christians face for actively pursuing their faith.
The numbers of Animist practitioners are a point of
contention. As recently as the late 19th century, much of the south center of
the nation was unreached by Islam, and the conversion of some rural areas has
been only partial. There are still areas where animist based festivals and
traditions (such as the Bori religion) are practiced by syncretic Muslim
communities (in some Hausa areas as well as among some Toubou and Wodaabe
pastoralists), as opposed to several small communities who maintain their
pre-Islamic religion. These include the Hausa-speaking Maouri (or Azna, the
Hausa word for "pagan") community in Dogondoutci in the
south-southwest and the Kanuri speaking Manga near Zinder, both of whom
practice variations of the pre-Islamic Hausa Maguzawa religion. There are also
some tiny Boudouma and Songhay animist communities in the southwest.
Islam
The majority of Muslims in Niger are Sunni, 7% are Shi'a, 5%
are Ahmadiyya and 20% non-denominational. Islam was spread into what is now
Niger beginning in the 15th century, by both the expansion of the Songhai
Empire in the west, and the influence of the Trans-Saharan trade traveling from
the Maghreb and Egypt. Tuareg expansion from the north, culminating in their
seizure of the far eastern oases from the Kanem-Bornu Empire in the 17th
centuries, spread distinctively Berber practices.
Both Zarma and Hausa areas were greatly influenced by the
18th- and 19th-century Fula led Sufi brotherhoods, most notably the Sokoto
Caliphate (in today's Nigeria). Modern Muslim practice in Niger is often
tied to the Tijaniya Sufi brotherhoods, although there are small minority
groups tied to Hammallism and Nyassist Sufi orders in the west, and the
Sanusiya in the far northeast.
A small center of followers of Salafi movement within Sunni
Islam have appeared in the last thirty years, in the capital and in Maradi.
These small groups, linked to similar groups in Jos, Nigeria,
came to public prominence in the 1990s during a series of religious riots.
Despite this, Niger maintains a tradition as a
secular state, protected by law. Interfaith relations are deemed very good, and
the forms of Islam traditionally practiced in most of the country are marked by
tolerance of other faiths and lack of restrictions on personal freedom. Divorce
and polygyny are unremarkable, women are not secluded, and head coverings are
not mandatory—they are often a rarity in urban areas. Alcohol, such as the
locally produced Beer Niger,
is sold openly in most of the country.
Education
The literacy rate of Niger is among the lowest in the
world; in 2005 it was estimated to be only 28.7% (42.9% male and 15.1% female).
Primary education in Niger
is compulsory for six years. The primary school enrollment and attendance rates
are low, particularly for girls. In 1997, the gross primary enrollment rate was
29.3 percent, and in 1996, the net primary enrollment rate was 24.5 percent.
About 60 percent of children who finish primary schools are
boys, as the majority of girls rarely attend school for more than a few years.
Children are often forced to work rather than attend school, particularly
during planting or harvest periods.Nomadic children in the north of the country
often do not have access to schools.
Health
The child mortality rate in Niger (deaths among children
between the ages of 1 and 4) is high (248 per 1,000) due to generally poor
health conditions and inadequate nutrition for most of the country's children.
According to the organization Save the Children, Niger has the world's highest
infant mortality rate.
Niger also has the highest fertility rate in the world (6.49
births per woman according to 2017 estimates); this means that nearly half
(49%) of the Nigerian population is under age 15. Niger has the 11th highest maternal
mortality rate in the world at 820 deaths/100,000 live births. There were 3
physicians and 22 nurses per 100,000 persons in 2006.
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