Niger
Western Africa
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About
Niger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state bordered by Libya to the northeast, Chad to the east, Nigeria to the south, Benin and Burkina Faso to the southwest, Mali to the west, and Algeria to the northwest. It covers a land area of almost 1.27 million km2 (490,000 mi2), making it the largest landlocked country in West Africa and the second-largest landlocked nation in Africa behind Chad. Over 80% of its land area lies in the Sahara. Its predominantly Muslim population of about 25 million lives mostly in clusters in the south and west of the country. The capital, Niamey, is located in Niger's southwest corner along the namesake Niger River.
Read more on Wikipedia →The Flag
History
The flag of Niger has been the national flag of the Republic of Niger since 1959, a year prior to its formal independence from French West Africa. It uses the national colors of orange, white and green, in equal horizontal bands, with an orange circle in the center. It forms one of the official national symbols of the Republic of the Niger, along with the coat of arms, the National Anthem, and the national motto: "Fraternité, Travail, Progrès".
Design & symbolism
A number of sources have described the symbolic intent of the flag, although official sources have yet to confirm. Common interpretations are that the upper orange band represents the northern regions of the Sahara Desert or the Saharian zone, the center white band represents the Sahelian zone, and the lower green band represents the fertile regions of southern Niger or the Sudanian zone, the orange disc in the center band is thought to stand for the sun.
Looks like
Flags often confused with this one — tap one to compare side by side.
Photos
