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Comment by aatd86 | Hacker News Reader

Well, there are other exports. There might even be oil. The neighbor Chad has some and isn't any better.

Checked, oil has been discovered in Niger in the 70's...so yeah... And they are still poor?!

And even then, they should have exchanged a package: Exploitation rights against revenue with costs of infra + maintenance deducted.

There needs to be roads or trains assuredly and whatnot for those exports to transit.

Who cares if they get a better bargain from the US, the Chinese or whoever else. That's competition. That's supply and demand. That's how they should get the most of what they have. No need to be so sour about it.

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Graft from the elites is the reason, not supposed unequal contracts from western companies.

Also, wealth of nations comes from production, not just mere exploitation of ressources.

Countries like Germany got very rich early by producing valuable things instead of selling their ressources. On the contrary, Portugal had dozens of gold mines, and now it's much poorer than european industrial powerhouses.

It's a system. The elites duplicity from both side lead to bad contracts.

This happens in any African country, whatever the colonizer. For instance, Nigeria is hardly dominated by foreign powers, yet it is a prime case of crony capitalism.

> Checked, oil has been discovered in Niger in the 70's...so yeah... And they are still poor?!

Maybe because Niger produces 20k barels per day and Saudi Arabia 12 millions per day? What are we even comparing here?

With such a low production of petrol (of a similar level as metropolitan France actually) I don't think it's even worth selling it at all, it has more value as a strategic reserve for the military.

> Who cares if they get a better bargain from the US, the Chinese or whoever else. That's competition. That's supply and demand. That's how they should get the most of what they have. No need to be so sour about it.

Yes for sure, that's okay to sell it cheaper with the market rate to China if it's what they really want.

First, production is not equal to reserve.

Second, the national demand is different, notably since there are less people.

I mean, at some point, arguing for arguing should stop. The facts are here. No need for the information to be grossly deformed...

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