Part 51
Political parties and leaders: only party--National Movement for the Development Society (MNSD), leader NA
Suffrage: universal adult at age 18
Elections: President--last held December 1989 (next to be held NA 1996); results--President Ali Saibou was reelected without opposition;
National Development Council--last held December 1989 (next to be held NA 1994); results--MNSD is the only party; seats--(150 total) MNSD 150 (indirectly elected)
Communists: no Communist party; some sympathizers in outlawed Sawaba party
Member of: ACP, AfDB, APC, CCC, CEAO, EAMA, ECA, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB--Islamic Development Bank, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IPU, ITU, Lake Chad Basin Commission, Niger River Commission, NAM, OAU, OCAM, OIC, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Moumouni Adamou DJERMAKOYE; Chancery at 2204 R Street NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 483-4224 through 4227; US--Ambassador Carl C. CUNDIFF; Embassy at Avenue des Ambassadeurs, Niamey (mailing address is B. P. 11201, Niamey); telephone [227] 72-26-61 through 64 and 72-26-70
Flag: 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
- Economy
Overview: About 90% of the population is engaged in farming and stock rearing, activities which generate almost half of the national income. The economy also depends heavily on exploitation of large uranium deposits. Uranium production grew rapidly in the mid-1970s, but tapered off in the early 1980s, when world prices declined. France is a major customer, while FRG, Japan, and Spain also make regular purchases. The depressed demand for uranium has contributed to an overall sluggishness in the economy, a severe trade imbalance, and a mounting external debt.
GDP: $2.4 billion, per capita $330; real growth rate 7.1% (1988 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): - 1.4% (1988)
Unemployment rate: NA%
Budget: revenues $254 million; expenditures $510 million, including capital expenditures of $239 million (1988 est.)
Exports: $371 million (f.o.b., 1988 est.); commodities--uranium 76%, livestock, cowpeas, onions, hides, skins; partners--NA
Imports: $441 million (c.i.f., 1988 est.); commodities--petroleum products, primary materials, machinery, vehicles and parts, electronic equipment, pharmaceuticals, chemical products, cereals, foodstuffs
External debt: $1.8 billion (December 1989 est.)
Industrial production: growth rate 4.7% (1989 est.)
Electricity: 102,000 kW capacity; 225 million kWh produced, 30 kWh per capita (1989)
Industries: cement, brick, rice mills, small cotton gins, oilseed presses, slaughterhouses, and a few other small light industries; uranium production began in 1971
Agriculture: accounts for roughly 40% of GDP and 90% of labor force; cash crops--cowpeas, cotton, peanuts; food crops--millet, sorghum, cassava, rice; livestock--cattle, sheep, goats; self-sufficient in food except in drought years
Aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-88), $349 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $2.8 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $504 million; Communist countries (1970-88), $61 million
Currency: Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (plural--francs); 1 CFA franc (CFAF) = 100 centimes
Exchange rates: Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (CFAF) per US$1--287.99 (January 1990), 319.01 (1989), 297.85 (1988), 300.54 (1987), 346.30 (1986), 449.26 (1985)
Fiscal year: 1 October-30 September
- Communications Highways: 39,970 km total; 3,170 km bituminous, 10,330 km gravel and laterite, 3,470 km earthen, 23,000 km tracks
Inland waterways: Niger river is navigable 300 km from Niamey to Gaya on the Benin frontier from mid-December through March
Civil air: no major transport aircraft
Airports: 31 total, 29 usable; 7 with permanent-surface runways; 1 with runways over 3,659 m; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 11 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: small system of wire, radiocommunications, and radio relay links concentrated in southwestern area; 11,900 telephones; stations--15 AM, 5 FM, 16 TV; satellite earth stations--1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT, 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT, and 4 domestic
- Defense Forces Branches: Army, Air Force, paramilitary Gendarmerie, paramilitary Republican Guard, paramilitary Presidential Guard, paramilitary National Police
Military manpower: males 15-49, 1,656,466; 894,095 fit for military service; 87,478 reach military age (18) annually
Defense expenditures: $20.6 million (1988) ---------------------------------------------------- Country: Nigeria - Geography Total area: 923,770 km2; land area: 910,770 km2
Comparative area: slightly more than twice the size of California
Land boundaries: 4,047 km total; Benin 773 km, Cameroon 1,690 km, Chad 87 km, Niger 1,497 km
Coastline: 853 km
Maritime claims:
