1994 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1994 (Project Gutenberg)
Introduction
Administrative divisions
15 provinces; Bubanza, Bujumbura, Bururi, Cankuzo, Cibitoke, Gitega, Karuzi, Kayanza, Kirundo, Makamba, Muramvya, Muyinga, Ngozi, Rutana, Ruyigi
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
Agriculture
accounts for 50% 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
Airports
total: 5 usable: 3 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:
Area
total area: 27,830 sq km land area: 25,650 sq km comparative area: slightly larger than Maryland
Birth rate
44.02 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Branches
Army (includes naval and air units), paramilitary Gendarmerie
Budget
revenues: $318 million expenditures: $326 million, including capital expenditures of $150 million (1991 est.)
Capital
Bujumbura
Climate
temperate; warm; occasional frost in uplands
Coastline
0 km (landlocked)
Constitution
13 March 1992; provides for establishment of a plural political system
Currency
1 Burundi franc (FBu) = 100 centimes
Death rate
21.38 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures
exchange rate conversion - $28 million, 3.7% of GDP (1989)
Digraph
BY
Diplomatic representation in US
chief of mission: Ambassador Jacques BACAMURWANKO, designated (January 1994) chancery: Suite 212, 2233 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: (202) 342-2574
Economic aid
recipient: 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
capacity: 55,000 kW production: 105 million kWh consumption per capita: 20 kWh (1991)
Environment
current issues: soil exhaustion and erosion; deforestation; habitat loss threatening wildlife populations natural hazards: NA international agreements: party to - Endangered Species; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban
Exchange rates
Burundi francs (FBu) per US$1 - 247.94 (November 1993), 208.30 (1992), 181.51 (1991), 171.26 (1990), 158.67 (1989), 140.40 (1988)
Executive branch
chief of state: Interim President Sylvestre NTIBANTUNGANYA, Speaker of the National Assembly, succeeded deceased President NTARYAMIRA in early April 1994 with a mandate for at least 90 days; on 11 July 1994 the mandate was extended by the Constitutional Court for three more months at the request of 12 political parties locked in negotiations on a new broad-based government; elections will be held later in 1994 note: President Melchior NDADAYE died in the military coup of 21 October 1993 and was succeeded on 5 February 1994 by President Cyprien NTARYAMIRA, who was killed in a mysterious airplane explosion on 6 April 1994 head of government: Prime Minister Anatole KANYENKIKO (since 7 February 1994); chosen by the president cabinet: Council of Ministers ; appointed by prime minister
Exports
$40.8 million (f.o.b., 1992 est.) commodities: coffee 81%, tea, cotton, hides, and skins partners: EC 57%, US 19%, Asia 1%
External debt
$970 million (1991)
FAX
[257] (222) 926
Fiscal year
calendar year
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)
Highways
total: 6,285 km paved: 1,099 km unpaved: gravel, crushed stone 2,500 km; improved, unimproved earth 2,686 km (1990)
Imports
$188 million (c.i.f., 1992 est.) commodities: capital goods 31%, petroleum products 15%, foodstuffs, consumer goods partners: EC 45%, Asia 29%, US 2%
Independence
1 July 1962 (from UN trusteeship under Belgian administration)
Industrial production
growth rate 11% (1991 est.); accounts for about 15% of GDP
Industries
light consumer goods such as blankets, shoes, soap; assembly of imported components; public works construction; food processing
Infant mortality rate
113.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
4.7% (1992 est.)
Inland waterways
Lake Tanganyika
International disputes
none
Irrigated land
720 sq km (1989 est.)
Judicial branch
Supreme Court (Cour Supreme)
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)
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%
Languages
Kirundi (official), French (official), Swahili (along Lake Tanganyika and in the Bujumbura area)
Legal system
based on German and Belgian civil codes and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch
unicameral
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 40.3 years male: 38.31 years female: 42.35 years (1994 est.)
Literacy
age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.) total population: 50% male: 61% female: 40%
Location
Central Africa, between Tanzania and Zaire
Manpower availability
males age 15-49 1,315,660; fit for military service 687,474; reach military age (16) annually 67,949 (1994 est.)
Map references
Africa, Standard Time Zones of the World
Maritime claims
none; landlocked
Member of
ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, CEEAC, CEPGL, ECA, FAO, G-77, GATT, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), 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 (Assemblee Nationale)
elections last held 29 June 1993 (next to be held NA): results - FRODEBU 71%, UPRONA 21.4%; seats - (81 total) FRODIBU 65, UPRONA 16; other parties won too small shares of the vote to win seats in the assembly note: The National Unity Charter outlining the principles for constitutional government was adopted by a national referendum on 5 February 1991
National holiday
Independence Day, 1 July (1962)
National product
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $4.4 billion (1993 est.)
National product per capita
$700 (1993 est.)
National product real growth rate
-3.8% (1991)
Nationality
noun: Burundian(s) adjective: Burundi
Natural resources
nickel, uranium, rare earth oxide, peat, cobalt, copper, platinum (not yet exploited), vanadium
Net migration rate
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Note
landlocked; straddles crest of the Nile-Congo watershed
Other political or pressure groups
opposition parties legalized in March 1992; Burundi African Alliance for the Salvation (ABASA); Rally for Democracy and Economic and Social Development (RADDES)
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 80% of foreign exchange earnings. 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.
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)
Population
6,124,747 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate
2.26% (1994 est.)
Ports
Bujumbura (lake port) connects to transportation systems of Tanzania and Zaire
Religions
Christian 67% (Roman Catholic 62%, Protestant 5%), indigenous beliefs 32%, Muslim 1%
Suffrage
universal adult at age NA
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
Terrain
mostly rolling to hilly highland; some plains
Total fertility rate
6.69 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Type
republic
Unemployment rate
NA%
US diplomatic representation
chief of mission: (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Leonard J. LANGE embassy: Avenue des Etats-Unis, Bujumbura mailing address: B. P. 34, 1720, Bujumbura telephone: [257] (223) 454