Niger Poorest Country

Why is Niger one of the poorest countries in the world?

Many African countries are still struggling to follow the path leading to development, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa. Niger, a former French colony, is the 4th exporter of Uranium in the world, an oil producer, with substantial deposits of phosphates, coal, iron, limestone, and gypsum. Niger is rich in mineral resources. Yet, it remains one of the poorest countries in the world while other countries, like Japan, have managed to find their way to development without those resources. Niger is the last country in term of Human Development Index (HDI) according to the last Human Development Report of the United Nations Development Program. How can a country so rich in resources be amongst

It represents the second largest source of export. However, Niger’s agricultural industry cannot satisfy its own population because its production of food doesn’t meet the demand. Although only 4% of Niger’s land is arable, “the agricultural industry is mainly based upon internal markets, subsistence farming, herding, small trading, seasonal migration and informal markets and export” (Niger Honorary Consulate UK). In the last years, severe drought and floods brought famine in the country. In 2012, Mark Tran, a reporter of The Guardian, wrote: “At the best of times this vast landlocked country [Niger] – whose estimated 14.7 million people mostly live along a narrow strip of arable land on its southern border – has trouble feeding itself” (Tran). According to the Nigerien government, “Up to 6 million people in Niger are facing severe food shortages with agencies calling for $1 billion to head off the impending crisis” (Nigerien Honorary Consulate UK). This suggest that structural problems in the agricultural sector and climate changes have led the country to food insecurity which end up in famine in the worst case scenario. The underdevelopment of Niger’s agricultural sector unable the country to satisfy its own food demand and this largely contribute to the global underdevelopment of the country. Knowing that agriculture is only the second largest source of export, one might wonder the role played by Niger’s

The dependency theory is striking at the country which heavily relies on its mining sector for exports. Niger’s agricultural sector is deficient, unable to satisfy the population’s nutritional needs. The high fertility rate leads to low labor force in the country and there is a difficult access to education. As a result, Niger’s population remain significantly poor and its budget depends on an important foreign aid. This a paradox, since Niger has the necessary resources to boost its development. Still it remains one of the poorest countries in the world with a deficient budget. In order to break this vicious cycle of poverty and improve each Nigerien’s standard of living, the Nigerien government must diversify its economy, raise the taxes and reduce the population