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NIGER


COUNTRY PROFILE

Niger is a vast, arid, landlocked country in western Africa that borders the Sahara desert.
Drought-prone and extremely poor, it often struggles to feed its population of 15.3 million people.

With little primary education, Niger has one of the lowest literacy rates in the world. The health system is basic and disease is widespread.
Its main export, uranium, is prone to price fluctuations. Other livelihood mainstays, such as subsistence crops and livestock, are constantly at the mercy of drought and creeping desertification.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Map courtesy of FCO (UK)

Gross national income (GNI) per capita is US$291.3; life expectancy is 56 years for women and 58 years for men, and the infant mortality rate is 111 per 1,000 live births.

Niger is purportedly bargaining on oil exploration and gold mining to boost its fortunes.
Currently, it is ranked last (182nd of 182 countries) on the UN’s Human Development Index (UN 2009 HDI).

HISTORY OF GOAL IN NIGER:

In July 2005, Niger was plunged into famine. A locust infestation had followed severe drought and successive harvest failures, leaving more than 3.6 million people facing critical food shortages.
GOAL entered the country and based its operations in the Zinder region. It was one of the first agencies to distribute emergency food supplies to malnourished children and their families.

Each month, GOAL was distributing emergency, special high-energy food to 2,500 severely malnourished children (under five yrs.), along with family food rations to more than 220,000 people.

While continuing to provide emergency feeding, GOAL extended its programmes to include extensive water, sanitation and hygiene projects, also education support and school refurbishment.
A programme was implemented specifically to improve livelihoods and decrease malnutrition. This involved providing beneficiaries with livestock to enhance their hungry-season coping capabilities and lessen the effects of future drought or crop failure.

NB: The outlook for the June 2010 harvest in Niger is bleak with malnutrition rates expected to soar again.

CURRENT GOAL PROGRAMMES IN NIGER:

• Hygiene Promotion and Training of Communities in Maintenance of Water and Sanitation Systems

   
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