Bahrain (2001) | Niger (2001) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | 12 municipalities (manatiq, singular - mintaqah); Al Hadd, Al Manamah, Al Mintaqah al Gharbiyah, Al Mintaqah al Wusta, Al Mintaqah ash Shamaliyah, Al Muharraq, Ar Rifa' wa al Mintaqah al Janubiyah, Jidd Hafs, Madinat Hamad, Madinat 'Isa, Juzur Hawar, Sitrah
note: all municipalities administered from Manama |
7 departments (departements, singular - departement), and 1 capital district* (capitale district); Agadez, Diffa, Dosso, Maradi, Niamey*, Tahoua, Tillaberi, Zinder |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
29.6% (male 96,697; female 94,330) 15-64 years: 67.43% (male 257,360; female 177,839) 65 years and over: 2.97% (male 9,721; female 9,414) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years:
47.97% (male 2,528,484; female 2,439,051) 15-64 years: 49.75% (male 2,518,400; female 2,633,677) 65 years and over: 2.28% (male 123,589; female 111,955) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruit, vegetables; poultry, dairy products; shrimp, fish | cowpeas, cotton, peanuts, millet, sorghum, cassava (tapioca), rice; cattle, sheep, goats, camels, donkeys, horses, poultry |
Airports | 3 (2000 est.) | 27 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
2 over 3,047 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total:
9 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total:
18 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
Area | total:
620 sq km land: 620 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
1.267 million sq km land: 1,266,700 sq km water: 300 sq km |
Area - comparative | 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly less than twice the size of Texas |
Background | Bahrain's small size and central location among Persian Gulf countries require it to play a delicate balancing act in foreign affairs among its larger neighbors. Possessing minimal oil reserves, Bahrain has turned to petroleum processing and refining, and has transformed itself into an international banking center. The new amir is pushing economic and political reforms, and has worked to improve relations with the Shi'a community. In 2001, the International Court of Justice awarded the Hawar Islands, long disputed with Qatar, to Bahrain. | Not until 1993, 33 years after independence from France, did Niger hold its first free and open elections. A 1995 peace accord ended a five-year Tuareg insurgency in the north. Coups in 1996 and 1999 were followed by the creation of a National Reconciliation Council that effected a transition to civilian rule in December 1999. |
Birth rate | 20.07 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 50.68 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$1.8 billion expenditures: $2.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
revenues:
$377 million, including $146 million from foreign sources expenditures: $377 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1999 est.) |
Capital | Manama | Niamey |
Climate | arid; mild, pleasant winters; very hot, humid summers | desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south |
Coastline | 161 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | adopted late December 2000 (new constitution calls for a partially elected legislature, a constitutional monarchy, and an independent judiciary) | the constitution of January 1993 was revised by national referendum on 12 May 1996 and again by referendum on 18 July 1999 |
Country name | conventional long form:
State of Bahrain conventional short form: Bahrain local long form: Dawlat al Bahrayn local short form: Al Bahrayn former: Dilmun |
conventional long form:
Republic of Niger conventional short form: Niger local long form: Republique du Niger local short form: Niger |
Currency | Bahraini dinar (BHD) | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States |
Death rate | 3.92 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 22.71 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.7 billion (2000) | $1.3 billion (1999 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Johnny YOUNG embassy: #979, Road 3119 (next to Al-Ahli Sports Club), Block 321, Zinj District, Manama mailing address: American Embassy Manama, PSC 451, FPO AE 09834-5100; international mail: American Embassy, Box 26431, Manama telephone: [973] 273-300 FAX: [973] 272-594 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Charles O. CECIL embassy: Rue Des Ambassades, Niamey mailing address: B. P. 11201, Niamey telephone: [227] 72 26 61 through 72 26 64 FAX: [227] 73 31 67 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador (vacant) chancery: 3502 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 342-0741 FAX: [1] (202) 362-2192 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Joseph DIATTA chancery: 2204 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-4224 through 4227 |
Disputes - international | in March of 2001, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) awarded the Hawar Islands to Bahrain and also adjusted Bahrain's maritime boundary with Qatar | Libya claims about 19,400 sq km in northern Niger; delimitation of international boundaries in the vicinity of Lake Chad, the lack of which led to border incidents in the past, has been completed and awaits ratification by Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria |
Economic aid - recipient | $48.4 million (1995) | $341 million (1997)
note: the IMF approved a $73 million poverty reduction and growth facility for Niger in 2000 and announced $115 million in debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative |
Economy - overview | In Bahrain, petroleum production and refining account for about 60% of export receipts, 60% of government revenues, and 30% of GDP. With its highly developed communication and transport facilities, Bahrain is home to numerous multinational firms with business in the Gulf. Bahrain is dependent on Saudi Arabia for oil revenue granted as aid. A large share of exports consists of petroleum products made from imported crude. Construction proceeds on several major industrial projects. Unemployment, especially among the young, and the depletion of both oil and underground water resources are major long-term economic problems. | Niger is a poor, landlocked Sub-Saharan nation, whose economy centers on subsistence agriculture, animal husbandry, reexport trade, and increasingly less on uranium, because of declining world demand. The 50% devaluation of the West African 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'etat - for operating expenses and public investment. In 2000, the World Bank approved a structural adjustment loan of $35 million to help support fiscal reforms. However, reforms could prove difficult given the government's bleak financial situation. |
