Niger is located in West-Africa along the border between the Sahara and Sahel regions. Its a landlocked country, about 650 kilometres removed from the sea.
The northern two-thirds of Niger are covered by the Sahara. The beautiful desert landscape is made of unending stripes of sand alternated with large areas of gravel and stones. In central Niger you can see the Aïr Mountains whose peaks show above the desert surface. The southern part of Niger is in the Sahel region. Between these two zones theres a transition zone which is the only protection for the northern part of the Sahel zone to become a desert. The intervention of the people has yet another bad influence on this zone.
The Niger River cuts through south-western Niger. The Yobe forms a part of the Niger-Nigeria border in the southeast. There are also many other small streams through southern Niger. Many of them are rocky river beds that are dry except in the rainy season.
We are lucky to visit Niger now because the best time to visit this country is in the cool and dry season, from December to February. Temperatures are now around 30°C while they can soar over 50°C in the hot season, from March to June. The air is so hot that the rain drops evaporate before they can reach the ground. By the way Niger is one of the hottest countries in the world. From April to May sandstorms occur regularly. The rainy season lasts from June till September, although rainfall is often unreliable.
In the rainy season natural disasters are never far away. Almost every year there is flooding caused by the rain that leaves thousands homeless.
You can see there are many different types of weather during the year, so its difficult to know which clothes are required. Lightweight clothes are advisable most of the year but you should take warmer clothes for the cool evenings. Dont forget your rainwear!
As in Nigeria, there are various ethnic groups in Niger. This wasnt new to us. The main groups in Niger are Hausa, Songhai, Tuareg, Fulani (or Fulbe) and Kanuri.
I was really surprised when I discovered that there are 5 national languages in Niger. Over 20 million West Africans speak Hausa as mother tongue and at least as much speak it as a second language. Another national language is French. French is used primarily in official written governmental and international correspondence; the local mother tongues are more often used in daily social interaction, markets, and trading.
History
The history of Niger begins in the 10th century. Nomadic Tuaregs then settled in the area that we now know as Niger. Around the 15th century they had built an impressive empire, but at the same time, the Songhai people had built an empire around the Niger River. The Songhai succeeded to conquer the empire of the Tuareg, but not for long. In the 16th century they were driven away by a Moroccan army.
During the Middle Ages the Niger region was on the central caravan route from North Africa to the Hausa states. At the end of the 19th century the French arrived in Niger and they made it, obviously, a French colony.
In 1958, Niger became a presidential republic and in 1960 they were declared independent.
In the 1990s there has been a bitter conflict with the nomadic Tuareg in the north of the country. Several different Tuareg insurgent groups emerge, demanding greater autonomy over their region and support for the ancient but threatened Tuareg culture. This conflict has held a long time. Eventually, in 1995, the government agrees a peace accord and an amnesty with one of the Tuareg groups. The last of them accepts the terms of the agreement in 1997.
As in Belgium, Niger sometimes suffers from a crisis. In 2009 this was the case.
In February 2010 there was another conflict by the army and they deposed the president. The coup group called itself the Supreme Council for Restoration of Democracy. The government said new elections in early 2011 took place. These elections were won by Mahamadou Issoufou who took office as new president.
The coup group called itself the Supreme Council for Restoration of Democracy. The government suggested new elections which took place in early 2011. These elections were won by Mahamadou Issoufou whos now president.
As Im traveling through Niger, Im conscious of the fact Im making a serious deviation towards my next country, Algeria. To get my first impressions of the agriculture, Im moving on along the Niger River, which crosses the country in the southwest where the soil is the most fertile.
I really get aware that Niger is one of the poorest countries in the world. Its rank on the Human Development Index (HDI) is penultimate of 187 countries. Conspicuous is the enormous amount of livestock across almost the whole nation. The economy of Niger is very centralized which means that Niger is very dependent on subsistence crops, uranium deposits and according to my presumptions, livestock. However, these factors do not really contribute to economic growth in Niger. On the contrary, a drop in world demand for uranium, desertification, drought and an exponential people growth have undercut the economy dramatically.[1][2]
Im finally arrived in Nigers capital, Niamey. Im about to buy a chicken, grilled on an exotic way to silence my growling stomach. The price I have to pay, is 2000 CFA Francs, which is three euros and a bit. Niger shares together with seven other countries the Central Africa CFA Franc. Because Niger frequently has serious debts, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has to interfere with debt reliefs. The half of the Governments budget is derived from foreign and extern donor resources.
Climate is linked to economy very narrowly. Due to great droughts (Nigers area consist almost 60% of the Sahara desert), Niger is permanently harassed by famines. Vast amounts of population face starvation constantly.[3]
As I sit there on a bench at Niameys Grand Market with the half of my chicken left, completely satisfied and enjoying Nigers gastronomy, I give the remains away to a little poor child at the pavement.
I was really astonished by the great diversity of the Nigerian culture. The history of Nigeria goes back to 2000 BC when Nigeria was mostly populated by nomads who lived from the land. The most well-known inhabitants in their history were the Noks in 800 BC. This tribe started the fashion of making bronze and terracotta sculptures. The Nigerian population was suppressed by British colonizers round 1900 and they were used as slaves in other countries. Finally they recaptured their independence on 1st October 1960.
Nigerian culture is as multi-ethnic as the people.They still nourish their traditional languages, music, dance and literature. The three large ethnic groups of Nigeria are Yoruba, Hausa-Fulani and Igbo but there are a lot more smaller groups. Because of that only 50% of the population speaks the official language, which is English. As there are more than 250 ethnic groups, there are more than 250 languages.
