By Pascal Ibe
Claim
An X user,@abbkar_ai, claimed that the Niger Republic military regime is planning to make Hausa, the nation’s official language.
Verdict
This claim is FALSE. This is impossible as Niger Republic also has other ethnic groups. Even though Hausa is made up over 54% of the population. French remains the official language of Niger Republic at the moment.
Full Text
An X user @abbkar_ai has claimed that the Niger Republic military regime is planning to make Hausa, the nation’s official language.
In a post-dated 20th February 2025, the X user wrote, “Breaking: Niger is considering making the Hausa language the official language of the entire country. We’re proud 👏🏼
The post has already generated over 72k views and more than 4k likes, according to X analytics.
Verification
First, a simple check by FACTWATCH Nigeria has indicated that the Niger Republic has over seven different tribes with French as its main language.
It is unthinkable to claim that the Niger Republic will choose Hausa as its official language as a result of the many diverse ethnic groups in the country.
French is the official language of Niger Republic because the country was formerly a French colony, and after gaining independence in 1960, it retained French as its primary language of government and education, acting as a lingua franca across the diverse ethnic groups within the nation.
In the Niger Republic, the ethnic groups are: Hausa, Arabic, Tamashek (Tuareg Berber), Djerma (Songhai), and Fulani.
Main minority groups: Songhai 2.3 million (21%), Tuareg 1 million (9.3%), Peulh (Fulani) 940,000 (8.5%), Kanuri (including Manga) 513,000 (4%), Toubou 42,000 (0.3%).
Even the Hausa language, with over 54% of the Niger Republic population, it’s important to note if this claim was to be true, then it would become a communication problem for other minor groups in the country.
No credible local media organization in Niger Republic confirmed this claim to be true.
Conclusion
This is a made-up claim, as it’s far from being true.
