Burundi's first democratically
elected president was assassinated in October 1993 after only 100 days
in office, triggering widespread ethnic violence between Hutu and Tutsi
factions. More than 200,000 Burundians perished during the conflict that
spanned almost a dozen years. Hundreds of thousands of Burundians were
internally displaced or became refugees in neighboring countries. An
internationally brokered power-sharing agreement between the
Tutsi-dominated government and the Hutu rebels in 2003 paved the way for
a transition process that led to an integrated defense force,
established a new constitution in 2005, and elected a majority Hutu
government in 2005. The new government, led by President Pierre
NKURUNZIZA, signed a South African brokered ceasefire with the country's
last rebel group in September of 2006 but still faces many challenges.
Geography ::Burundi
Location:
Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo
Geographic coordinates:
3 30 S, 30 00 E
Map references:
Africa
Area:
total: 27,830 sq km
46
land:
25,680 sq km
water:
2,150 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Maryland
Land boundaries:
total: 974 km
border countries:
Democratic Republic of the Congo 233 km, Rwanda 290 km, Tanzania 451 km
Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims:
none (landlocked)
Climate:
Current Weather
equatorial; high plateau
with considerable altitude variation (772 m to 2,670 m above sea level);
average annual temperature varies with altitude from 23 to 17 degrees
centigrade but is generally moderate as the average altitude is about
1,700 m; average annual rainfall is about 150 cm; two wet seasons
(February to May and September to November), and two dry seasons (June
to August and December to January)
Terrain:
hilly and mountainous, dropping to a plateau in east, some plains
soil erosion as a result
of overgrazing and the expansion of agriculture into marginal lands;
deforestation (little forested land remains because of uncontrolled
cutting of trees for fuel); habitat loss threatens wildlife populations
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity,
Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification,
Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified:
Law of the Sea
Geography - note:
landlocked; straddles
crest of the Nile-Congo watershed; the Kagera, which drains into Lake
Victoria, is the most remote headstream of the White Nile
People ::Burundi
Population:
9,863,117
note:estimates
for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess
mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher
infant mortality, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and
changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would
otherwise be expected (July 2010 est.)
1 July 1962 (from UN trusteeship under Belgian administration)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 1 July (1962)
Constitution:
ratified by popular referendum 28 February 2005
Legal system:
based on German and Belgian civil codes and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal (adult)
Executive branch:
chief of state: President
Pierre NKURUNZIZA - Hutu (since 26 August 2005); First Vice President
Yves SAVINGUVU - Tutsi (since 9 November 2007); Second Vice President
Gabriel NTISEZERANA - Hutu (since 9 February 2007); note - the president
is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government:
President
Pierre NKURUNZIZA - Hutu (since 26 August 2005); First Vice President
Yves SAVINGUVU - Tutsi (since 9 November 2007); Second Vice President
Gabriel NTISEZERANA - Hutu (since 9 February 2007)
cabinet:
Council of Ministers appointed by president
elections:
the
president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a
second term); note - the constitution adopted in February 2005 permited
the post-transition president to be elected by a two-thirds majority of
the parliament; elections last held 28 June 2010 (next to be held in
2015); vice presidents nominated by the president, endorsed by
parliament
election results:
Pierre
NKURUNZIZA elected president by popular vote; Pierre NKURUNZIZA 91.6%,
other 8.4%; note - opposition parties withdrew from the election due to
alleged government interference in the electoral process
Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament or
Parlement, consists of a Senate (54 seats; 34 members elected by
indirect vote to serve five-year terms, with remaining seats assigned to
ethnic groups and former chiefs of state) and a National Assembly or
Assemblee Nationale (minimum 100 seats, 60% Hutu and 40% Tutsi with at
least 30% being women; additional seats appointed by a National
Independent Electoral Commission to ensure ethnic representation;