The Nigerian culture encloses as many varieties in styles of clothing as there are different groups of people living in the country. The main feature of their clothing is the conservativeness.
Another characteristic of the Nigerian people is their handling with guests. They welcome them with the greatest care and warmth. This hospitality returns everywhere in the Nigerian culture.
Soccer is a very practiced sport in Nigeria. Also polo, cricket, swimming and wrestling are very popular.
There are two main religions in Nigeria, Christians and Muslims. The two Christian festivals are Christmas and Easter as we know this. The three Muslim festivals are Eid Al Fitri, Eid Al Maulud and Eid Al Kabir, which are all national public holidays.Each ethic group has different traditions for celebrating these festivals.
So as you can see Nigeria has a very rich culture from different parts of the world. But I cant tell you all of it because I have to move on. If you want to know more about it you surely have to visit Nigeria.
When we visited Nigeria we noticed that this country had a lot of people. After some research it appeared that this country is also the most populous country in Africa with a very strong population growth.
Ethnic groups and religion
Religious joining in Nigeria is strongly related to ethnicity, with rather distinct regional divisions between ethnic groups.
There are over 250 different ethnic groups.
The main ethnic groups are involved in a constant struggle for power, which from time to time leads to violent outbursts. These are the Haussa and Fulani in the north, which are mostly Muslim, the Igbo in the south consist of a large number of Christians, the Yoruba in the west, which practices Christianity, Muslim and sometimes traditional Yoruba religion, and at least the Ijaw. Also the Tiv, the Kanuri and the Ibibio form tribes of respectable size.
Overall statistics indicate that about 50% of the population is Muslim, about 40% are Christian and about 10% practice traditional African religions or no religion at all.
Economy of Nigeria
According to the United Nations Development Programme70.8% of the population in Nigeria lives below the poverty line.
Community Based Poverty Reduction Project for Nigeria wants to improve access of the poor to social and economic infrastructure and increase the availability and management of development resources at the community level.
Apparently Nigeria has a dual economy. They depend on oilearnings, overlaid by a traditional agricultural and trading economy.Agriculture used to be the main source of export earnings and public revenue. The oil sector is now of overwhelming importance to the point of over-dependence. The competition between ethnic and regional groups for power and access to the countrys oil wealth are increasing in intensity.
Because of the rapid population growth, the agricultural sector couldnt keep up with it and now Nigeria, once a large exporter, has to import food. Since the 1970s the economic growth has been irregular. They depend most of the time on the global oil market which fluctuate a lot. Now Nigeria is facing a growing economic decline and the living standards is falling down.
(1) In Dutch we call this Nigeriaanse oplichting aka 419-fraude. This name is derived from the fact that recently many of these scams start in Nigeria. Also non-Nigerians are involved in this type of fraud. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advance-fee_fraud
(2) Nigeria is among the world's 20 poorest countries.
Nigeriaâs politics: Goodluck Jonathan to the change?
Nigerias politics: Goodluck Jonathan to the change?
A flight from Brussels to Lagos of about eight hours, starting with a journey from middle Africa to Norway and writing about politics in Nigeria. Not an easy task to fulfil but not invincible.
Politics in Nigeria frowns eyebrows with most of the people who have nothing to do with the subject.Although, the type of governance is almost completely modelled after the United States: a Federal Republic with influences of the Westminster System. This model is similar to the upper and lower houses of the bicameral legislature in the United Kingdom. The fact that Nigeria is a former colony of the United Kingdom elucidates a lot.[1]
Walking down the streets in Lagos, Im wondering whos the president of Nigeria. A passer-by tells me concisely but vigorously it is Goodluck Jonathan. At first, I thought he wished me good luck on my trip, supposing my name was Jonathan but later I became conscious of the fact that Goodluck Jonathan turned out to be the president of Nigeria.
Goodluck Jonathan[2][3] became acting president in the beginning of 2010 due to a medical treatment of the then president, Umaru YarAdua. In May of that year, the state of health of YarAdua weakened which led to his death. Jonathan was designated officially as the 14th president since Nigerias independency.[4] Considering Nigerias tightly related to the USA on political base, elections are held each four years. In 2011, the year of presidential elections, Jonathan excelled his opponent, Muhammadu Buhari, with approximately 56% of the Nigerian votes. His challenges are to throw overboard the fuel subsidy which is causing a drag on the economy, solve the problems around the terrorism and maintain security[5].
The following day my intentions are moving North-Eastwards to Nigerias capital, Abuja, finding out more about the composition of the parliament with its different parties. Im heading to the National Assembly of Nigeria[6] where I have an appointment with the President of the Senate, David Mark. The parliament is constituted of seven parliamentary parties of which one party definitely shows off with about two-thirds majority. This is the so-called Peoples Democratic Party[7] (PDP) of which current president Jonathan and the man to whom Im speaking are members.
In contrast with the ultra-conservative All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) which is the direct opponent, the PDP is leaning more on the liberal side with a conservative touch. Unity and democracy are two pillars of the party. It is also aiming for a religious freedom but refuses to accept homosexuality, a sensible subject for more parties in entire Africa.
Basically two things are bothering me after my stay in Nigeria. The influences of the colony-period are incalculable and unfortunately is there a predominating conservative way in Nigerias government policy. Goodluck Jonathan has still got a lot of work to do and hopefully is he living up to his name.
We, Jonathan, Laurens, Michèle and Xenia, are traveling around the world and every week we move to a new destination with new adventures and new stories. We will start our journey in Nigeria in the week of 14th February. Our final destination will be, eventually, Norway.