Electricity - consumption | 5.752 billion kWh (1999) | 401 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 215 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 6.185 billion kWh (1999) | 200 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Persian Gulf 0 m highest point: Jabal ad Dukhan 122 m |
lowest point:
Niger River 200 m highest point: Mont Greboun 1,944 m |
Environment - current issues | desertification resulting from the degradation of limited arable land, periods of drought, and dust storms; coastal degradation (damage to coastlines, coral reefs, and sea vegetation) resulting from oil spills and other discharges from large tankers, oil refineries, and distribution stations; no natural fresh water resources so that groundwater and sea water are the only sources for all water needs | overgrazing; soil erosion; deforestation; desertification; wildlife populations (such as elephant, hippopotamus, giraffe, and lion) threatened because of poaching and habitat destruction |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | Bahraini 63%, Asian 19%, other Arab 10%, Iranian 8% | Hausa 56%, Djerma 22%, Fula 8.5%, Tuareg 8%, Beri Beri (Kanouri) 4.3%, Arab, Toubou, and Gourmantche 1.2%, about 1,200 French expatriates |
Exchange rates | Bahraini dinars per US dollar - 0.3760 (fixed rate pegged to the US dollar) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 699.21 (January 2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997), 511.55 (1996); note - from 1 January 1999, the XOF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XOF per euro |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Amir HAMAD bin Isa Al Khalifa (since 6 March 1999); Heir Apparent Crown Prince SALMAN bin Hamad (son of the monarch, born 21 October 1969) head of government: Prime Minister KHALIFA bin Salman Al Khalifa (since NA 1971) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch |
chief of state:
President Mamadou TANDJA (since 22 December 1999); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government head of government: President Mamadou TANDJA (since 22 December 1999); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government; Prime Minister Hama AMADOU (since 31 December 1999) was appointed by the president and shares some executive responsibilities with the president note: President Ibrahim BARE was assassinated on 9 April 1999; subsequent elections were held under the nine-month provisional government of Major Daouda Mallam WANKE cabinet: 23-member cabinet appointed by President TANDJA elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; last held 24 November 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Mamadou TANDJA elected president; percent of vote - Mamadou TANDJA 59.9%, Mahamadou ISSOUFOU 40.1% |
Exports | $5.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | $385 million (f.o.b., 1999) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum and petroleum products 61%, aluminum 7% | uranium ore 65%, livestock products, cowpeas, onions (1998 est.) |
Exports - partners | India 14%, Saudi Arabia 5%, US 5%, UAE 5%, Japan 4%, South Korea 4% (1999) | France 45%, Nigeria 27%, UK 11% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | red with a white serrated band (eight white points) on the hoist side | three equal horizontal bands of orange (top), white, and green with a small orange disk (representing the sun) centered in the white band; similar to the flag of India, which has a blue spoked wheel centered in the white band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $10.1 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $10 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
1% industry: 46% services: 53% (1996 est.) |
agriculture:
40% industry: 18% services: 42% (1998) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $15,900 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5% (2000 est.) | 3.5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 26 00 N, 50 33 E | 16 00 N, 8 00 E |
Geography - note | close to primary Middle Eastern petroleum sources; strategic location in Persian Gulf which much of Western world's petroleum must transit to reach open ocean | landlocked |
Heliports | 1 (2000 est.) | - |
Highways | total:
3,164 km paved: 2,433 km unpaved: 731 km note: there is a paved causeway connecting Bahrain to Saudi Arabia (1997) |
total:
10,100 km paved: 798 km unpaved: 9,302 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
0.8% highest 10%: 35.4% (1995) |
Imports | $4.2 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | $317 million (f.o.b., 1999) |
Imports - commodities | nonoil 59%, crude oil 41% | consumer goods, primary materials, machinery, vehicles and parts, petroleum, cereals |
Imports - partners | France 20%, US 14%, UK 8%, Saudi Arabia 7%, Japan 5% (1999) | France 22%, Cote d'Ivoire 15%, Nigeria 8%, US 3% (1999) |
Independence | 15 August 1971 (from UK) | 3 August 1958 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 2% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Industries | petroleum processing and refining, aluminum smelting, offshore banking, ship repairing; tourism | uranium mining, cement, brick, textiles, food processing, chemicals, slaughterhouses |
Infant mortality rate | 19.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 123.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (2000 est.) | 2.8% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, AFESD, AL, AMF, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ITU, MIPONUH, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB, WAEMU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1993 est.) | 660 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | High Civil Appeals Court | State Court or Cour d'Etat; Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | 295,000 (1998 est.)
