page last updated on January 24, 2011
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@Burundi (Africa)
Introduction ::Burundi
Background:
Burundi's first democratically elected president was assassinated in October 1993 after only 100 days in office, triggering widespread ethnic violence between Hutu and Tutsi factions. More than 200,000 Burundians perished during the conflict that spanned almost a dozen years. Hundreds of thousands of Burundians were internally displaced or became refugees in neighboring countries. An internationally brokered power-sharing agreement between the Tutsi-dominated government and the Hutu rebels in 2003 paved the way for a transition process that led to an integrated defense force, established a new constitution in 2005, and elected a majority Hutu government in 2005. The new government, led by President Pierre NKURUNZIZA, signed a South African brokered ceasefire with the country's last rebel group in September of 2006 but still faces many challenges.
Geography ::Burundi
Location:
Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo
Geographic coordinates:
3 30 S, 30 00 E
Map references:
Africa
Area:
total: 27,830 sq km country comparison to the world: 146 land: 25,680 sq km
water: 2,150 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Maryland
Land boundaries:
total: 974 km
border countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo 233 km, Rwanda 290 km, Tanzania 451 km
Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims:
none (landlocked)
Climate:
equatorial; high plateau with considerable altitude variation (772 m to 2,670 m above sea level); average annual temperature varies with altitude from 23 to 17 degrees centigrade but is generally moderate as the average altitude is about 1,700 m; average annual rainfall is about 150 cm; two wet seasons (February to May and September to November), and two dry seasons (June to August and December to January)
Terrain:
hilly and mountainous, dropping to a plateau in east, some plains
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Lake Tanganyika 772 m
highest point: Heha 2,670 m
Natural resources:
nickel, uranium, rare earth oxides, peat, cobalt, copper, platinum, vanadium, arable land, hydropower, niobium, tantalum, gold, tin, tungsten, kaolin, limestone
Land use:
arable land: 35.57%
permanent crops: 13.12%
other: 51.31% (2005)
Irrigated land:
210 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources:
3.6 cu km (1987)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 0.29 cu km/yr (17%/6%/77%)
per capita: 38 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazards:
flooding; landslides; drought
Environment - current issues:
soil erosion as a result of overgrazing and the expansion of agriculture into marginal lands; deforestation (little forested land remains because of uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel); habitat loss threatens wildlife populations
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
Geography - note:
landlocked; straddles crest of the Nile-Congo watershed; the Kagera, which drains into Lake Victoria, is the most remote headstream of the White Nile
People ::Burundi
Population:
9,863,117 country comparison to the world: 85 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, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2010 est.)
Age structure:
0–14 years: 46.3% (male 2,213,667/female 2,189,197)
15–64 years: 51.2% (male 2,399,466/female 2,470,743)
65 years and over: 2.5% (male 95,324/female 142,933) (2010 est.)
Median age:
total: 16.8 years
male: 16.5 years
female: 17.2 years (2010 est.)
Population growth rate:
3.561% (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 3
Birth rate:
41.43 births/1,000 population (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 10
Death rate:
9.87 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 58
Net migration rate:
4.06 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 25
Urbanization:
urban population: 10% of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization: 6.8% annual rate of change (2005–10 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15–64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2010 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 63.38 deaths/1,000 live births country comparison to the world: 29 male: 68.02 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 58.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2010 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 58.29 years country comparison to the world: 191 male: 56.65 years
female: 59.98 years (2010 est.)
Total fertility rate:
6.25 children born/woman (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 5
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
2%