Niger 🇳🇪
Niger is a country in Africa with a population of 26,207,977. Its capital is Niamey. The official currency is XOF, and the main languages are French.
Quick facts
- Capital: Niamey
- Continent: Africa
- Population: 26,207,977
- Area: 1,267,000 km²
- Density: 20.7 people per km²
- Currency: XOF
- Languages: French
- ISO code: NE
Where Niger sits
Niger 🇳🇪 is one of 54 countries in Africa, with its capital at Niamey. It covers 1,267,000 square kilometres — 21st in the world — and is home to about 26,207,977 people, 54th globally.
The countries it shares a continent with include Nigeria, Ethiopia, Egypt, Democratic Republic of the Congo and Tanzania. If you are learning geography region by region — which works far better than alphabetically, because memory for places is spatial — those are the ones to learn alongside it.
How Niger compares
Raw figures are hard to hold on their own, so it helps to anchor them. In population, Niger sits closest to Australia and North Korea. In land area, its nearest counterparts are Chad and Peru.
At 20.7 people per square kilometre it is about 2.9 times below the world average of 59.4. It ranks higher by area than by population, so it is more spacious than its population alone suggests.
French is an official language in 30 countries here, among them Belgium, Benin, Burkina Faso and Burundi, and 25 others. The XOF is shared with 7 other countries, including Benin, Burkina Faso and Guinea-Bissau, and 4 others.
To see Niger next to every other country, sort the country rankings by population, area or density; its currency and languages are listed alongside every other country's in world currencies and world languages.
How to remember Niger
Niamey lies on the Niger River, the country's namesake, in the southwest corner of the country. For the flag, don't mix it up with India's: Niger has an orange sun, India a blue wheel.
The flag of Niger: orange, white and green
🇳🇪 The flag is three horizontal stripes of orange, white and green, with an orange disc in the centre of the white stripe. Orange stands for the Sahara in the north, white for purity and green for hope and the fertile south and west, along the Niger River. The orange disc stands for the sun and the people's sacrifices.
Region and neighbours
Niger is a large landlocked country in West Africa, most of it in the Sahara Desert, named after the Niger River that flows through its southwest. It shares land borders with 7 countries: Algeria, Libya, Chad, Nigeria, Benin, Burkina Faso and Mali. Niger is landlocked, with no coast on the open ocean.
- Algeria 🇩🇿 — capital Algiers
- Libya 🇱🇾 — capital Tripoli
- Chad 🇹🇩 — capital N'Djamena
- Nigeria 🇳🇬 — capital Abuja
- Benin 🇧🇯 — capital Porto-Novo
- Burkina Faso 🇧🇫 — capital Ouagadougou
- Mali 🇲🇱 — capital Bamako
Three facts about Niger
- Niger is the sixth-largest country in Africa, and the second-largest landlocked country in Africa after Chad.
- Over 80% of Niger's land area lies in the Sahara.
- Ancient Saharan rock art is found in Niger's Aïr Mountains.
Sources: Wikipedia: Niger, Wikipedia: Flag of Niger, Wikipedia: Niamey, CIA World Factbook.
Quiz yourself on Niger
- African capitals quiz — match Niger to Niamey
- African flags quiz — spot the Niger flag among its neighbours
- Landlocked countries quiz — Niger has no sea coast
Quizzes that include Niger
Three angles are worth covering for any country — where it is, what its flag looks like, and what its capital is. For Niger those are:
- Africa map quiz — place it on a blank map
- Africa flags quiz — identify its flag among its neighbours
- Africa capitals quiz — match it to Niamey
- Niger capital quiz — five quick questions starting with Niger
- Daily Map Challenge — five countries to find on a blank world map, the same five for everyone each day
Doing all three for one continent before moving on is far more efficient than learning flags globally, then capitals globally, then the map.
Read more about Niger
- Capital of Niger: Niamey — the capital in detail, with size and density rankings
- All 54 countries of Africa
Nearby countries
- Algeria 🇩🇿 — capital Algiers
- Angola 🇦🇴 — capital Luanda
- Benin 🇧🇯 — capital Porto-Novo
- Botswana 🇧🇼 — capital Gaborone
- Burkina Faso 🇧🇫 — capital Ouagadougou
- Burundi 🇧🇮 — capital Gitega
- Cabo Verde 🇨🇻 — capital Praia
- Cameroon 🇨🇲 — capital Yaoundé
- Central African Republic 🇨🇫 — capital Bangui
- Chad 🇹🇩 — capital N'Djamena
- Comoros 🇰🇲 — capital Moroni
- Congo 🇨🇬 — capital Brazzaville
Frequently asked questions
What are the colours of the Niger flag?
The flag of Niger is three horizontal stripes of orange, white and green, with an orange disc in the centre of the white stripe. Orange stands for the Sahara in the north, white for purity and green for hope and the fertile south and west, along the Niger River. The orange disc stands for the sun and the people's sacrifices.
Which countries border Niger?
Niger shares land borders with Algeria, Libya, Chad, Nigeria, Benin, Burkina Faso and Mali.
How can I remember the capital of Niger?
Niamey lies on the Niger River, the country's namesake, in the southwest corner of the country. For the flag, don't mix it up with India's: Niger has an orange sun, India a blue wheel.