Definition Field Listing Rank
Order
Background: |
In 1959, three years before independence from
Belgium, the majority ethnic group, the Hutus, overthrew the ruling
Tutsi king. Over the next several years, thousands of Tutsis were
killed, and some 150,000 driven into exile in neighboring countries.
The children of these exiles later formed a rebel group, the Rwandan
Patriotic Front, and began a civil war in 1990. The war, along with
several political and economic upheavals, exacerbated ethnic
tensions, culminating in April 1994 in the genocide of roughly
800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus. The Tutsi rebels defeated the
Hutu regime and ended the killing in July 1994, but approximately 2
million Hutu refugees - many fearing Tutsi retribution - fled to
neighboring Burundi, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zaire. Since then, most
of the refugees have returned to Rwanda. Despite substantial
international assistance and political reforms - including Rwanda's
first local elections in March 1999 and its first post-genocide
presidential and legislative elections in August and September 2003,
respectively - the country continues to struggle to boost investment
and agricultural output and to foster reconciliation. A series of
massive population displacements, a nagging Hutu extremist
insurgency, and Rwandan involvement in two wars over the past four
years in the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo continue
to hinder Rwanda's efforts. Learn geography the easy way by playing ZL's Geographycards (www.geographycards.com)
|
Location: |
Central
Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo |
Geographic coordinates: |
2 00 S, 30
00 E |
Map references: |
Africa
|
Area: |
total:
26,338 sq km land: 24,948 sq km water: 1,390
sq km |
Area - comparative: |
slightly
smaller than Maryland |
Land boundaries: |
total: 893 km border countries: Burundi 290
km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 217 km, Tanzania 217 km, Uganda
169 km |
Coastline: |
0 km
(landlocked) |
Maritime claims: |
none
(landlocked) |
Climate: |
temperate;
two rainy seasons (February to April, November to January); mild in
mountains with frost and snow possible |
Terrain: |
mostly
grassy uplands and hills; relief is mountainous with altitude
declining from west to east |
Elevation extremes: |
lowest
point: Rusizi River 950 m highest point: Volcan
Karisimbi 4,519 m |
Natural resources: |
gold,
cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore), methane,
hydropower, arable land |
Land use: |
arable
land: 40.54% permanent crops: 12.16%
other: 47.3% (2001) |
Irrigated land: |
40 sq km
(1998 est.) |
Natural hazards: |
periodic
droughts; the volcanic Virunga mountains are in the northwest along
the border with Democratic Republic of the Congo |
Environment - current issues: |
deforestation results from uncontrolled cutting of trees for
fuel; overgrazing; soil exhaustion; soil erosion; widespread
poaching |
Environment - international agreements: |
party
to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but
not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Geography - note: |
landlocked;
most of the country is savanna grassland with the population
predominantly rural Learn geography the easy way by playing ZL's Geographycards (www.geographycards.com)
|
Population: |
7,954,013
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
2004 est.) |
Age structure: |
0-14
years: 42.3% (male 1,690,122; female 1,674,147) 15-64
years: 55% (male 2,178,956; female 2,194,526) 65 years
and over: 2.7% (male 85,472; female 130,790) (2004 est.) |
Median age: |
total: 18.2 years male: 18 years
female: 18.4 years (2004 est.) |
Population growth rate: |
1.82% (2004
est.) |
Birth rate: |
40.01
births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Death rate: |
21.86
deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Net migration rate: |
0
migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Sex ratio: |
at
birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01
male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65
years and over: 0.65 male(s)/female total population:
0.99 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Infant mortality rate: |
total:
101.68 deaths/1,000 live births male: 106.68 deaths/1,000
live births female: 96.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2004
est.) |
Life expectancy at birth: |
total
population: 39.18 years male: 38.43 years
female: 39.96 years (2004 est.) |
Total fertility rate: |
5.55 children
born/woman (2004 est.) |
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: |
5.1% (2003
est.) |
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: |
250,000 (2003
est.) |
HIV/AIDS - deaths: |
22,000 (2003
est.) |
Nationality: |
noun:
Rwandan(s) adjective: Rwandan |
Ethnic groups: |
Hutu 84%,
Tutsi 15%, Twa (Pygmoid) 1% |
Religions: |
Roman
Catholic 56.5%, Protestant 26%, Adventist 11.1%, Muslim 4.6%,
indigenous beliefs 0.1%, none 1.7% (2001) |