Continental shelf: 200 meters or to depth of exploitation;
Extended economic zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 30 nm
Disputes: exact locations of the Chad-Niger-Nigeria and Cameroon-Chad-Nigeria tripoints in Lake Chad have not been determined, so the boundary has not been demarcated and border incidents have resulted; Nigerian proposals to reopen maritime boundary negotiations and redemarcate the entire land boundary have been rejected by Cameroon
Climate: varies--equatorial in south, tropical in center, arid in north
Terrain: southern lowlands merge into central hills and plateaus; mountains in southeast, plains in north
Natural resources: crude oil, tin, columbite, iron ore, coal, limestone, lead, zinc, natural gas
Land use: 31% arable land; 3% permanent crops; 23% meadows and pastures; 15% forest and woodland; 28% other; includes NEGL% irrigated
Environment: recent droughts in north severely affecting marginal agricultural activities; desertification; soil degradation, rapid deforestation
- People Population: 118,819,377 (July 1990), growth rate 3.0% (1990)
Birth rate: 46 births/1,000 population (1990)
Death rate: 17 deaths/1,000 population (1990)
Net migration rate: 1 migrant/1,000 population (1990)
Infant mortality rate: 119 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
Life expectancy at birth: 48 years male, 49 years female (1990)
Total fertility rate: 6.5 children born/woman (1990)
Nationality: noun--Nigerian(s); adjective--Nigerian
Ethnic divisions: more than 250 tribal groups; Hausa and Fulani of the north, Yoruba of the southwest, and Ibos of the southeast make up 65% of the population; about 27,000 non-Africans
Religion: 50% Muslim, 40% Christian, 10% indigenous beliefs
Language: English (official); Hausa, Yoruba, Ibo, Fulani, and several other languages also widely used
Literacy: 42.4%
Labor force: 42,844,000; 54% agriculture, 19% industry, commerce, and services, 15% government; 49% of population of working age (1985)
Organized labor: 3,520,000 wage earners belong to 42 recognized trade unions, which come under a single national labor federation--the Nigerian Labor Congress (NLC)
- Government Long-form name: Federal Republic of Nigeria
Type: military government since 31 December 1983
Capital: Lagos
Administrative divisions: 21 states and 1 territory*; Abuja Capital Territory*, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Bendel, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Gongola, Imo, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kwara, Lagos, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto
Independence: 1 October 1960 (from UK)
Constitution: 1 October 1979, amended 9 February 1984, revised 1989
Legal system: based on English common law, Islamic, and tribal law
National holiday: Independence Day, 1 October (1960)
Executive branch: president of the Armed Forces Ruling Council, Armed Forces Ruling Council, National Council of State, Council of Ministers (cabinet)
Legislative branch: National Assembly was dissolved after the military coup of 31 December 1983
Judicial branch: Supreme Court, Federal Court of Appeal
Leaders: Chief of State and Head of Government--President and Commander in Chief of Armed Forces Gen. Ibrahim BABANGIDA (since 27 August 1985)
Political parties and leaders: two political parties established by the government in 1989--Social Democratic Party (SDP) and National Republican Convention (NRC)
Suffrage: universal at age 21
Elections: President--scheduled for 1 October 1992
Communists: the pro-Communist underground consists of a small fraction of the Nigerian left; leftist leaders are prominent in the country's central labor organization but have little influence on government
Member of: ACP, AfDB, APC, CCC, Commonwealth, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMO, IMF, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IRC, ISO, ITC, ITU, IWC--International Wheat Council, Lake Chad Basin Commission, Niger River Commission, NAM, OAU, OPEC, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Hamzat AHMADU; Chancery at 2201 M Street NW, Washington DC 20037; telephone (202) 822-1500; there are Nigerian Consulates General in Atlanta, New York and San Francisco; US--Ambassador Lannon WALKER; Embassy at 2 Eleke Crescent, Victoria Island, Lagos (mailing address is P. O. Box 554, Lagos); telephone [234] (1) 610097; there is a US Consulate General in Kaduna
Flag: three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green
- Economy Overview: In 1989, despite rising oil prices, the economic performance failed to meet government expectations because of higher inflationary pressures fueled by a relatively poor agricultural performance. Agricultural production was up only 4% following a 10% decline in 1988, and manufacturing remained below the 1985 level with only a 6% increase. The government is continuing an economic adjustment program to reduce Nigeria's dependence on oil and to help create a basis for sustainable noninflationary growth.
