Burundi

Internet country code

.bi

Internet hosts

22 (2003)

Internet users

14,000 (2003)

Radio broadcast stations

AM 0, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001)

Telephone system

general assessment: primitive system domestic: sparse system of open-wire, radiotelephone communications, and low-capacity microwave radio relay international: country code - 257; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)

Telephones - main lines in use

23,900 (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular

64,000 (2003)

Television broadcast stations

1 (2001)

Agriculture - products

coffee, cotton, tea, corn, sorghum, sweet potatoes, bananas, manioc (tapioca); beef, milk, hides

Budget

revenues: $152.5 million expenditures: $187.7 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)

Currency (code)

Burundi franc (BIF)

Current account balance

$-59.5 million (2004 est.)

Debt - external

$1.133 billion (2002)

Distribution of family income - Gini index

42.5 (1998)

Economic aid - recipient

$92.7 million (2000)

Economy - overview

Burundi is a landlocked, resource-poor country with an underdeveloped manufacturing sector. The economy is predominantly agricultural with roughly 90% of the population dependent on subsistence agriculture. Economic growth depends on coffee and tea exports, which account for 90% of foreign exchange earnings. The ability to pay for imports, therefore, rests primarily on weather conditions and international coffee and tea prices. The Tutsi minority, 14% of the population, dominates the government and the coffee trade at the expense of the Hutu majority, 85% of the population. Since October 1993 an ethnic-based war has resulted in more than 200,000 deaths, forced 450,000 refugees into Tanzania, and displaced 140,000 others internally. Doubts about the prospects for sustainable peace continue to impede development. Only one in two children go to school, and approximately one in ten adults has HIV/AIDS. Food, medicine, and electricity remain in short supply.

Electricity - consumption

137.8 million kWh (2002)

Electricity - exports

0 kWh (2002)

Electricity - imports

15 million kWh; note - supplied by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2002)

Electricity - production

132 million kWh (2002)

Exchange rates

Burundi francs per US dollar - 1,100.91 (2004), 1,082.62 (2003), 930.75 (2002), 830.35 (2001), 720.67 (2000)

Exports

$31.84 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Exports - commodities

coffee, tea, sugar, cotton, hides

Exports - partners

Germany 19.6%, Belgium 8.2%, Pakistan 6.7%, US 5.6%, Rwanda 5.6%, Thailand 5.4% (2004)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP (purchasing power parity)

$4.001 billion (2004 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture: 48.1% industry: 19% services: 32.9% (2004 est.)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $600 (2004 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

3% (2004 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 1.8% highest 10%: 32.9% (1998)

Imports

$138.2 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Imports - commodities

capital goods, petroleum products, foodstuffs

Imports - partners

Kenya 13.7%, Tanzania 11.2%, US 8.9%, Belgium 8.5%, France 8.4%, Italy 6%, Uganda 5.6%, Japan 4.6%, Germany 4.5% (2004)

Industrial production growth rate

18% (2001)

Industries

light consumer goods such as blankets, shoes, soap; assembly of imported components; public works construction; food processing

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

8.5% (2004 est.)

Investment (gross fixed)

10.7% of GDP (2004 est.)

Labor force

2.99 million (2002)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture 93.6%, industry 2.3%, services 4.1% (2002 est.)

Oil - consumption

2,750 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports

NA

Oil - imports

NA

Oil - production

0 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Population below poverty line

68% (2002 est.)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

$76.89 million (2004 est.)

Unemployment rate

NA

Area

total: 27,830 sq km land: 25,650 sq km water: 2,180 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly smaller than Maryland

Climate

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; wet seasons from February to May and September to November, and dry seasons from June to August and December to January

Coastline

0 km (landlocked)

Elevation extremes

lowest point: Lake Tanganyika 772 m highest point: Heha 2,670 m

Environment - current issues

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 signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea

Geographic coordinates

3 30 S, 30 00 E

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

Irrigated land

740 sq km (1998 est.)

Land boundaries

total: 974 km border countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo 233 km, Rwanda 290 km, Tanzania 451 km

Land use

arable land: 35.05% permanent crops: 14.02% other: 50.93% (2001)

Location

Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo

Map references

Africa

Maritime claims

none (landlocked)

Natural hazards

flooding, landslides, drought

Natural resources

nickel, uranium, rare earth oxides, peat, cobalt, copper, platinum, vanadium, arable land, hydropower, niobium, tantalum, gold, tin, tungsten, kaolin, limestone

Terrain

hilly and mountainous, dropping to a plateau in east, some plains

Administrative divisions

16 provinces; Bubanza, Bujumbura, Bururi, Cankuzo, Cibitoke, Gitega, Karuzi, Kayanza, Kirundo, Makamba, Muramvya, Muyinga, Mwaro, Ngozi, Rutana, Ruyigi

Capital

Bujumbura

Constitution

13 March 1992; provided for establishment of a plural political system; supplanted on 20 October 2004 by a provisional constitution approved by the parliament which extended the transition; a 28 February 2005 popular referendum ratified the new constitution which set ethnic quotas for government positions, and tentatively scheduled general elections for April 2005

Country name

conventional long form: Republic of Burundi conventional short form: Burundi local long form: Republika y'u Burundi local short form: Burundi former: Urundi

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission: Ambassador James Howard YELLIN embassy: Avenue des Etats-Unis, Bujumbura mailing address: B. P. 1720, Bujumbura telephone: [257] 223454 FAX: [257] 222926

Diplomatic representation in the US

chief of mission: Ambassador Antoine NTAMOBWA chancery: Suite 212, 2233 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 342-2574 FAX: [1] (202) 342-2578