Languages: |
Kinyarwanda
(official) universal Bantu vernacular, French (official), English
(official), Kiswahili (Swahili) used in commercial centers |
Literacy: |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 70.4% male: 76.3%
female: 64.7% (2003 est.) |
People - note: |
Rwanda is
the most densely populated country in Africa Learn geography the easy way by playing ZL's Geographycards (www.geographycards.com)
|
Country name: |
conventional long form: Rwandese Republic
conventional short form: Rwanda local long
form: Republika y'u Rwanda local short form: Rwanda
former: Ruanda |
Government type: |
republic;
presidential, multiparty system |
Capital: |
Kigali
|
Administrative divisions: |
12
prefectures (in French - prefectures, singular - prefecture; in
Kinyarwanda - plural - NA, singular - prefegitura); Butare, Byumba,
Cyangugu, Gikongoro, Gisenyi, Gitarama, Kibungo, Kibuye, Kigali
Rurale, Kigali-ville, Umutara, Ruhengeri |
Independence: |
1 July 1962
(from Belgium-administered UN trusteeship) |
National holiday: |
Independence
Day, 1 July (1962) |
Constitution: |
a new
constitution was adopted 26 May 2003 |
Legal system: |
based on
German and Belgian civil law systems and customary law; judicial
review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Suffrage: |
18 years of
age; universal adult |
Executive branch: |
chief of
state: President Paul KAGAME (since 22 April 2000) head
of government: Prime Minister Bernard MAKUZA (since 8 March
2000) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the
president elections: last held 25 August 2003 (next to be
held NA 2008) election results: Paul KAGAME elected
president in first direct popular vote; Paul KAGAME 95.05%, Faustin
TWAGIRAMUNGU 3.62%, Jean-Nepomuscene NAYINZIRA 1.33% |
Legislative branch: |
unicameral
National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (53 seats; members elected
by direct vote) elections: last held 29 September 2003
(next to be held NA) election results: seats by party
under the Arusha peace accord - RPF 40, PSD 7, PL 6 |
Judicial branch: |
Supreme
Court; communal courts; appeals courts |
Political parties and leaders: |
Centrist
Democratic Party or PDC [Alfred MUKEZAMFURA]; Social Democratic
Party or PSD [Vincent BIRUTA]; Democratic Popular Union of Rwanda or
UDPR [Adrien RANGIRA ]; Democratic Republican Movement or MDR
(officially banned) [Celestin KABANDA]; Islamic Democratic Party or
PDI [Andre BUMAYA]; Liberal Party or PL [Prosper HIGIRO]; Party for
Democratic Renewal (officially banned) [Pasteur BIZIMUNGU and
Charles NTAKARUTINKA]; Rwandan Patriotic Front or RPF [Paul KAGAME]
|
Political pressure groups and leaders: |
IBUKA -
association of genocide survivors |
International organization participation: |
ACCT, ACP,
AfDB, AU, CEPGL, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC,
IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM,
OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO,
WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Diplomatic representation in the US: |
chief of
mission: Ambassador Zac NSENGA chancery: 1714 New
Hampshire Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1]
(202) 232-2882 FAX: [1] (202) 232-4544 |
Diplomatic representation from the US: |
chief of
mission: Ambassador Margaret K. McMILLION embassy:
#337 Boulevard de la Revolution, Kigali mailing address:
B. P. 28, Kigali telephone: [250] 50 56 01 through 03
FAX: [250] 57 2128 |
Flag description: |
three
horizontal bands of sky blue (top, double width), yellow, and green,
with a golden sun with 24 rays near the fly end of the blue band
Learn geography the easy way by playing ZL's Geographycards (www.geographycards.com)
|
Economy - overview: |
Rwanda is a
poor rural country with about 90% of the population engaged in
(mainly subsistence) agriculture. It is the most densely populated
country in Africa; landlocked with few natural resources and minimal
industry. Primary foreign exchange earners are coffee and tea. The
1994 genocide decimated Rwanda's fragile economic base, severely
impoverished the population, particularly women, and eroded the
country's ability to attract private and external investment.
However, Rwanda has made substantial progress in stabilizing and
rehabilitating its economy to pre-1994 levels, although poverty
levels are higher now. GDP has rebounded, and inflation has been
curbed. Export earnings, however, have been hindered by low beverage
prices, depriving the country of much needed hard currency. Attempts
to diversify into non-traditional agriculture exports such as
flowers and vegetables have been stymied by a lack of adequate
transportation infrastructure. Despite Rwanda's fertile ecosystem,
food production often does not keep pace with population growth,
requiring food to be imported. Rwanda continues to receive
substantial aid money and was approved for IMF-World Bank Heavily
Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) initiative debt relief in late 2000.
