Niger

Canada's Commitment
Results
Country Profile

Canada's Commitment

Canada's relationship with Niger goes back to the early 1960s. Relations then gradually tapered off owing to political turbulence in Niger, especially coups d'état in 1996 and 1999. In February 2000 Canada announced that it would resume its cooperation program with Niger following successful democratic elections.

The Canada-Niger cooperation program was the focus of a 2003-2007 programming statement, signed on November 20, 2002. Education is the key sector. This programming statement is in keeping with Niger's Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS) and its 10-year education development plan known as the PDDE (Programme décennal pour le développement de l'éducation).
Four pillars support the PRS:

• stable macroeconomic framework;
• development of production sectors;
• guaranteed access to basic social services for the poor; and
• building human and institutional capacity.

CIDA and Niger are conducting analyses and consultations to define the priorities and resource envelope that will guide development programming in this country. Meantime, given the current program's success, CIDA would like to continue supporting the education sector to build on the achievements of recent years.

Niger receives aid through CIDA programs, including the Pan-Africa Regional Program, La Francophonie Program, Industrial Cooperation Program, voluntary sector programs, and Multilateral Programs.

Results

Successful projects have been carried out in the education sector, enabling Niger to achieve noteworthy results, especially in education for girls and in non-formal education.

For example, the Non-Formal Education Development Support Project has enabled civil society organizations to develop and take charge of several areas of non-formal education. The project is universally recognized as a success that all literacy stakeholders share. This project has trained more than 41,925 learners registered at 1,508 literacy centres. Of these learners, 66 percent are women and 22 percent are youth aged 9 to 15. The success rate in the various areas of intervention rose from 47 percent in 2001 to 60 percent in 2005.

Country Profile

Niger is the world's poorest country, ranking 177^th out of 177 in the UN 2011 human development index. Nearly 70 percent of Niger's 11 million people live on less than $1 a day. Only 43 percent have access to drinking water. Scarcely 6.5 percent have electricity. Slavery still exists in secret among some ethnic groups in Niger. Despite the government's efforts, female genital mutilation is still practiced. These facts at a glance give only a brief overview of Niger's development.

The country has experienced a certain amount of political stability since the advent of democracy and the ensuing political and institutional reforms that followed. Niger ratified the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights. A civil society encompassing all the economic, social, and cultural aspects of life has since come into being.