The Niger–Nigeria border is in length and runs from the

tripoint A tripoint, trijunction, triple point, or tri-border area is a geographical point at which the boundaries of three countries or subnational entities meet. There are 175 international tripoints as of 2020. Nearly half are situated in rivers, la ...

with

Benin Benin ( , ; french: Bénin , ff, Benen), officially the Republic of Benin (french: République du Bénin), and formerly Republic of Dahomey, Dahomey, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burki ...

in the west to the tripoint with

Chad Chad (; ar, تشاد , ; french: Tchad, ), officially the Republic of Chad, '; ) is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic t ...

in the east.

Description

The border starts in the west at Beninese tripoint in the

Niger river The Niger River ( ; ) is the main river of West Africa, extending about . Its drainage basin is in area. Its source is in the Guinea Highlands in south-eastern Guinea near the Sierra Leone border. It runs in a crescent shape through Ma ...

, then proceeds overland in a northwards direction, before turning eastwards in a broad arc. The border then proceeds eastwards in a broadly eastwards direction, though with considerable undulation, before reaching the Komadougou Yobe river; the boundary then follows this river eastwards to the tripoint with Chad in

Lake Chad Lake Chad (french: Lac Tchad) is a historically large, shallow, endorheic lake in Central Africa, which has varied in size over the centuries. According to the ''Global Resource Information Database'' of the United Nations Environment Programme ...

. The border cuts through the densely-populated cultural region known as Hausaland, with

Hausa Hausa may refer to: * Hausa people, an ethnic group of West Africa * Hausa language, spoken in West Africa * Hausa Kingdoms, a historical collection of Hausa city-states * Hausa (horse) or Dongola horse, an African breed of riding horse See also ...

speakers forming the majority on both sides of the frontier.

History

The border first emerged during the

Scramble for Africa The Scramble for Africa, also called the Partition of Africa, or Conquest of Africa, was the invasion, annexation, division, and colonization of most of Africa by seven Western European powers during a short period known as New Imperialism ...

, a period of intense competition between European powers in the later 19th century for territory and influence in Africa. The process culminated in the

Berlin Conference The Berlin Conference of 1884–1885, also known as the Congo Conference (, ) or West Africa Conference (, ), regulated European colonisation and trade in Africa during the New Imperialism period and coincided with Germany's sudden emergence ...

of 1884, in which the European nations concerned agreed upon their respective territorial claims and the rules of engagements going forward. As a result of this France gained control of the upper valley of the

Niger River The Niger River ( ; ) is the main river of West Africa, extending about . Its drainage basin is in area. Its source is in the Guinea Highlands in south-eastern Guinea near the Sierra Leone border. It runs in a crescent shape through Ma ...

(roughly equivalent to the areas of modern

Mali Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mali ...

and Niger). Meanwhile Britain, which had (via the Royal Niger Company) administered the area around

Lagos Lagos ( Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national capital of Nigeria until December 1991 f ...

since 1861 and the Oil River Protectorate (

Calabar Calabar (also referred to as Callabar, Calabari, Calbari and Kalabar) is the capital city of Cross River State, Nigeria. It was originally named Akwa Akpa, in the Efik language. The city is adjacent to the Calabar and Great Kwa rivers and cr ...

are the surrounding area) since 1884, would have priority in the areas south of the upper Niger region. From their respective bases both nations gradually extended their rule into the interior. France has conquered the area of modern Niger in 1900; initially ruled as a military territory, it was later included within the federal colony of

French West Africa French West Africa (french: Afrique-Occidentale française, ) was a federation of eight French colonial territories in West Africa: Mauritania, Senegal, French Sudan (now Mali), French Guinea (now Guinea), Ivory Coast, Upper Volta (now Burkin ...

