Rwanda

Internet country code

.rw

Internet hosts

1,495 (2003)

Internet users

25,000 (2002)

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)

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)

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)

Television broadcast stations

NA

Agriculture - products

coffee, tea, pyrethrum (insecticide made from chrysanthemums), bananas, beans, sorghum, potatoes; livestock

Budget

revenues: $365.9 million expenditures: $402.9 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2003 est.)

Currency

Rwandan franc (RWF)

Currency code

RWF

Current account balance

$-163 million (2003)

Debt - external

$1.3 billion (2000 est.)

Distribution of family income - Gini index

28.9 (1985)

Economic aid - recipient

$372.9 million (1999)

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.

Electricity - consumption

140 million kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports

0 kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports

50 million kWh (2001)

Electricity - production

96.78 million kWh (2001)

Exchange rates

Rwandan francs per US dollar - 537.658 (2003), 476.327 (2002), 442.801 (2001), 389.696 (2000), 333.942 (1999)

Exports

$73.33 million f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Exports - commodities

coffee, tea, hides, tin ore

Exports - partners

Indonesia 39.2%, Germany 4.6%, China 3.9% (2003)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP

purchasing power parity - $10.11 billion (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture: 40.7% industry: 21.5% services: 37.8% (2003 est.)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $1,300 (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

3.5% (2003 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 4.2% highest 10%: 24.2% (1985)

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 23.3%, Germany 7.5%, Belgium 6.4%, Uganda 6.4%, France 5% (2003)

Industrial production growth rate

7% (2001 est.)

Industries

cement, agricultural products, small-scale beverages, soap, furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles, cigarettes

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

7.5% (2003 est.)

Investment (gross fixed)

19.3% of GDP (2003)

Labor force

4.6 million (2000)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture 90%

Natural gas - proved reserves

28.32 billion cu m (1 January 2002)

Oil - consumption

5,300 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports

NA (2001)

Oil - imports

NA (2001)

Oil - production

0 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - proved reserves

0 bbl (1 January 2002)

Population below poverty line

60% (2001 est.)

Reserves of foreign exchange & gold

$215 million (2003)

Unemployment rate

NA

Area

total: 26,338 sq km land: 24,948 sq km water: 1,390 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly smaller than Maryland

Climate

temperate; two rainy seasons (February to April, November to January); mild in mountains with frost and snow possible

Coastline

0 km (landlocked)

Elevation extremes

lowest point: Rusizi River 950 m highest point: Volcan Karisimbi 4,519 m

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

Geographic coordinates

2 00 S, 30 00 E

Geography - note

landlocked; most of the country is savanna grassland with the population predominantly rural

Irrigated land

40 sq km (1998 est.)

Land boundaries

total: 893 km border countries: Burundi 290 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 217 km, Tanzania 217 km, Uganda 169 km

Land use

arable land: 40.54% permanent crops: 12.16% other: 47.3% (2001)

Location

Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo

Map references

Africa

Maritime claims

none (landlocked)

Natural hazards

periodic droughts; the volcanic Virunga mountains are in the northwest along the border with Democratic Republic of the Congo

Natural resources

gold, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore), methane, hydropower, arable land

Terrain

mostly grassy uplands and hills; relief is mountainous with altitude declining from west to east

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

Capital

Kigali

Constitution

a new constitution was adopted 26 May 2003

Country name

conventional long form: Rwandese Republic conventional short form: Rwanda local long form: Republika y'u Rwanda local short form: Rwanda former: Ruanda

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

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

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%

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

Government type

republic; presidential, multiparty system

Independence

1 July 1962 (from Belgium-administered UN trusteeship)

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, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO

Judicial branch

Supreme Court; communal courts; appeals courts

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

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

National holiday

Independence Day, 1 July (1962)

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

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal adult

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 (RPF), 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 the former Zaire. Since then, most of the refugees have returned to Rwanda, but about 10,000 that remain in the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo have formed an extremist insurgency bent on retaking Rwanda, much as the RPF tried in 1990. 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 ethnic reconciliation is complicated by the real and perceived Tutsi political dominance. Kigali's increasing centralization and intolerance of dissent, the nagging Hutu extremist insurgency across the border, and Rwandan involvement in two wars in recent years in the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo continue to hinder Rwanda's efforts to escape its bloody legacy.

Military branches

Rwandan Defense Forces (Army, Air Forces)

Military expenditures - dollar figure

$47.7 million (2003)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP

2.9% (2003)

Military manpower - availability

males age 15-49: 1,973,713 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service

males age 15-49: 1,004,296 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - military age and obligation

16 years of age for voluntary military service; no conscription (2001)

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.)

Birth rate

40.01 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Death rate

21.86 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Ethnic groups

Hutu 84%, Tutsi 15%, Twa (Pygmoid) 1%

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

5.1% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

22,000 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

250,000 (2003 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.)

Languages

Kinyarwanda (official) universal Bantu vernacular, French (official), English (official), Kiswahili (Swahili) used in commercial centers

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 39.18 years male: 38.43 years female: 39.96 years (2004 est.)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 70.4% male: 76.3% female: 64.7% (2003 est.)

Median age

total: 18.2 years male: 18 years female: 18.4 years (2004 est.)

Nationality

noun: Rwandan(s) adjective: Rwandan

Net migration rate

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)

People - note

Rwanda is the most densely populated country in Africa

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.)

Population growth rate

1.82% (2004 est.)

Religions

Roman Catholic 56.5%, Protestant 26%, Adventist 11.1%, Muslim 4.6%, indigenous beliefs 0.1%, none 1.7% (2001)

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.)

Total fertility rate

5.55 children born/woman (2004 est.)

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

Refugees and internally displaced persons

refugees (country of origin): 37,691 (Democratic Republic of the Congo) IDPs: 4,158 (incursions by Hutu rebels from Democratic Republic of the Congo, 1997-1999; most IDPs in northwest) (2004)

Airports

9 (2003 est.)

Airports - with paved runways

total: 4 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways

total: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.)

Highways

total: 12,000 km paved: 996 km unpaved: 11,004 km (1999 est.)

Ports and harbors

Cyangugu, Gisenyi, Kibuye

Waterways

Lac Kivu navigable by shallow-draft barges and native craft (2004)