1993 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1993 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Area
total area: 27,830 km2 land area: 25,650 km2 comparative area: slightly larger than Maryland
Climate
temperate; warm; occasional frost in uplands
Coastline
0 km (landlocked)
Environment
soil exhaustion; soil erosion; deforestation
International disputes
none
Irrigated land
720 km2 (1989 est.)
Land boundaries
total 974 km, Rwanda 290 km, Tanzania 451 km, Zaire 233 km
Land use
arable land: 43% permanent crops: 8% meadows and pastures: 35% forest and woodland: 2% other: 12%
Location
Central Africa, between Tanzania and Zaire
Map references
Africa, Standard Time Zones of the World
Maritime claims
none; landlocked
Natural resources
nickel, uranium, rare earth oxide, peat, cobalt, copper, platinum (not yet exploited), vanadium
Note
landlocked; straddles crest of the Nile-Congo watershed
Terrain
mostly rolling to hilly highland; some plains
People and Society
Africans
Hutu (Bantu) 85%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 14%, Twa (Pygmy) 1% (other Africans include about 70,000 refugees, mostly Rwandans and Zairians) non-Africans: Europeans 3,000, South Asians 2,000
Birth rate
44.69 births/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Death rate
21.25 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Infant mortality rate
115.6 deaths/1,000 live births (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% note: 52% of population of working age (1985)
Languages
Kirundi (official), French (official), Swahili (along Lake Tanganyika and in the Bujumbura area)
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 40.75 years male: 38.79 years female: 42.76 years (1993 est.)
Literacy
age 15 and over can read and write (1990) total population: 50% male: 61% female: 40%
Nationality
noun: Burundian(s) adjective: Burundi
Net migration rate
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Population
5,985,308 (July 1993 est.)
Population growth rate
2.34% (1993 est.)
Religions
Christian 67% (Roman Catholic 62%, Protestant 5%), indigenous beliefs 32%, Muslim 1%
Total fertility rate
6.76 children born/woman (1993 est.)
Government
Administrative divisions
15 provinces; Bubanza, Bujumbura, Bururi, Cankuzo, Cibitoke, Gitega, Karuzi, Kayanza, Kirundo, Makamba, Muramvya, Muyinga, Ngozi, Rutana, Ruyigi
Capital
Bujumbura
Chief of State
President Major Pierre BUYOYA (since 9 September 1987)
Constitution
13 March 1992 draft provides for establishment of plural political system
Digraph
BY
Diplomatic representation in US
chief of mission: Ambassador Julien KAVAKURE chancery: Suite 212, 2233 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: (202) 342-2574
Executive branch
president; chairman of the Central Committee of the National Party of Unity and Progress (UPRONA), prime minister
FAX
[257] (222) 926
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)
Head of Government
Prime Minister Adrien SIBOMANA (since 26 October 1988)
Independence
1 July 1962 (from UN trusteeship under Belgian administration)
Judicial branch
Supreme Court (Cour Supreme)
Legal system
based on German and Belgian civil codes and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch
unicameral National Assembly (Assemblee Nationale) was dissolved following the coup of 3 September 1987; at an extraordinary party congress held from 27 to 29 December 1990, the Central Committee of the National Party of Unity and Progress (UPRONA) replaced the Military Committee for National Salvation, and became the supreme governing body during the transition to constitutional government
Member of
ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, CEEAC, CEPGL, ECA, FAO, G-77, GATT, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, INTERPOL, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Names
conventional long form: Republic of Burundi conventional short form: Burundi local long form: Republika y'u Burundi local short form: Burundi
National Assembly
note - The National Unity Charter outlining the principles for constitutional government was adopted by a national referendum on 5 February 1991; new elections to the National Assembly are to take place 29 June 1993; presidential elections are to take place 1 June 1993
National holiday
Independence Day, 1 July (1962)
Political parties and leaders