GNP: $30.0 billion, per capita $270; real growth rate 4% (1989)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 47.5% (1989)
Unemployment rate: 7.5% (1988 est.)
Budget: revenues $6.5 billion; expenditures $7.4 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.9 billion (1988 est.)
Exports: $8.4 billion (f.o.b., 1989 est.); commodities--oil 95%, cocoa, palm kernels, rubber; partners--EC 51%, US 32%
Imports: $5.7 billion (c.i.f., 1989 est.); commodities--consumer goods, capital equipment, chemicals, raw materials; partners--EC, US
External debt: $32 billion, medium and long-term (December 1989 est.)
Industrial production: growth rate 5% (1987 est.)
Electricity: 4,737,000 kW capacity; 11,270 million kWh produced, 100 kWh per capita (1989)
Industries: mining--crude oil, natural gas, coal, tin, columbite; primary processing industries--palm oil, peanut, cotton, rubber, petroleum, wood, hides and skins; manufacturing industries--textiles, cement, building materials, food products, footwear, chemical, printing, ceramics, steel
Agriculture: accounts for 28% of GNP and half of labor force; inefficient small-scale farming dominates; once a large net exporter of food and now an importer; cash crops--cocoa, peanuts, palm oil, rubber; food crops--corn, rice, sorghum, millet, cassava, yams; livestock--cattle, sheep, goats, pigs; fishing and forestry resources extensively exploited
Illicit drugs: illicit heroin and some cocaine trafficking; marijuana cultivation for domestic consumption and export; major transit country for heroin en route from Southwest Asia via Africa to Western Europe and the US; growing transit route for cocaine from South America via West Africa to Western Europe and the US
Aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-88), $662 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $1.9 billion; Communist countries (1970-88), $2.2 billion
Currency: naira (plural--naira); 1 naira (N) = 100 kobo
Exchange rates: naira (N) per US$1--7.6221 (December 1989), 7.3647 (1989), 4.5370 (1988), 4.0160 (1987), 1.7545 (1986), 0.8938 (1985)
Fiscal year: calendar year
- Communications Railroads: 3,505 km 1.067-meter gauge
Highways: 107,990 km total 30,019 km paved (mostly bituminous-surface treatment); 25,411 km laterite, gravel, crushed stone, improved earth; 52,560 km unimproved
Inland waterways: 8,575 km consisting of Niger and Benue Rivers and smaller rivers and creeks
Pipelines: 2,042 km crude oil; 500 km natural gas; 3,000 km refined products
Ports: Lagos, Port Harcourt, Calabar, Warri, Onne, Sapele
Merchant marine: 28 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 428,116 GRT/680,343 DWT; includes 19 cargo, 1 refrigerated, 1 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 5 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 1 chemical tanker, 1 bulk
Civil air: 76 major transport aircraft
Airports: 84 total, 72 usable; 32 with permanent-surface runways; 1 with runways over 3,659 m; 13 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 22 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: above-average system limited by poor maintenance; major expansion in progress; radio relay and cable routes; 155,000 telephones; stations--37 AM, 19 FM, 38 TV; 2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT, 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT, domestic, with 19 stations; 1 coaxial submarine cable
- Defense Forces Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, paramilitary Police Force
Military manpower: males 15-49, 27,282,248; 15,587,485 fit for military service; 1,263,883 reach military age (18) annually
Defense expenditures: 1% of GNP, or $300 million (1990 est.) ---------------------------------------------------- Country: Niue (free association with New Zealand) - Geography Total area: 260 km2; land area: 260 km2
Comparative area: slightly less than 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: none
Coastline: 64 km
Maritime claims:
Extended economic zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: tropical; modified by southeast trade winds
Terrain: steep limestone cliffs along coast, central plateau
Natural resources: fish, arable land
Land use: 61% arable land; 4% permanent crops; 4% meadows and pastures; 19% forest and woodland; 12% other
Environment: subject to typhoons
Note: one of world's largest coral islands; located about 460 km east of Tonga
- People Population: 2,019 (July 1990), growth rate NA (1990)
Birth rate: NA births/1,000 population (1990)
Death rate: NA deaths/1,000 population (1990)
Net migration rate: NA migrants/1,000 population (1990)
Infant mortality rate: NA deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
