well, niger is a democratic republic.
my point is that the shortage of food was caused (in the short term at least) by a plague of locusts last august and september. government policies may have exacerbated the problem, but niger isn't a socialist kleptocratic state. mainly because there ain't much to steal in niger.
That's mostly a chicken-and-egg argument. There are natural resources in Niger (uranium, coal, and petroleum), but with the exception of the first, there's been little to no development of them. Not having the political conditions for a thriving private sector will to that to you.
U.S. farmers have to deal with drought, insects, and West Nile viruses. So...why isn't there famine here in America?
All of the problems in Africa are caused by tin-pot dictators and U.N. meddling.