Goure

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Goure
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native_name =Gouré
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subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = Niger
subdivision_type1 = Zinder
subdivision_name1 = Region
subdivision_type2 = Goure
subdivision_name2 = Department
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population_total = 13422
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latd=13 |latm=59 |lats=13 |latNS=N
longd=10 |longm=16 |longs=12 |longEW=E
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elevation_m = 456
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Goure (fr. Gouré) is a town in southeastern Niger, Zinder Region, Goure Department, of which it is the seat.

ituation

Situated on the main all weather east - west highway in Southern Niger, it is about 170km east of regional capitol, Zinder, on the route east to Diffa, N'Guigmi, and the Lake Chad area along Niger's border with Chad. Around 40km to the north of Goure are the Koutous hills, which form the first foothills of the Termit Massif. These hills also mark the northeastern boundary of Hausa settlement in Niger, with the desert and hills to the north sparsely populated by seasonal nomadic encampments, and the area to the east populated by a majority of settled Kanouri ethnic groups and Toubou pastoralists.

Agriculture and environment

The surrounding land is mostly dry grass Sahel dotted with Acacia trees, with green patches formed by Kouris (seasonal watercourses with underground water) and cuvettes (natural depressions which retain seasonal rain water. Farming is dominated by Millet production.

The area around Goure is particularly threatend by desertification, and was in 2005 designated at the very northeastern edge of Nigerien farm land able to support its population. [ [http://www.afriqueverte.org/index.cfm?srub=12 afriqueverte.org] , Actions pour la Sécurité et la Souveraineté Alimentaires au Niger (AcSSA), July 2005 study.] The area has thus become a center for international anti-desertification efforts, where experiments by local and foreign organisations promote the use of windbreaks and scrub grids to fix soil and stop the influx of dunes. [ [http://www.ciedel.org/qdn_pasam.htm Centre International d'Etudes pour le Développement Local] , retrieved 2008-08-25]

The agricultural region around Goure was devastated at several points since independence, with major droughts in the early 1970s, the mid 1980s, and Locust induced crop loss famine in 1977 and 2005. [ [http://ispi-lit.cirad.fr/text/Cheke80a.htm OEDALEUS SENEGALENSIS (KRAUSS) (ORTHOPTERA : ACRIDIDAE : OEDIPODINAE): AN ACCOUNT OF THE 1977 OUTBREAK IN WEST AFRICA AND NOTES ON ECLOSION UNDER LABORATORY CONDITIONS] , R.A. CHEKE, L.D.C. FISHPOOL and G.A. FORREST. Centre for Overseas Pest Research, College House, Wrights Lane, London W8 5SJ, U.K. (Revised manuscript received 21 March 1980)] [ [http://www.usaid.gov/our_work/humanitarian_assistance/disaster_assistance/countries/Niger/niger_dl_sr01_07-01-2004.pdf U.S. AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT. NIGER – Drought and Locusts. Situation Report #1, Fiscal Year (FY) 2005] . July 1, 2005.
[http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/43/9/38406249.pdf Sahel and West Africa Club (SWAC/OECD). Rural Transformation and Sustainable Development Unit] , Niger situation Report, 2005.]

Population

The town has grown since the 1960s, with its importance as a weighstation on Niger's primary east-west highway. In 1970, the town had a population of 2124, 7612 in 1977, 8951 in 1985, and a population of 13422 by 2001 [Compare Decalo first and second editions. 1970 is census data, and 1977/1985/2001 are census data cited at citypopulation.de, from INSN.] Goure also has a landing strip, with ICAO Code DRZG. [ [http://www.airportfact.com/c11008--DRZG-goure.html airportfact.com] .]

References

* [http://www.citypopulation.de/Niger.html Population figures from citypopulation.de] , citing [http://www.stat-niger.org/ (2001) Institut National de la Statistique du Niger] .
* [http://www.fallingrain.com/world/NG/7/Goure.html fallingrain.com: Goure, Niger Page] .]
* James Decalo. Historical Dictionary of Niger. Scarecrow Press/ Metuchen. NJ - London (1979) ISBN 0810812290 p.153
* Finn Fuglestad. A History of Niger: 1850-1960. Cambridge University Press (1983) ISBN 0521252687 p.133-140
* Jolijn Geels. Niger. Bradt UK/ Globe Pequot Press USA (2006) ISBN 9781841621524 pp. 223-224