members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections:
Senate
- last held on 29 July 2005 (next to be held on 23 July 2010); National
Assembly - last held on 4 July 2005 (next to be held on 23 July 2010)
election results:
Senate
- percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - CNDD-FDD 30, FRODEBU
3, CNDD 1; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - CNDD-FDD
58.6%, FRODEBU 21.7%, UPRONA 7.2%, CNDD 4.1%, MRC-Rurenzangemero 2.1%,
others 6.2%; seats by party - CNDD-FDD 59, FRODEBU 25, UPRONA 10, CNDD
4, MRC-Rurenzangemero 2
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court or Cour
Supreme; Constitutional Court; High Court of Justice (composed of the
Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court)
Political parties and leaders:
governing parties: Burundi
Democratic Front or FRODEBU [Leonce NGENDAKUMANA]; National Council for
the Defense of Democracy - Front for the Defense of Democracy or
CNDD-FDD [Jeremie NGENDAKUMANA]; Unity for National Progress or UPRONA
[Bonaventure NIYOYANKANA]
note:a
multiparty system was introduced after 1998, included are: National
Council for the Defense of Democracy or CNDD [Leonard NYANGOMA];
National Resistance Movement for the Rehabilitation of the Citizen or
MRC-Rurenzangemero [Epitace BANYAGANAKANDI]; Party for National Redress
or PARENA [Jean-Baptiste BAGAZA]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Forum for the
Strengthening of Civil Society or FORSC [Pacifique NININAHAZWE] (civil
society umbrella organization); Observatoire de lutte contre la
corruption et les malversations economiques or OLUCOME [Gabriel RUFYIRI]
(anti-corruption pressure group)
other:
Hutu and Tutsi militias (loosely organized)
chancery:
Suite 212, 2233 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007
telephone:
[1] (202) 342-2574
FAX:
[1] (202) 342-2578
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Pamela J. H. SLUTZ
embassy:
Avenue des Etats-Unis, Bujumbura
mailing address:
B. P. 1720, Bujumbura
telephone:
[257] 223454
FAX:
[257] 222926
Flag description:
divided by a white
diagonal cross into red panels (top and bottom) and green panels (hoist
side and fly side) with a white disk superimposed at the center bearing
three red six-pointed stars outlined in green arranged in a triangular
design (one star above, two stars below); green symbolizes hope and
optimism, white purity and peace, and red the blood shed in the struggle
for independence; the three stars in the disk represent the three major
ethnic groups: Hutu, Twa, Tutsi, as well as the three elements in the
national motto: unity, work, progress
Economy ::Burundi
Economy - overview:
Burundi is a landlocked,
resource-poor country with an underdeveloped manufacturing sector. The
economy is predominantly agricultural which accounts for about 35% of
GDP and employs more than 90% of the population. Burundi's primary
exports are coffee and tea, which account for 90% of foreign exchange
earnings, though exports are a relatively small share of GDP. Burundi's
export earning - and its ability to pay for imports - rests primarily on
weather conditions and international coffee and tea prices. The Tutsi
minority, 14% of the population, dominates the coffee trade. An
ethnic-based war that lasted for over a decade resulted in more than
200,000 deaths, forced more than 48,000 refugees into Tanzania, and
displaced 140,000 others internally. Only one in two children go to
school, and approximately one in 15 adults has HIV/AIDS. Food, medicine,
and electricity remain in short supply. Burundi's GDP grew around 4%
annually in 2006-09. Political stability and the end of the civil war
have improved aid flows and economic activity has increased, but
underlying weaknesses - a high poverty rate, poor education rates, a
weak legal system, and low administrative capacity - risk undermining
planned economic reforms. Burundi will continue to remain heavily
dependent on aid from bilateral and multilateral donors; the delay of
funds after a corruption scandal cut off bilateral aid in 2007 reduced
government's revenues and its ability to pay salaries. Burundi joined
the East African Community, which should boost Burundi's regional trade
ties. Burundi's main challenge to economic growth will be maintaining
sufficient fiscal discipline and peace during the upcoming national
elections scheduled for 2010.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$3.247 billion (2009 est.)
1
$3.147 billion (2008 est.)
$3.011 billion (2007 est.)
note:data are in 2009 US dollars
GDP (official exchange rate):
$1.427 billion (2009 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
3.2% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 55
4.5% (2008 est.)
