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:
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 30 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: 38%
permanent crops: 7%
permanent pastures: 4%
forests and woodland: 17%
other: 34% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 70 sq km (1993 est.)

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; recent droughts affecting agriculture

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements