The 1996 CIA World Factbook page on Burundi

From: The CIA'sTHE WORLD FACTBOOK 1996

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Burundi

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Map

Location: 3 30 S, 30 00 E -- Central Africa, east of Zaire

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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)

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Geography

Location: Central Africa, east of Zaire
Geographic coordinates: 3 30 S, 30 00 E
Map references: Africa
Area:
total area: 27,830 sq km
land area: 25,650 sq km
comparative area: slightly larger than Maryland
Land boundaries:
total: 974 km
border countries: Rwanda 290 km, Tanzania 451 km, Zaire 233 km
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims: none (landlocked)
International disputes: none
Climate: temperate; warm; occasional frost in uplands; dry season from June to September
Terrain: hilly and mountainous, dropping to a plateau in east, some plains
lowest point: Lake Tanganyika 772 m
highest point: Mount Heha 2,760 m
Natural resources: nickel, uranium, rare earth oxides, peat, cobalt, copper, platinum (not yet exploited), vanadium
Land use:
arable land: 43%
permanent crops: 8%
meadows and pastures: 35%
forest and woodland: 2%
other: 12%
Irrigated land: 720 sq km (1989 est.)
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
natural hazards: flooding, landslides
international agreements: party to - Endangered Species; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban
Geographic note: landlocked; straddles crest of the Nile-Congo watershed

People

Population: 5,943,057 (July 1996 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 47% (male 1,404,375; female 1,398,228)
15-64 years: 50% (male 1,454,545; female 1,527,644)
65 years and over: 3% (male 62,955; female 95,310) (July 1996 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.54% (1996 est.)
Birth rate: 43.02 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Death rate: 15.15 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Net migration rate: -12.47 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
note: in a number of waves since October 1993, hundreds of thousands of refugees have fled the civil strife between the Hutu and Tutsi factions in Burundi and crossed into Rwanda, Tanzania, and Zaire; the refugee flows are continuing in 1996 as the ethnic violence persists
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.66 male(s)/female
all ages: 0.97 male(s)/female (1996 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 102.2 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 49.33 years
male: 48.28 years
female: 50.42 years (1996 est.)
Total fertility rate: 6.55 children born/woman (1996 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Burundian(s)
adjective: Burundi
Ethnic divisions:
Africans: Hutu (Bantu) 85%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 14%, Twa (Pygmy) 1%
non-Africans: Europeans 3,000, South Asians 2,000
Religions: Christian 67% (Roman Catholic 62%, Protestant 5%), indigenous beliefs 32%, Muslim 1%
Languages: Kirundi (official), French (official), Swahili (along Lake Tanganyika and in the Bujumbura area)
Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1995 est.)
total population: 35.3%
male: 49.3%
female: 22.5%

Government

Name of country:
conventional long form: Republic of Burundi
conventional short form: Burundi
local long form: Republika y'u Burundi
local short form: Burundi
Data code: BY
Type of government: republic
Capital: Bujumbura
Administrative divisions: 15 provinces; Bubanza, Bujumbura, Bururi, Cankuzo, Cibitoke, Gitega, Karuzi, Kayanza, Kirundo, Makamba, Muramvya, Muyinga, Ngozi, Rutana, Ruyigi
Independence: 1 July 1962 (from UN trusteeship under Belgian administration)
National holiday: Independence Day, 1 July (1962)
Constitution: 13 March 1992; provides for establishment of a plural political system
Legal system: based on German and Belgian civil codes and customary law; does not accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: NA years of age; universal adult
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Sylvestre NTIBANTUNGANYA (acting president from 8 April 1994 to 30 September 1994, president since 1 October 1994); note - NTIBANTUNGANYA, in his capacity as President of the National Assembly, became acting president upon the death of President Cyprien NTARYAMIRE in an airplane crash on 6 April 1994; NTIBANTUNGANYA was sworn in on 1 October 1994 as president by the "Convention on Government" to serve a four year transitional term
head of government: Prime Minister Antoine NDUWAYO (since February 1995)
cabinet: Council of Ministers; appointed by prime minister
Legislative branch: unicameral
National Assembly (Assemblee Nationale): election last held 29 June 1993 (next to be held NA); results - FRODEBU 71%, UPRONA 21.4%; seats - (81 total) FRODEBU 65, UPRONA 16; other parties won too small shares of the vote to win seats in the assembly
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Cour Supreme)
Political parties and leaders: Unity for National Progress (UPRONA); Burundi Democratic Front (FRODEBU); Organization of the People of Burundi (RBP); Socialist Party of Burundi (PSB); People's Reconciliation Party (PRP); opposition parties, legalized in March 1992, include Burundi African Alliance for the Salvation (ABASA); Rally for Democracy and Economic and Social Development (RADDES); and Party for National Redress (PARENA)
Other political or pressure groups: NA
International organization participation: ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, CEEAC, CEPGL, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OAU, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Severin NTAHOMVUKIYE
chancery: Suite 212, 2233 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007
telephone: [1] (202) 342-2574
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission: (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Charles YELLIN
embassy: Avenue des Etats-Unis, Bujumbura
mailing address: B. P. 1720, Bujumbura
telephone: [257] (2) 23454
FAX: [257] (2) 22926
Flag: 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)

Economy

Economic overview: Burundi is a landlocked, resource-poor country in an early stage of economic development. The economy is predominately agricultural with roughly 90% of the population dependent on subsistence agriculture. Its economic health depends on the coffee crop, which accounts for 80% of foreign exchange earnings. The ability to pay for imports therefore rests largely on the vagaries of the climate and the international coffee market. As part of its economic reform agenda, launched in February 1991 with IMF and World Bank support, Burundi is trying to diversify its agricultural exports, attract foreign investment in industry, and modernize government budgetary practices. Since October 1993 the nation has suffered from massive ethnic-based violence which has resulted in the death of perhaps 100,000 persons and the displacement of a million others; production has fallen sharply, and an impoverished and disorganized government can hardly implement these needed reform programs.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $4 billion (1995 est.)
GDP real growth rate: 2.7% (1995 est.)
GDP per capita: $600 (1995 est.)
GDP composition by sector:
agriculture: 54.1%
industry: 16.8%
services: 29.1% (1993 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 10% (1993 est.)
Labor force: 1.9 million (1983 est.)
by occupation: agriculture 93.0%, government 4.0%, industry and commerce 1.5%, services 1.5%
Unemployment rate: NA%
Budget:
revenues: $318 million
expenditures: $326 million, including capital expenditures of $150 million (1991 est.)
Industries: light consumer goods such as blankets, shoes, soap; assembly of imported components; public works construction; food processing
Industrial production growth rate: NA%
Electricity:
capacity: 55,000 kW
production: 100 million kWh
consumption per capita: 20 kWh (1993)
Agriculture: coffee, cotton, tea, corn, sorghum, sweet potatoes, bananas, manioc; meat, milk, hides
Exports: $68 million (f.o.b., 1993)
commodities: coffee 81%, tea, cotton, hides
partners: EC 57%, US 19%, Asia 1%
Imports: $203 million (c.i.f., 1993)
commodities: capital goods 31%, petroleum products 15%, foodstuffs, consumer goods
partners: EC 45%, Asia 29%, US 2%
External debt: $1.05 billion (1994 est.)
Economic aid:
recipient: ODA, $NA
Currency: 1 Burundi franc (FBu) = 100 centimes
Exchange rates: Burundi francs (FBu) per US$1 - 268.13 (November 1995), 252.66 (1994), 242.78 (1993), 208.30 (1992), 181.51 (1991), 171.26 (1990)
Fiscal year: calendar year

Transportation

Railways: 0 km
Highways:
total: 14,473 km
paved: 1,028 km
unpaved: 13,445 km (1992 est.)
Waterways: Lake Tanganyika
Ports: Bujumbura
Airports:
total: 3
with paved runways over 3 047 m: 1
with unpaved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 2 (1995 est.)

Communications

Telephones: 7,200 (1987 est.)
Telephone system: primitive system
domestic: sparse system of open wire, radiotelephone communications, and low-capacity microwave radio relay
international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 2, FM 2, shortwave 0
Radios: NA
Television broadcast stations: 1
Televisions: 4,500 (1993 est.)

Defense

Branches: Army (includes naval and air units), paramilitary Gendarmerie
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49: 1,312,458
males fit for military service: 683,073
males reach military age (16) annually: 67,990 (1996 est.)
Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $25 million, 2.6% of GDP (1993)

Burundi

Original publicaton at http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/nsolo/wfb-all.htm (June 17, 1997).