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Income The share of income earned in agriculture shows the importance of agriculture as a sector for the economy. Figure 9.3 shows trends in gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, as well as the proportion of GDP from agriculture. In Niger the rural sector accounted for 41 percent of GDP in 2007 and
49 percent in 2009, and it contributes significantly to export earnings. However, because the majority of the population lives in rural areas, the cre- ation of wealth per capita in the rural zone is significantly lower than in the urban areas. Climate change has had significant effects on the development of the coun-
try. Since 1967 there have been several food crises (one every three years on average) due mainly to unfavorable climatic conditions, resulting in a drastic reduction in living standards. The situation worsened when the CFA franc was devaluated in January 1994. The country entered a turbulent political era in the 1990s, with two military coups (in January 1996 and April 1999). This sit- uation culminated in major donors suspending aid to the country, with severe consequences for the national economy and the living standards of the people. Figure 9.3 clearly shows that since the 1960s the contribution of the agri-
cultural sector to GDP has been declining, from more than 70 percent to about 40 percent in the 1980s and then leveling out onward. Increasing