Niger
Niger officially the Republic of the Niger is a landlocked country in West Africa.
It is a unitary state bordered by Libya to the northeast, Chad to the east, Nigeria to the south, Benin and Burkina Faso to the southwest, Mali to the west, and Algeria to the northwest.
It covers a land area of almost 1,270,000 km2 (490,000 sq mi), making it the largest landlocked country in West Africa.
Over 80% of its land area lies in the Sahara.
Its predominantly Muslim population of about 25 million.
The capital Niamey is located in Niger's southwest corner.
Niger is one of the poorest countries in the world.
Some non-desert portions of the country underwent periodic drought and desertification.
The economy is concentrated around subsistence agriculture, with some export agriculture in the less arid south, and export of raw materials, including uranium ore.
It faces challenges to development due to its landlocked position, desert terrain, low literacy rate, insurgencies and the world's highest fertility rates due to birth control not being used and the resulting rapid population growth.
Why in news
Mutinous soldiers claimed to have ousted the Niger President.
But the government said it will never accept their rule and has called for the population to reject it.
President Mohamed Bazoum was elected in 2021 in the West African nation’s first peaceful, democratic transfer of power since its independence from France in 1960.
He thwarted a coup attempt days before he was sworn in.
Threats to his leadership undermine the West’s efforts to stabilise Africa’s Sahel region, which has been overrun with coups in recent years.
Mali and Burkina Faso have had four coups since 2020, and both are being overrun by extremists linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group.
For many Western countries, Niger was seen as the last hope for partnership in the region with anti-French sentiment that led to a pivot from French forces in Mali to the Russian mercenary group Wagner.
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