[hydraxis]

The price France is paying for Niger's uranium has been higher that world market price for a long time. The main reason France has an interest in it is to be independent from Russia and Kazakhstan production.

Niger is a desert with catastrophic demographics.

[photochemsyn]

I think if we compare the history of the relationship between America and Saudi Arabia (also a desert with catastropic demographics, but a rather different economic outcome) vs. that between France and its African colonies (or Britain and its India colony), we can see that European colonialism was actually a bit worse in outcome for its partners than what's known as American imperialism (which still has major problems, but not as bad as what Europe got up to).

[mrpopo]

Your comparison is flawed and oversimplistic. You might as well consider the US as a former British colony and consider that British colonialism faired quite well.