But Kigali's high defense expenditures cause tension between the
government and international donors and lending agencies. |
GDP: |
purchasing
power parity - $10.11 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate: |
3.5% (2003
est.) |
GDP - per capita: |
purchasing
power parity - $1,300 (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector: |
agriculture: 40.7% industry: 21.5%
services: 37.8% (2003 est.) |
Investment (gross fixed): |
19.3% of GDP
(2003) |
Population below poverty line: |
60% (2001
est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage
share: |
lowest
10%: 4.2% highest 10%: 24.2% (1985) |
Distribution of family income - Gini
index: |
28.9 (1985)
|
Inflation rate (consumer prices): |
7.5% (2003
est.) |
Labor force: |
4.6 million
(2000) |
Labor force - by occupation: |
agriculture
90% |
Unemployment rate: |
NA |
Budget: |
revenues: $365.9 million expenditures: $402.9
million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products: |
coffee, tea,
pyrethrum (insecticide made from chrysanthemums), bananas, beans,
sorghum, potatoes; livestock |
Industries: |
cement,
agricultural products, small-scale beverages, soap, furniture,
shoes, plastic goods, textiles, cigarettes |
Industrial production growth rate: |
7% (2001
est.) |
Electricity - production: |
96.78 million
kWh (2001) |
Electricity - consumption: |
140 million
kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports: |
0 kWh (2001)
|
Electricity - imports: |
50 million
kWh (2001) |
Oil - production: |
0 bbl/day
(2001 est.) |
Oil - consumption: |
5,300 bbl/day
(2001 est.) |
Oil - exports: |
NA (2001)
|
Oil - imports: |
NA (2001)
|
Oil - proved reserves: |
0 bbl (1
January 2002) |
Natural gas - proved reserves: |
28.32 billion
cu m (1 January 2002) |
Current account balance: |
$-163 million
(2003) |
Exports: |
$73.33
million f.o.b. (2003 est.) |
Exports - commodities: |
coffee, tea,
hides, tin ore |
Exports - partners: |
Indonesia
38%, Germany 4.4%, China 3.8% (2003 est.) |
Imports: |
$245.8
million f.o.b. (2003 est.) |
Imports - commodities: |
foodstuffs,
machinery and equipment, steel, petroleum products, cement and
construction material |
Imports - partners: |
Kenya 24%,
Germany 7.7%, Belgium 6.6%, France 5.1% (2003 est.) |
Reserves of foreign exchange & gold: |
$215 million
(2003) |
Debt - external: |
$1.3 billion
(2000 est.) |
Economic aid - recipient: |
$372.9
million (1999) |
Currency: |
Rwandan
franc (RWF) |
Currency code: |
RWF |
Exchange rates: |
Rwandan
francs per US dollar - 537.658 (2003), 476.327 (2002), 442.801
(2001), 389.696 (2000), 333.942 (1999) |
Fiscal year: |
calendar
year Learn geography the easy way by playing ZL's Geographycards (www.geographycards.com)
|
Telephones - main lines in use: |
23,200 (2002)
|
Telephones - mobile cellular: |
134,000
note: Rwanda has mobile cellular service between Kigali
and several prefecture capitals (2003) |
Telephone system: |
general
assessment: telephone system primarily serves business and
government domestic: the capital, Kigali, is connected to
the centers of the prefectures by microwave radio relay and,
recently, by cellular telephone service; much of the network depends
on wire and HF radiotelephone international: country code
- 250; international connections employ microwave radio relay to
neighboring countries and satellite communications to more distant
countries; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) in
Kigali (includes telex and telefax service) |
Radio broadcast stations: |
AM 0, FM 3
(two main FM programs are broadcast through a system of repeaters
and the third FM program is a 24 hour BBC program), shortwave 1
(2002) |
Television broadcast stations: |
NA |
Internet country code: |
.rw |
Internet hosts: |
1,495 (2003)
|
Internet users: |
25,000 (2002)
Learn geography the easy way by playing ZL's Geographycards (www.geographycards.com)
|
Disputes - international: |
Tutsi, Hutu,
Hema, Lendu, and other conflicting ethnic groups, associated
political rebels, armed gangs, and various government forces
continue fighting in Great Lakes region, transcending the boundaries
of Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda to
gain control over populated areas and natural resources - government
heads pledge to end conflicts, but localized violence continues
despite UN peacekeeping efforts |
Large portions of this information is from the US government open source publication "The World Factbook", other content copyright © Stratus-Pikpuk, Inc. You may use this information without permission for educational or other non-profit purposes if you refer to us as the source, contact us if you want to use this commercially.
|