Life expectancy at birth: NA years male, NA years female (1990)
Total fertility rate: NA children born/woman (1990)
Nationality: noun--Niuean(s); adjective--Niuean
Ethnic divisions: Polynesian, with some 200 Europeans, Samoans, and Tongans
Religion: 75% Ekalesia Nieue (Niuean Church)--a Protestant church closely related to the London Missionary Society, 10% Mormon, 5% Roman Catholic, Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh-Day Adventist
Language: Polynesian tongue closely related to Tongan and Samoan; English
Literacy: NA%, but education compulsory between 5 and 14 years of age
Labor force: 1,000 (1981 est.); most work on family plantations; paid work exists only in government service, small industry, and the Niue Development Board
Organized labor: NA
- Government Long-form name: none
Type: self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand
Capital: Alofi
Administrative divisions: none
Independence: none (self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand)
Constitution: no formal, written constitution
Legal system: English common law
National holiday: Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty), 6 February (1840)
Executive branch: British monarch, premier, Cabinet
Legislative branch: Legislative Assembly
Judicial branch: Appeal Court of New Zealand, High Court
Leaders: Chief of State--Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by New Zealand Representative John SPRINGFORD (since 1974);
Head of Government--Premier Sir Robert R. REX (since NA October 1974)
Suffrage: universal adult at age 18
Political parties and leaders: Niue People's Action Party, leader NA
Elections: Legislative Assembly--last held on 28 March 1987 (next to be held NA 1990); results--percent of vote NA; seats--(20 total, 6 elected) independents 5, Niue People's Action Party 1
Member of: ESCAP (associate member), SPF
Diplomatic representation: none (self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand)
Flag: yellow with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the flag of the UK bears five yellow five-pointed stars--a large one on a blue disk in the center and a smaller one on each arm of the bold red cross
- Economy Overview: The economy is heavily dependent on aid from New Zealand. Government expenditures regularly exceed revenues, with the shortfall made up by grants from New Zealand--the grants are used to pay wages to the 80% or more of the work force employed in public service. The agricultural sector consists mainly of subsistence gardening, although some cash crops are grown for export. Industry consists primarily of small factories to process passion fruit, lime oil, honey, and coconut cream. The sale of postage stamps to foreign collectors is an important source of revenue. The island in recent years has suffered a serious loss of population because of migration of Niueans to New Zealand.
GNP: $2.1 million, per capita $1,000; real growth rate NA% (1989 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 9.6% (1984)
Unemployment rate: NA%
Budget: revenues $5.5 million; expenditures $6.3 million, including capital expenditures of NA (FY85 est.)
Exports: $175,274 (f.o.b., 1985); commodities--canned coconut cream, copra, honey, passion fruit products, pawpaw, root crops, limes, footballs, stamps, handicrafts; partners--NZ 89%, Fiji, Cook Islands, Australia
Imports: $3.8 million (c.i.f., 1985); commodities--food, live animals, manufactured goods, machinery, fuels, lubricants, chemicals, drugs; partners--NZ 59%, Fiji 20%, Japan 13%, Western Samoa, Australia, US
External debt: $NA
Industrial production: growth rate NA%
Electricity: 1,500 kW capacity; 3 million kWh produced, 1,420 kWh per capita (1989)
Industries: tourist, handicrafts
Agriculture: copra, coconuts, passion fruit, honey, limes; subsistence crops--taro, yams, cassava (tapioca), sweet potatoes; pigs, poultry, beef cattle
Aid: Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $58 million
Currency: New Zealand dollar (plural--dollars); 1 New Zealand dollar (NZ$) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: New Zealand dollars (NZ$) per US$1--1.6581 (January 1990), 1.6708 (1989), 1.5244 (1988), 1.6886 (1987), 1.9088 (1986), 2.0064 (1985)
Fiscal year: 1 April-31 March
- Communications Highways: 123 km all-weather roads, 106 km access and plantation roads
Ports: none; offshore anchorage only
Airports: 1 with permanent-surface runway of 1,650 m
Telecommunications: single-line telephone system connects all villages on island; 383 telephones; 1,000 radio receivers (1987 est.); stations--1 AM, 1 FM, no TV
