Burundi (2002) | Tokelau (2005) | |
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Administrative divisions | 16 provinces; Bubanza, Bujumbura, Bururi, Cankuzo, Cibitoke, Gitega, Karuzi, Kayanza, Kirundo, Makamba, Muramvya, Muyinga, Mwaro, Ngozi, Rutana, Ruyigi | none (territory of New Zealand) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 46.5% (male 1,497,865; female 1,466,455)
15-64 years: 50.7% (male 1,592,253; female 1,640,254) 65 years and over: 2.8% (male 71,915; female 104,260) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 42%
15-64 years: 53% 65 years and over: 5% (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, cotton, tea, corn, sorghum, sweet potatoes, bananas, manioc (tapioca); beef, milk, hides | coconuts, copra, breadfruit, papayas, bananas; pigs, poultry, goats |
Airports | 7 (2001) | none; lagoon landings are possible by amphibious aircraft (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
- |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 6 6
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 3 (2002) |
- |
Area | total: 27,830 sq km
land: 25,650 sq km water: 2,180 sq km |
total: 10 sq km
land: 10 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | about 17 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC |
Background | Burundi's first democratically elected president was assassinated in October 1993 after only four months in office. Since then, some 200,000 Burundians have perished in widespread, often intense ethnic violence between Hutu and Tutsi factions. Hundreds of thousands have been internally displaced or have become refugees in neighboring countries. Burundian troops, seeking to secure their borders, intervened in the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1998. More recently, many of these troops have been redeployed back to Burundi to deal with periodic upsurges in rebel activity. A new transitional government, inaugurated on 1 November 2001, was to be the first step towards holding national elections in three years. However, the unwillingness of the Hutu rebels to enact a cease fire with Bujumbura continues to obstruct prospects for a sustainable peace. | Originally settled by Polynesian emigrants from surrounding island groups, the Tokelau Islands were made a British protectorate in 1889. They were transferred to New Zealand administration in 1925. |
Birth rate | 39.87 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | NA |
Budget | revenues: $125 million
expenditures: $176 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $430,800
expenditures: $2.8 million, including capital expenditures of $37,300 (1987 est.) |
Capital | Bujumbura | none; each atoll has its own administrative center |
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; wet seasons from February to May and September to November, and dry seasons from June to August and December to January | tropical; moderated by trade winds (April to November) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 101 km |
Constitution | 13 March 1992; provided for establishment of a plural political system; supplanted on 6 June 1998 by a Transitional Constitution which enlarged the National Assembly and created two vice presidents | administered under the Tokelau Islands Act of 1948; amended in 1970 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Burundi
conventional short form: Burundi local long form: Republika y'u Burundi local short form: Burundi former: Urundi |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Tokelau |
Currency | Burundi franc (BIF) | - |
Death rate | 16.3 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | NA |
Debt - external | $1.12 billion (2001 est.) | $0 |
Dependency status | - | self-administering territory of New Zealand; note - Tokelauans are drafting a constitution and developing institutions and patterns of self-government as Tokelau moves toward free association with New Zealand |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador James Howard YELLIN
embassy: Avenue des Etats-Unis, Bujumbura mailing address: B. P. 1720, Bujumbura telephone: [257] 223454 FAX: [257] 222926 |
none (territory of New Zealand) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Thomas NDIKUMANA
chancery: Suite 212, 2233 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 342-2574 FAX: [1] (202) 342-2578 |
none (territory of New Zealand) |
Disputes - international | Tutsi, Hutu, and other conflicting ethnic groups, political rebels, and various government forces continue fighting in Great Lakes region, transcending the boundaries of Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $74 million (1999) | from New Zealand about $4 million annually |
Economy - overview | Burundi is a landlocked, resource-poor country with an underdeveloped manufacturing sector. The economy is predominantly agricultural with roughly 90% of the population dependent on subsistence agriculture. Its economic health depends on the coffee crop, which accounts for 80% of foreign exchange earnings. The ability to pay for imports therefore rests largely on the vagaries of the climate and the international coffee market. Since October 1993 the nation has suffered from massive ethnic-based violence which has resulted in the death of more than 200,000 persons and the displacement of about 800,000 others. Only one in four children go to school, and more than one in ten adults has HIV/AIDS. Foods, medicines, and electricity remain in short supply. Doubts regarding the sustainability of peace continue to impede development. A Geneva donors' conference in November 2001 brought $800 million in pledges, and an IMF-staff-monitored program could lead to a further agreement in 2002. | Tokelau's small size (three villages), isolation, and lack of resources greatly restrain economic development and confine agriculture to the subsistence level. The people rely heavily on aid from New Zealand - about $4 million annually - to maintain public services, with annual aid being substantially greater than GDP. The principal sources of revenue come from sales of copra, postage stamps, souvenir coins, and handicrafts. Money is also remitted to families from relatives in New Zealand. |
