Tarka, Niger is a village and rural commune in

Niger Niger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state Geography of Niger#Political geography, bordered by Libya to the Libya–Niger border, north-east, Chad to the Chad–Niger border, east ...

.Loi n° 2002-014 du 11 JUIN 2002 portant création des communes et fixant le nom de leurs chefs-lieux
Includes list of 213 communes rurales and seats, 52 Communes urbaines and seats It is located in the Belbédji Departement of the

Zinder Region Zinder Region is one of the seven regions of Niger; the capital of the region is Zinder. The region covers 145,430 km². It is the most populous province of Niger. History Numerous Palaeolithic and Neolithic remains, as well as cave paintin ...

. As of 2012 the commune had a population of 96,452.

Geography

Tarka is in the

Sahel The Sahel region (; ), or Sahelian acacia savanna, is a Biogeography, biogeographical region in Africa. It is the Ecotone, transition zone between the more humid Sudanian savannas to its south and the drier Sahara to the north. The Sahel has a ...

biome. The neighboring municipalities are Ingall in the northwest,

Aderbissinat Aderbissinat is a department, town and commune in central Niger. As of 2012, the commune population was 35,320. It lies in the Sahel, the semi-arid, sparsely populated zone between the Sahara Desert to the north and the millet-growing savannah to ...

in the north,

Tenhya Tenhya is a village and rural commune in Niger. As of 2012, it had a total population of 31,057 people. Tenhya is located in the northern Sahel. The neighboring municipalities are Aderbissinat in the northwest, the northeast Tabelot, Tesker to ...

in the northeast, Gangara in the east, Falenko in the southeast,

El Allassane Maïreyrey El Allassane Maireyrey is a village and rural commune in Niger Niger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state Geography of Niger#Political geography, bordered by Libya to the Libya� ...

in the south, Tagriss in the southwest and

Gababedji Gababedji is a village and rural commune in Niger Niger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state Geography of Niger#Political geography, bordered by Libya to the Libya–Niger borde ...

in the west. The municipality is divided into 177 administrative villages, 54 traditional villages, 94 hamlets, 59 warehouses and 23 water points. The main town of the rural community is the administrative village Belbédji (also: Belbéji, Belbégi). Through the municipality the around 300 kilometer east-west Tarka Valley is situated.

History

The French colonial administration established a canton in Tarka in 1943. The Tarka valley formed its northern boundary to an area inhabited by nomads. In Belbédji in 1988 an administrative post ("poste administratif") was set up. The commune of Tarka decreased in size during a national administrative reform in 2002. In 2011, Tarka was no longer part of the

Tanout Department Tanout is a department of the Zinder Region in Niger Niger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state Geography of Niger#Political geography, bordered by Libya to the Libya–Niger b ...

and was part of the newly formed

Belbédji Department Belbédji is a department of the Zinder Region in Niger Niger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state Geography of Niger#Political geography, bordered by Libya to the Libya–Nig ...

Demographics

In the 2001 census Tarka had 63 848 inhabitants. For the year 2012 96,452 inhabitants were counted. In Tarka live members of the primarily agriculture based

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 ...

subgroup Gobirawa, the remote pasture

Fulani The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people are an ethnic group in Sahara, Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. Inhabiting many countries, they live mainly in West Africa and northern parts of Central Africa, South Sudan, Darfur, ...

subgroups Katchinanko'en, Oudah'en and Wodaabe, and the

Tuareg The Tuareg people (; also spelled Twareg or Touareg; endonym, depending on variety: ''Imuhaɣ'', ''Imušaɣ'', ''Imašeɣăn'' or ''Imajeɣăn'') are a large Berber ethnic group, traditionally nomadic pastoralists, who principally inhabit th ...

subgroups Ichiriffen, Ikanawan, Imouzgou, Imouzwagan, Imuzzurag, Inesseliman, Kel Gariss, Kel Gress, Kel Iferwane and Tegama.

Economy and infrastructure

The north of the municipality is within a zone in which grazing is the predominant source of income. The South is in the field of

agropastoralism Animal husbandry is the branch of agriculture concerned with animals that are raised for meat, animal fiber, fibre, milk, or other products. It includes day-to-day care, management, production, nutrition, selective breeding, and the raising ...

. Since 22 May 2000 there has been a local citizen radio in Tarka.

Notable people

Prime minister

Hamid Algabid Hamid Algabid (born 1941) is a Nigerien politician and the President of the Rally for Democracy and Progress (RDP-Jama'a) party. A lawyer, banker, and technocrat, Algabid was an important figure in the regime of Seyni Kountché, serving as Prime ...

was born in the village of Belbedji in 1941.Cherif Ouazani
"Six candidats pour un fauteuil"
''Jeune Afrique'', 7 November 2004 .

References

{{Communes of Niger Communes of Niger Zinder Region