(''Afrique occidentale française'', abbreviated AOF). The British likewise extended their rule inland from their Lagos and Calabar bases, forming two additional colonies - the

Southern Nigeria Protectorate Southern Nigeria was a British Empire, British protectorate in the coastal areas of modern-day Nigeria formed in 1900 from the union of the Niger Coast Protectorate with territories chartered by the Royal Niger Company below Lokoja on the Niger ...

and the

Northern Nigeria Protectorate Northern Nigeria (Hausa: ''Arewacin Najeriya'') was a British protectorate which lasted from 1900 until 1914 and covered the northern part of what is now Nigeria. The protectorate spanned and included the emirates of the Sokoto Caliphate an ...

. In 1900 rule of these areas was transferred to the British government, with the Northern and Southern (including Lagos and Calabar) protectorates united as the colony of Nigeria in 1914. Britain and France had signed a treaty on 5 August 1890, agreeing that their respective territories would be divided by a line from Say to Baroua near Lake Chad; this line was in general further north than the current border. This boundary line was further delimited in 1898, 1904 and 1906, being finalised at its current location in 1910. A series of beacons and markers were thereafter placed on the ground to physically demarcate the border. After the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

both Britain and France committed to the decolonisation of their African territories. As a result Niger was granted independence in August 1960, followed by Nigeria in October 1960, at which point their mutual frontier became an international one between two sovereign states. In recent years the border area has been heavily affected by the ongoing

Boko Haram insurgency The Boko Haram insurgency began in July 2009, when the militant Islamist and jihadist rebel group Boko Haram started an armed rebellion against the government of Nigeria. The conflict is taking place within the context of long-standing ...

in north-east Nigeria, resulting in flows of cross-border refugees and a general state of lawlessness.

Settlements near the border

Niger

* Sabon Birni * Bana * Yelou * Guéza * Bei Bei *

Doumega Doumega is a village and rural commune in Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languages

* Nassaraoua * Tibiri * Gofo * Bazaga * Birni-N'Konni * Tsernaoua * Doguerawa * Kabobi *

Bangui Bangui () (or Bangî in Sango, formerly written Bangi in English) is the capital and largest city of the Central African Republic. It was established as a French outpost in 1889 and named after its location on the northern bank of the Uban ...

* Dan Mairi * Serkin Toudou * Maraka * Bakoraouni * Magaria * Doumbari * Gamdou * Dunari * Miskindi * Toulatoula * Faya Koura * Mainé-Soroa *

Diffa Diffa is a city and Urban Commune in the extreme southeast of Niger, near the border with Nigeria. It is the administrative seat of both Diffa Region, and the smaller Diffa Department.Geels, Jolijn, (2006) ''Bradt Travel Guide - Niger'', pgs. ...

* Bosso

Nigeria

* Dolé * Kamba * Kokoba * Maiyama * Rafin Tsaka * Nageda * Kangiwa * Kwalaye * Lema * Tagimba * Jimojime Sule * Tunugara * Ruawuri * Kalmalo * Kwashebawa * Djibia *

Katsina Katsina, likely from "Tamashek" eaning son or bloodor mazza enwith "inna" otheris a Local Government Area and the capital city of Katsina State, in northern Nigeria.

* Dankama * Mai'Adua * Zango * Rogogo * Maribara * Baure * Babura * Maigatari * Galadi * Machina * Gumsi * Meori * Kurusalia * Njikilamma * Karagu * Margawa * Arege

Border crossings

There are numerous official border crossings, the main ones being Gaya-Kamba, Birni-N'Konni-Ilela, Dan-Issa-

Katsina Katsina, likely from "Tamashek" eaning son or bloodor mazza enwith "inna" otheris a Local Government Area and the capital city of Katsina State, in northern Nigeria.

and Magaria-Mutum.Geels, Jolijn, (2006) ''Bradt Travel Guide - Niger'', pgs. 46Williams, Lizzie, (2012) ''Bradt Travel Guide - Nigeria'', pgs. 57

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Niger-Nigeria border Borders of Niger Borders of Nigeria International borders