- Defense Forces Note: defense is the responsibility of New Zealand ---------------------------------------------------- Country: Norfolk Island (territory of Australia) - Geography Total area: 34.6 km2; land area: 34.6 km2
Comparative area: about 0.2 times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: none
Coastline: 32 km
Maritime claims:
Contiguous zone: 12 nm;
Continental shelf: 200 meters or to depth of exploitation;
Exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 3 nm
Climate: subtropical, mild, little seasonal temperature variation
Terrain: volcanic formation with mostly rolling plains
Natural resources: fish
Land use: 0% arable land; 0% permanent crops; 25% meadows and pastures; 0% forest and woodland; 75% other
Environment: subject to typhoons (especially May to July)
Note: located 1,575 km east of Australia in the South Pacific Ocean
- People Population: 2,533 (July 1990), growth rate 1.7% (1990)
Birth rate: NA births/1,000 population (1990)
Death rate: NA deaths/1,000 population (1990)
Net migration rate: NA migrants/1,000 population (1990)
Infant mortality rate: NA deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
Life expectancy at birth: NA years male, NA years female (1990)
Total fertility rate: NA children born/woman (1990)
Nationality: noun--Norfolk Islander(s); adjective--Norfolk Islander(s)
Ethnic divisions: descendants of the Bounty mutiny; more recently, Australian and New Zealand settlers
Religion: Anglican, Roman Catholic, Uniting Church in Australia, and Seventh-Day Adventist
Language: English (official) and Norfolk--a mixture of 18th century English and ancient Tahitian
Literacy: NA%, but probably high
Labor force: NA
Organized labor: NA
- Government Long-form name: Territory of Norfolk Island
Type: territory of Australia
Capital: Kingston (administrative center), Burnt Pine (commercial center)
Administrative divisions: none (territory of Australia)
Independence: none (territory of Australia)
Constitution: Norfolk Island Act of 1957
Legal system: wide legislative and executive responsibility under the Norfolk Island Act of 1979; Supreme Court
National holiday: Pitcairners Arrival Day Anniversary, 8 June (1856)
Executive branch: British monarch, governor general of Australia, administrator, Executive Council (cabinet)
Legislative branch: unicameral Legislative Assembly
Judicial branch: Supreme Court
Leaders: Chief of State--Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Administrator H. B. MACDONALD (since NA 1989), who is appointed by the Governor General of Australia;
Head of Government--Assembly President and Chief Minister John Terence BROWN (since NA)
Political parties and leaders: NA
Suffrage: universal at age 18
Elections: Legislative Assembly--last held NA (next to be held NA); results--percent of vote by party NA; seats--(9 total) percent of seats by party NA
Diplomatic representation: none (territory of Australia)
Flag: three vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green with a large green Norfolk Island pine tree centered in the slightly wider white band
- Economy Overview: The primary economic activity is tourism, which has brought a level of prosperity unusual among inhabitants of the Pacific Islands. The number of visitors has increased steadily over the years and reached almost 30,000 in 1986. Revenues from tourism have given the island a favorable balance of trade and helped the agricultural sector to become self-sufficient in the production of beef, poultry, and eggs.
GNP: NA
Inflation rate (consumer prices): NA%
Unemployment rate: NA%
Budget: revenues $3.4 million; expenditures $3.4 million, including capital expenditures of NA (FY88)
Exports: $1.8 million (f.o.b., FY85); commodities--postage stamps, seeds of the Norfolk Island pine and Kentia Palm, small quantities of avocados; partners--Australia, Pacific Islands, NZ, Asia, Europe
Imports: $16.3 million (c.i.f., FY85); commodities--NA; partners--Australia, Pacific Islands, NZ, Asia, Europe
External debt: NA
Industrial production: growth rate NA%
Electricity: 7,000 kW capacity; 8 million kWh produced, 3,210 kWh per capita (1989)
Industries: tourism
Agriculture: Norfolk Island pine seed, Kentia palm seed, cereals, vegetables, fruit, cattle, poultry
Aid: none
Currency: Australian dollar (plural--dollars); 1 Australian dollar ($A) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: Australian dollars ($A) per US$1--1.2784 (January 1990), 1.2618 (1989), 1.2752 (1988), 1.4267 (1987), 1.4905 (1986), 1.4269 (1985)
Fiscal year: 1 July-30 June
- Communications Highways: 80 km of roads, including 53 km of sealed roads; remainder are earth formed or coral surfaced
Ports: none; loading jetties at Kingston and Cascade
Airports: 1 with permanent-surface runways 1,220-2,439 m (Australian owned)