Executive branch

chief of state: President Domitien NDAYIZEYE (since 30 April 2003); note - NDAYIZEYE, a Hutu, was sworn in as president for the second half of the three-year transitional government inaugurated on 1 November 2001; Vice President Frederic NGENZEBUHORO (since 11 November 2004) head of government: President Domitien NDAYIZEYE (since 30 April 2003); note - NDAYIZEYE, a Hutu, was sworn in as president for the second half of the three-year transitional government inaugurated on 1 November 2001; Vice President Frederic NGENZEBUHORO (since 11 November 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by president elections: NA; current president assumed power on 30 April 2003 as part of the transitional government established by the 2000 Arusha Accord; note - next presidential election is scheduled for 22 April 2005

Flag description

divided by a white diagonal cross into red panels (top and bottom) and green panels (hoist side and outer 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)

Government type

republic

Independence

1 July 1962 (from UN trusteeship under Belgian administration)

International organization participation

ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, CEPGL, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO

Judicial branch

Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; Constitutional Court; Courts of Appeal (there are three in separate locations); Tribunals of First Instance (17 at the province level and 123 small local tribunals)

Legal system

based on German and Belgian civil codes and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Legislative branch

bicameral, consists of a National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (expanded from 121 to approximately 140 seats under the transitional government inaugurated 1 November 2001; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and a Senate (54 seats; term length is undefined, the current senators will likely serve out the three-year transition period) elections: last held 29 June 1993 (next was scheduled to be held in 1998, but was suspended by presidential decree in 1996; elections are currently planned to be held by April 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - FRODEBU 71.04%, UPRONA 21.4%, other 7.56%; seats by party - FRODEBU 65, UPRONA 16, civilians 27, other parties 13

National holiday

Independence Day, 1 July (1962)

Political parties and leaders

the three national, mainstream, governing parties are: Unity for National Progress or UPRONA [Jean-Baptiste MANWANGARI, secretary general]; Burundi Democratic Front or FRODEBU [Jean MINANI, president]; National Council for the Defense of Democracy, Front for the Defense of Democracy of CNDD-FDD [Pierre NKURUNZIZA, president] note: a multiparty system was introduced after 1998, included are: 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

loosely organized Hutu and Tutsi militias, often affiliated with Hutu and Tutsi extremist parties or subordinate to government security forces

Suffrage

NA years of age; universal adult

Background

Burundi's first democratically elected president was assassinated in October 1993 after only one hundred days in office. Since then, some 200,000 Burundians have perished in widespread, often intense ethnic violence between Hutu and Tutsi factions. Hundreds of thousands have been internally displaced or have become refugees in neighboring countries. Burundi troops, seeking to secure their borders, briefly intervened in the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1998. A new transitional government, inaugurated on 1 November 2001, signed a power-sharing agreement with the largest rebel faction in December 2003 and set in place a provisional constitution in October 2004. Implementation of the agreement has been problematic, however, as one remaining rebel group refuses to sign on and elections have been repeatedly delayed, clouding prospects for a sustainable peace.

Manpower available for military service

males age 16-49: 1,379,793 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service

males age 16-49: 693,956 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually

males: 84,597 (2005 est.)

Military branches

National Defense Force (Forces de Defense Nationales, FDN): Army (includes Naval Detachment and Air Wing), National Gendarmerie (2005)

Military expenditures - dollar figure

$38.7 million (2004)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP

6% (2004)

Military service age and obligation

16 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service (2001)

Age structure

0-14 years: 46% (male 1,479,941/female 1,450,808) 15-64 years: 51.3% (male 1,617,864/female 1,653,331) 65 years and over: 2.6% (male 66,199/female 102,466) (2005 est.)

Birth rate

39.66 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Death rate

17.43 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Ethnic groups

Hutu (Bantu) 85%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 14%, Twa (Pygmy) 1%, Europeans 3,000, South Asians 2,000

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

6% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

25,000 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

250,000 (2003 est.)

Infant mortality rate

total: 69.29 deaths/1,000 live births male: 75.87 deaths/1,000 live births female: 62.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)

Languages

Kirundi (official), French (official), Swahili (along Lake Tanganyika and in the Bujumbura area)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 50.29 years male: 49.61 years female: 50.99 years (2005 est.)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 51.6% male: 58.5% female: 45.2% (2003 est.)

Major infectious diseases

degree of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne disease: malaria (2004)

Median age

total: 16.6 years male: 16.27 years female: 16.95 years (2005 est.)

Nationality

noun: Burundian(s) adjective: Burundian

Net migration rate

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Population

6,370,609 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 and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2005 est.)

Population growth rate

2.22% (2005 est.)

Religions

Christian 67% (Roman Catholic 62%, Protestant 5%), indigenous beliefs 23%, Muslim 10%

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.65 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Total fertility rate

5.81 children born/woman (2005 est.)

Disputes - international

Tutsi, Hutu, other conflicting ethnic groups, associated political rebels, armed gangs, and various government forces continue fighting in the Great Lakes region, transcending the boundaries of Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda in an effort to gain control over populated and natural resource areas; government heads pledge to end conflict, but localized violence continues despite the presence of about 6,000 peacekeepers from the UN Operation in Burundi (ONUB) since 2004; although some 150,000 Burundian refugees have been repatriated, as of February 2005, Burundian refugees still reside in camps in western Tanzania as well as the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Refugees and internally displaced persons

refugees (country of origin): 60,288 (Democratic Republic of the Congo) IDPs: 140,000 (armed conflict between government and rebels; most IDPs in northern and western Burundi) (2004)

Airports

8 (2004 est.)

Airports - with paved runways

total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2004 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways

total: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.)

Highways

total: 14,480 km paved: 1,028 km unpaved: 13,452 km (1999 est.)

Ports and harbors

Bujumbura

Waterways

mainly on Lake Tanganyika (2004)