N'guigmi is a city and Commune of fifteen thousand in the easternmost part of

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 ...

, very near to

Lake Chad Lake Chad (, Kanuri language, Kanuri: ''Sádǝ'', ) is an endorheic freshwater lake located at the junction of four countries: Nigeria, Niger, Chad, and Cameroon, in western and central Africa respectively, with a catchment area in excess of . ...

– lying on its shore until the lake retreated. It is a crossroads for the traditional camel caravans of the Toureg and for traders plying North and South across the Sahara.

Overview

N'guigmi is a military centre for the region, a centre for the salt trade from Kaourar and is the last stop on the road to

Chad Chad, officially the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North Africa, North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to Chad–Libya border, the north, Sudan to Chad–Sudan border, the east, the Central Afric ...

. It is "the end of the road" and marks the end of the paved section of the Nigerien ''Route Nationale 1'', although the sections past Diffa are notorious for their poor condition. Two unpaved highways or caravan routes connect to N'guigmi from the north, providing the main road route between Chad and Niger, and one of two land routes to the Kaourar Oasis town of Bilma. The town lies at the mouth of the Dilia Bosso, an ancient river valley and seasonal wash that runs from the Termit Massif over 200 km to the northwest to what was the shore of

as recently as the mid 20th century. The town was then a centre of Kanuri fishing communities. By the 2000s, even during the rainy season, the nearest access to water was at the village of Doro (a Beri-beri name for "''Fishing port''") 45 km southwest of N'guigmi. During the Sahel drought of the mid-1970s the shore was 85 km away from N'guigmi in Chad.Geels (2006) pp.236–237 The town is the seat of the

Department of N'guigmi N'guigmi is a Departments of Niger, department of the Diffa Region in Niger. Its capital lies at the city of N'guigmi. As of 2011, the department had a total population of 77,748 people. References

Departments of Niger Diffa Region { ...

, one of three in

Diffa Region Diffa is one of the seven regions of Niger, and is located in the southeast of the country. The capital of the region is Diffa. Geography Diffa Region is situated in the extreme southeast of Niger between 10° 30’ and 15° 35’ longitude E ...

, which includes the entire north of the Region. N'guigmi is home to a large settlement of Kanuri people, as well as settled members of the traditionally pastoral Wodaabe- Fulani and Daza/ Toubou ethnic groups.

Climate

References

* * Communes of Niger Lake Chad {{Niger-geo-stub