Niger

NIGER IS LOCATED in western Africa, just north of Nigeria. This landlocked country is already one of the hottest and driest places on the planet. It lies within the Sahel region, which has seen increasingly damaging droughts, soil erosion, desertification, deforestation, and overgrazing during the last 30 years. Four-fifths of the terrain is desert, characterized by rolling sand dunes, with the remaining fifth fairly productive savanna. The 13 million residents of Niger are among the world's poorest, with over 60 percent living below the poverty level. Many already face food and water insecurity as a daily fact of life. Climate change is projected to put this already vulnerable people on the brink of collapse.

A study of rainfall patterns for 1965–2000 showed that the climate in Niger has already undergone significant changes, with a steady decrease in both the amount of rain and the number of days of rain per year. This trend is expected to continue in coming decades. The overall decline in precipitation, along with an increase in average temperatures, will strike Nigériens in their most vulnerable areas: agricultural production and water sources. Modeling indicates declines in vital millet and sorghum crops as early as 2025. The more water that must be diverted from dwindling sources to irrigate crops, the less there is available for humans and livestock. This will naturally lead to conflict over water sources between communities.

Other impacts of climate change in Niger will be deficits in livestock fodder, the drying up and silting of watering holes and ponds, decreased fishing, loss of biodiversity and species extinction, the encroachment of sand dunes into agricultural areas, and increased threat of famine, viral diseases, malaria, and respiratory illness.

Niger is not a major contributor to global carbon emissions, releasing just 1,109,000 metric tons in 1998. About 56 percent of emissions come from liquid fuel sources, with 42 percent from solid fuel sources, wood fires being the primary method of cooking within the country.

Niger's financial resources are limited, and while the government has produced a mitigation plan as part of its participation in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), implementation may be difficult. Some options include forming livestock and agricultural cooperatives to increase the efficiency of food distribution and irrigation and encouraging the planting of crops more suited to the Sahel's climate. The government has also [Page 720]indicated a willingness to explore the use of renewable energy sources, including wind and solar power.