Background: In the period from 1993 to 1999, bloody clashes between two ethnic groups in Burundi – Hutu and Tutsi – led to the appearance of hundreds of thousands of refugees and the death of tens of thousands of people. Although many refugees have returned from neighboring countries, the continuation of ethnic clashes has forced many other residents to flee abroad. The troops of Burundi, seeking to secure the borders of the country, intervened in the armed conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. See areacodesexplorer.com to know more about Burundi History.
Geography
Location: Central Africa, east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Geographic coordinates: 3° 30’S latitude, 30° 00′ E.
Reference map: Africa.
Area: total: 27,830 square kilometers; land surface area: 25,650 km2; water surface area: 2,180 km2
Comparative area: slightly smaller than the state of Maryland.
Land borders: total length: 974 km; with neighboring states: with the Democratic Republic of the Congo 233 km, with Rwanda 290 km, with Tanzania 451 km.
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked).
Maritime claims: none (landlocked).
Climate: equatorial; high plateau with significant elevation differences (from 772 m to 2,670 m); the average annual temperature varies depending on the altitude from 23°C to 17°C, but is usually 20°C, since the average height is approximately 1,700 m; the average annual rainfall is approximately 150 cm; wet seasons are February to May and September to November, dry seasons are June to August and December to January.
Terrain: hilly and mountainous, turning into lower plateau in the east; flat in places.
Maximum and minimum heights: lowest point: Lake Tanganyika 772 m; highest point: Mount Heha 2,670 m
Natural Resources: nickel, uranium, oxides of rare earth elements, peat, cobalt, copper, platinum (not yet mined), vanadium, arable land, hydropower resources.
Land use: arable land: 44%; cultivated land: 9%; pastures: 36%; forests and plantations: 3%; others: 8% (1993 est.).
Irrigated land: 140 km2 (1993 est.).
Natural hazards: floods, landslides.
Actual environmental problems: soil erosion as a result of excessive grazing and the spread of agriculture to marginal areas; deforestation (uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel has led to the almost complete destruction of the country’s forest land); natural habitat reduction threatening wildlife populations.
International agreements on environmental protection: member: Biodiversity, Climate change, Desertification, Endangered species, Hazardous waste, Ozone layer protection; signed but not ratified: Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban.
Note to the section “Geography”: the country has no access to the sea; located on the crest of the Nile-Congo watershed.
Population
Population: 6,223,897; note: estimates for this country take into account rising AIDS deaths; due to the spread of AIDS, life expectancy, population size and population growth may actually be lower, and child mortality and overall mortality rates correspondingly higher; there may also be changes in age structure and sex ratios (July 2001 est.).
Age structure: under 14: 46.82% (male 1,472,618; female 1,441,548); 15 to 64 years old: 50.37% (male 1,541,133; female 1,593,743); over 65: 2.81% (male 71,984; female 102,873) (2001 est.)
Population growth: 2.38% (2001 est.).
Birth rate: 40.13 newborns / 1000 people. (2001 est.).
Mortality: 16.36 deaths/1000 people (2001 est.).
Migration: 0 people /1000 people (2001 est.).
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.03 male/female; up to 15 years: 1.02 male/female; from 15 to 64 pet: 0.97 male / female; over 65: 0.7 male/female; for the general population: 0.98 male/female (2001 est.);
Child mortality: 70.74 deaths/1000 births (2001 est.).
Life expectancy: for the general population: 46.06 years; men: 45.15 years; women: 46.99 years (2001 est.).
General birth rate: 6.16 children/wives. (2001 est.).
Proportion of the adult population infected with HIV: 11.32% (1999).
Number of people infected with HIV: 360,000 (1999).
AIDS deaths: 39,000 (1999).
Nationality: noun: resident of Burundi; adjective: Burundian.
Ethnic groups: Hutu (Bantu) 85%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 14%, Twa (Pygmies) 1%, Europeans 3,000 people, South Asians 2,000 people.
Believers: Christians 67% (Catholics 62%, Protestants 5%), adherents of local beliefs 23%, Muslims 10%.