only party - National Party of Unity and Progress (UPRONA), Nicolas MAYUGI, secretary general; note: although Burundi is still officially a one-party state, at least four political parties were formed in 1991 and set the precedent for constitutional reform in 1992 - Burundi Democratic Front (FRODEBU), Organization of the People of Burundi (RPB), Socialist Party of Burundi (PSB), Royalist Parliamentary Party (PRP) - the most significant opposition party is FRODEBU, led by Melchior NDADAYE; the Party for the Liberation of the Hutu People (PALIPEHUTU), formed in exile in the early 1980s, is an ethnically based political party dedicated to majority rule; the government has long accused PALIPEHUTU of practicing devisive ethnic politics and fomenting violence against the state; PALIPEHUTU's exclusivist charter makes it an unlikely candidate for legalization under the new constitution that will require party membership open to all ethnic groups
Suffrage
universal adult at age NA
Type
republic
US diplomatic representation
chief of mission: Ambassador Cynthia Shepherd PERRY embassy: Avenue des Etats-Unis, Bujumbura mailing address: B. P. 1720, Bujumbura telephone: [257] (223) 454
Economy
Agriculture
accounts for 60% of GDP; 90% of population dependent on subsistence farming; marginally self-sufficient in food production; cash crops - coffee, cotton, tea; food crops - corn, sorghum, sweet potatoes, bananas, manioc; livestock - meat, milk, hides and skins
Budget
revenues $318 million; expenditures $326 million, including capital expenditures of $150 million (1991 est.)
Currency
1 Burundi franc (FBu) = 100 centimes
Economic aid
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $71 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $10.2 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $32 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $175 million
Electricity
55,000 kW capacity; 105 million kWh produced, 20 kWh per capita (1991)
Exchange rates
Burundi francs (FBu) per US$1 - 235.75 (January 1993), 208.30 (1992), 181.51 (1991), 171.26 (1990), 158.67 (1989), 140.40 (1988)
Exports
$91.7 million (f.o.b., 1991) commodities: coffee 81%, tea, hides, and skins partners: EC 83%, US 5%, Asia 2%
External debt
$1 billion (1990 est.)
Fiscal year
calendar year
Imports
$246 million (c.i.f., 1991) commodities: capital goods 31%, petroleum products 15%, foodstuffs, consumer goods partners: EC 57%, Asia 23%, US 3%
Industrial production
real growth rate 11.0% (1991 est.); accounts for about 5% of GDP
Industries
light consumer goods such as blankets, shoes, soap; assembly of imports; public works construction; food processing
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
9% (1991 est.)
National product
GDP - exchange rate conversion - $1.23 billion (1991 est.)
National product per capita
$205 (1991 est.)
National product real growth rate
5% (1991 est.)
Overview
A landlocked, resource-poor country in an early stage of economic development, Burundi is predominately agricultural with only a few basic industries. Its economic health depends on the coffee crop, which accounts for an average 90% of foreign exchange earnings each year. The ability to pay for imports therefore continues to rest 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 and attract foreign investment in industry. Several state-owned coffee companies were privatized via public auction in September 1991.
Unemployment rate
NA%
Communications
Airports
total: 5 usable: 4 with permanent-surface runways: 1 with runways over 3,659 m: with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 1 with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 4
Highways
5,900 km total; 400 km paved, 2,500 km gravel or laterite, 3,000 km improved or unimproved earth
Inland waterways
Lake Tanganyika
Ports
Bujumbura (lake port) connects to transportation systems of Tanzania and Zaire
Telecommunications
sparse system of wire, radiocommunications, and low-capacity microwave radio relay links; 8,000 telephones; broadcast stations - 2 AM, 2 FM, 1 TV; 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT earth station
Military and Security
Branches
Army (includes naval and air units), paramilitary Gendarmerie
Defense expenditures
exchange rate conversion - $28 million, 3.7% of GDP (1989)
Manpower availability
males age 15-49 1,283,308; fit for military service 670,381; reach military age (16) annually 62,700 (1993 est.)