| Location: |
Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Benin and Ghana |
| Geographic coordinates: |
8 00 N, 1 10 E |
| Map references: |
Africa |
| Area: |
total: 56,785 sq km
land: 54,385 sq km
water: 2,400 sq km |
| Area - comparative: |
slightly smaller than West Virginia |
| Land boundaries: |
total: 1,647 km
border countries: Benin 644 km, Burkina Faso 126 km, Ghana 877 km |
| Coastline: |
56 km |
| Maritime claims: |
territorial sea: 30 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
| Climate: |
tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north |
| Terrain: |
gently rolling savanna in north; central hills; southern plateau; low coastal plain with extensive lagoons and marshes |
| Elevation extremes: |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Agou 986 m |
| Natural resources: |
phosphates, limestone, marble, arable land |
| Land use: |
arable land: 44.2%
permanent crops: 2.11%
other: 53.69% (2005) |
| Irrigated land: |
70 sq km (2003) |
| Natural hazards: |
hot, dry harmattan wind can reduce visibility in north during winter; periodic droughts |
| Environment - current issues: |
deforestation attributable to slash-and-burn agriculture and the use of wood for fuel; water pollution presents health hazards and hinders the fishing industry; air pollution increasing in urban areas |
| Environment - international agreements: |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Geography - note: |
the country's length allows it to stretch through six distinct geographic regions; climate varies from tropical to savanna |