Language(s): Kirundi (official), French (official), Swahili (on the coast of Tanganyika and around Bujumbura).
Literacy: definition: persons aged 15 and over who can read and write; for the general population: 35.3%; men: 49.3%; women: 22.5% (1995 est.). State Name:
Politics
conventional long form: Republic of Burundi;
conventional short form: Burundi; local long form: Republika y’u Burundi; local short form: Burundi
State structure: republic.
Capital: Bujumbura.
Administrative division: 16 provinces: Bubanza, Bujumbura, Bururi, Gitega, Kayanza, Kan-kuzo, Karuzi, Kibitoke, Kirundo, Makamba, Mwa-ro, Muyinga, Muramwiya, Ngozi, Ruiji, Rutana.
Independence: from July 1, 1962 (until 1962 – under the tutelage of Belgium under a UN mandate).
National holiday: Independence Day, 1 July (since 1962).
Constitution: adopted March 13, 1992; contributed to the introduction of a multi-party system; Replaced on June 6, 1998 by the Interim Constitution, which provides for the expansion of the National Assembly and the introduction of two vice-presidential posts.
Legal system: based on German and Belgian civil codes and customary law; does not accept the compulsory jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice.
Suffrage: there is no data on the age limit; for adults universal.
head of state: President Pierre BUYOYA (Interim President since September 27, 1996, officially sworn in June 11, 1998), First Vice President Frederic BAMVUGINYUMVIRA (since June 1998), Second Vice President -President Mathias SINAMENYA (since June 1998); note – the president is both head of state and head of government;
head of government: President Pierre BUOYA (interim president since September 27, 1996, officially sworn in on June 11, 1998), First Vice President Frédéric BAMVUGIN-YUMVIRA (since June 1998), Second Vice President Matias SINAMEÑA ( since June 1998); the president is both head of state and head of government;
Government: a council of ministers appointed by the president; elections: no data; The current president came to power after a coup on 25 July 1996 that overthrew the previous president, NTI-BANTUNGANYA.
Legislature: unicameral National Assembly (121 members; note – as a result of the adoption of the new Interim Constitution in 1998, the number of seats increased from 81 to 121; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation for a five-year term); elections: last held 29 June 1993 (next scheduled for 1998 but canceled by presidential decree in 1996); election results: distribution of votes by parties – FRODEBU 71.04%, UPRONA 21.4%, other parties 7.56%; seats by party – FRODEBU 65, UPRONA 16, other parties 40.
Judiciary: Supreme Court; Constitutional Court; courts of appeal (three in different parts of the country); courts of first instance (17 provincial and 123 local courts).
Political parties and leaders: two major national parties: United for National Progress (UPRONA) (Luc RUKINGAMA, president); Democratic Front of Burundi (FRODEBU) (Jean MINANI, president); note: in the multi-party system introduced after 1998, the most prominent parties are: the African Burundi Salvation Alliance (ABASA) (Terrence NZANZE [Teggepse NSANZE]); Rally for Democracy and Economic and Social Development (RADDES) (Joseph NZENZIMANA); Party for National Renewal (PARENA) (Jean-Baptiste BAGAZA); Popular Reconciliation Party (PRP) (Mathias HITIMANA).
Political influence groups and their leaders: scattered Tutsi militias, often associated with extremist Tutsi parties.
Participation in international organizations: ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, CEEAC, CEPGL, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO.
US Diplomatic Mission: Head of Mission: Ambassador Thomas NDIKUMANA; office: Suite 212, 2233 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007; phone: [1] (202) 342-2574; fax: [1] (202) 342-2578.
US Mission: Head of Mission: Ambassador Mary Katlin YATES (Magu Catlin YATES); embassy: Avenue des Etats-Unis, Bujumbura; mailing address: W. R. 1720, Bujumbura; phone: [257] (2) 223454; fax: [257] (2) 222926.
Flag Description: a rectangle divided by white diagonal stripes into red (top and bottom) and green (hoist and opposite) triangles, with a white disk superimposed at the intersection of the stripes and bearing three red six-pointed stars bordered in green (one star above, two below).