3.6% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$300 (2009 est.)
26
$300 (2008 est.)
$300 (2007 est.)
note:data are in 2009 US dollars
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 33.4%
industry:
20.7%
services:
45.9% (2009 est.)
Labor force:
4.245 million (2007)
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 93.6%
industry:
2.3%
services:
4.1% (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Population below poverty line:
68% (2002 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
Saudi Arabia 22.4%,
Belgium 13.6%, Uganda 9.1%, Kenya 8%, China 6.4%, France 5.9%, Germany
5.3%, India 4.5%, Tanzania 4.4%, Japan 4.4% (2008)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$323 million (31 December 2009 est.)
44
$266.7 million (31 December 2008 est.)
Debt - external:
$1.2 billion (2003)
45
Exchange rates:
Burundi francs (BIF) per US dollar - 1,227.75 (2009), 1,198 (2008), 1,065 (2007), 1,030 (2006), 1,138 (2005)
Communications ::Burundi
Telephones - main lines in use:
30,400 (2008)
8
Telephones - mobile cellular:
480,600 (2008)
56
Telephone system:
general assessment: sparse system of open-wire, radiotelephone communications, and low-capacity microwave radio relays
domestic:
telephone
density one of the lowest in the world; fixed-line connections stand at
well less than 1 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular usage is increasing
but remains at a meager 5 per 100 persons
international:
country code - 257; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) (2008)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 0, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001)
Television broadcast stations:
1 (2001)
Internet country code:
.bi
Internet hosts:
191 (2009)
89
Internet users:
65,000 (2008)
67
Transportation ::Burundi
Airports:
8 (2009)
61
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 1
over 3,047 m:
1 (2009)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 7
914 to 1,523 m:
4
under 914 m:
3 (2009)
Heliports:
1 (2009)
Roadways:
total: 12,322 km
28
paved:
1,286 km
unpaved:
11,036 km (2004)
Waterways:
mainly on Lake Tanganyika (2008)
Ports and terminals:
Bujumbura
Military ::Burundi
Military branches:
National Defense Force (Forces de
Defense Nationale, FDN): Army (includes naval detachment and Air Wing),
National Gendarmerie (2010)
Military service age and obligation:
military service is
voluntary; the armed forces law of 31 December 2004 did not specify a
minimum age for enlistment, but the government had previously said each
recruit must have a primary school-leaving certificate (2010)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 16-49: 2,099,541
females age 16-49:
2,118,918 (2010 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 16-49: 1,337,935
females age 16-49:
1,414,035 (2010 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:
male: 111,829
female:
111,802 (2010 est.)
Military expenditures:
5.9% of GDP (2006 est.)
1
Transnational Issues ::Burundi
Disputes - international:
Burundi and Rwanda dispute sections
of border on the Akanyaru/Kanyaru and the Kagera/Nyabarongo rivers,
which have changed course since the 1960s, when the boundary was
delimited; cross-border conflicts among Tutsi, Hutu, other ethnic
groups, associated political rebels, armed gangs, and various government
forces persist in the Great Lakes region
Refugees and internally displaced persons:
refugees (country of origin): 9,849 (Democratic Republic of the Congo)
IDPs:
100,000 (armed conflict between government and rebels; most IDPs in northern and western Burundi) (2007)
Trafficking in persons:
current situation: Burundi
is a source country for children trafficked for the purposes of child
soldiering, domestic servitude, and commercial sexual exploitation; a
small number of Burundian children may be trafficked internally for
domestic servitude or commercial sexual exploitation; in early 2008,
Burundian children were allegedly trafficked to Uganda, via Rwanda, for
agricultural labor and commercial sexual exploitation
tier rating:
Tier
2 Watch List - Burundi is on the Tier 2 Watch List for the second
consecutive year for its failure to provide sufficient evidence of
increasing efforts to combat trafficking in persons in 2007; the
government's inability to provide adequate protective services to
children accused of association with armed groups and to conduct
anti-trafficking law enforcement activities continue to be causes for
concern; Burundi has not ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol (2008)