note: 44% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national (July 1998 est.) |
70,000 receive regular wages or salaries |
Labor force - by occupation | industry, commerce, and service 79%, government 20%, agriculture 1% (1997 est.) | agriculture 90%, industry and commerce 6%, government 4% |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total:
5,697 km border countries: Algeria 956 km, Benin 266 km, Burkina Faso 628 km, Chad 1,175 km, Libya 354 km, Mali 821 km, Nigeria 1,497 km |
Land use | arable land:
1% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 6% forests and woodland: 0% other: 92% (1993 est.) |
arable land:
3% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 7% forests and woodland: 2% other: 88% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Arabic, English, Farsi, Urdu | French (official), Hausa, Djerma |
Legal system | based on Islamic law and English common law | based on French civil law system and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly was dissolved 26 August 1975 and legislative powers were assumed by the Cabinet; appointed Advisory Council established 16 December 1992; the National Action Charter created a bicameral legislature on 23 December 2000; approved by referendum of 14 February 2001 | unicameral National Assembly (83 seats, members elected by popular vote for five-year terms)
elections: last held 24 November 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - MNSD-Nassara 38, CDS-Rahama 17, PNDS-Tarayya 16, RDP-Jama'a 8, ANDPS-Zaman Lahiya 4 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
73.2 years male: 70.81 years female: 75.67 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
41.59 years male: 41.74 years female: 41.44 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 85.2% male: 89.1% female: 79.4% (1995 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 13.6% male: 20.9% female: 6.6% (1995 est.) |
Location | Middle East, archipelago in the Persian Gulf, east of Saudi Arabia | Western Africa, southeast of Algeria |
Map references | Middle East | Africa |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: extending to boundaries to be determined territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total:
7 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 175,609 GRT/207,652 DWT ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 3, container 2 (2000 est.) |
- |
Military branches | Ground Force, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, Police Force | Army, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, Republican Guard, National Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $318 million (FY99) | $20 million (FY96) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 5.2% (FY99) | 1.1% (FY96) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
222,141 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49:
2,202,608 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
121,833 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49:
1,190,787 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 15 years of age | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
5,926 (2001 est.) |
males:
108,993 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | National Day, 16 December (1971); note - 15 August 1971 is the date of independence from the UK, 16 December 1971 is the date of independence from British protection | Republic Day, 18 December (1958) |
Nationality | noun:
Bahraini(s) adjective: Bahraini |
noun:
Nigerien(s) adjective: Nigerien |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts; dust storms | recurring droughts |
Natural resources | oil, associated and nonassociated natural gas, fish, pearls | uranium, coal, iron ore, tin, phosphates, gold, petroleum |
Net migration rate | 1.1 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -0.73 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 56 km; petroleum products 16 km; natural gas 32 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | political parties prohibited | Democratic Rally of the People-Jama'a or RDP-Jama'a [Hamid ALGABID]; Democratic and Social Convention-Rahama or CDS-Rahama [Mahamane OUSMANE]; National Movement for a Developing Society-Nassara or MNSD-Nassara [Mamadou TANDJA, chairman]; Nigerien Alliance for Democracy and Social Progress-Zaman Lahiya or ANDPS-Zaman Lahiya [Moumouni Adamou DJERMAKOYE]; Nigerien Party for Democracy and Socialism-Tarayya or PNDS-Tarayya [Mahamadou ISSOUFOU]; Union of Democratic Patriots and Progressives-Chamoua or UPDP-Chamoua [Professor Andre' SALIFOU, chairman] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Shi'a activists fomented unrest sporadically 1994-97, demanding the return of an elected National Assembly and an end to unemployment; several small, clandestine leftist and Islamic fundamentalist groups are active | NA |
Population | 645,361
note: includes 228,424 non-nationals (July 2001 est.) |
10,355,156 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 63% (1993 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.73% (2001 est.) | 2.72% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Manama, Mina' Salman, Sitrah | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 2, FM 3, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 5, FM 5, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | 338,000 (1997) | 680,000 (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | 0 km |
Religions | Shi'a Muslim 70%, Sunni Muslim 30% | Muslim 80%, remainder indigenous beliefs and Christians |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.45 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.03 male(s)/female total population: 1.29 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.1 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | none | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
modern system domestic: modern fiber-optic integrated services; digital network with rapidly growing use of mobile cellular telephones international: tropospheric scatter to Qatar and UAE; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia; submarine cable to Qatar, UAE, and Saudi Arabia; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat (1997) |
general assessment:
small system of wire, radio telephone communications, and microwave radio relay links concentrated in the southwestern area of Niger domestic: wire, radiotelephone communications, and microwave radio relay; domestic satellite system with 3 earth stations and 1 planned international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 152,000 (1997) | 16,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 58,543 (1997) | 13,000 (1995) |
Television broadcast stations | 4 (1997) | 10 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly low desert plain rising gently to low central escarpment | predominately desert plains and sand dunes; flat to rolling plains in south; hills in north |
Total fertility rate | 2.79 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 7.08 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 15% (1998 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | none | 300 km
note: the Niger River is navigable from Niamey to Gaya on the Benin frontier from mid-December through March |