Electricity - consumption | 166.64 million kWh (2000) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | - |
Electricity - imports | 29 million kWh
note: supplied by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2000) |
- |
Electricity - production | 148 million kWh (2000) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 1%
hydro: 99% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Lake Tanganyika 772 m
highest point: Mount Heha 2,670 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location 5 m |
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 | very limited natural resources and overcrowding are contributing to emigration to New Zealand |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban |
- |
Ethnic groups | Hutu (Bantu) 85%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 14%, Twa (Pygmy) 1%, Europeans 3,000, South Asians 2,000 | Polynesian |
Exchange rates | Burundi francs per US dollar - 865.14 (January 2002), 830.35 (2001), 720.67 (2000), 563.56 (1999), 477.77 (1998), 352.35 (1997) | New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 1.5087 (2004), 1.7221 (2003), 2.1622 (2002), 2.3788 (2001), 2.2012 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Pierre BUYOYA (a Tutsi, was sworn in as president of a transition government on 1 November 2001; he is scheduled to hold office for 18 months before transferring power to his vice president, a Hutu); Vice President Domitien NDAYIZEYE (since 1 November 2001)
head of government: President Pierre BUYOYA (a Tutsi, was sworn in as president of a transition government on 1 November 2001; he is scheduled to hold office for 18 months before transferring power to his vice president, a Hutu); Vice President Domitien NDAYIZEYE (since 1 November 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by president elections: NA; current president assumed power following a coup on 25 July 1996 in which former President NTIBANTUNGANYA was overthrown |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General of New Zealand Dame Silvia CARTWRIGHT (since 4 April 2001); New Zealand is represented by Administrator Neil WALTER (since 1 March 2003)
head of government: Pio TUIA (since February 2005); note - position rotates annually among the three Faipule (village leaders) cabinet: the Council for the Ongoing Government of Tokelau, consisting of three Faipule (village leaders) and three Pulenuku (village mayors) functions as a cabinet elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade in New Zealand; the head of government is chosen from the Council of Faipule and serves a one-year term |
Exports | $24 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) | $98,000 f.o.b. (1983) |
Exports - commodities | coffee, tea, sugar, cotton, hides | stamps, copra, handicrafts |
Exports - partners | EU 52.5%, US 11.5%, Kenya 11.5%, Switzerland 4.9% (2000 est.) | New Zealand (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | 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) | the flag of New Zealand is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $3.7 billion (2001 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 50%
industry: 18% services: 32% (2001 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $600 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (1993 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.4% (2001 est.) | NA |
Geographic coordinates | 3 30 S, 30 00 E | 9 00 S, 172 00 W |
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 | consists of three atolls, each with a lagoon surrounded by a number of reef-bound islets of varying length and rising to over three meters above sea level |
Highways | total: 14,480 km
paved: 1,028 km unpaved: 13,452 km (1996) |
total: NA
paved: NA unpaved: NA |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 27% (1992) (1992) |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Imports | $125 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) | $323,000 c.i.f. (1983) |
Imports - commodities | capital goods, petroleum products, foodstuffs | foodstuffs, building materials, fuel |
Imports - partners | EU 37.6%, Tanzania 10.3%, Zambia 4.3%, India 3.4%, China 3.4% (2000 est.) | New Zealand (2000) |
Independence | 1 July 1962 (from UN trusteeship under Belgian administration) | none (territory of New Zealand) |
Industrial production growth rate | 6.3% (1999 est.) | NA% |
Industries | light consumer goods such as blankets, shoes, soap; assembly of imported components; public works construction; food processing | small-scale enterprises for copra production, woodworking, plaited craft goods; stamps, coins; fishing |
Infant mortality rate | 69.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 14% (2001 est.) | NA% |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, CEEAC, CEPGL, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | UNESCO (associate), UPU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 740 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; Constitutional Court; Courts of Appeal (there are three in separate locations); Tribunals of First Instance (17 at the province level and 123 small local tribunals) | Supreme Court in New Zealand exercises civil and criminal jurisdiction in Tokelau |
Labor force | 1.9 million | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | NA | - |
Land boundaries | total: 974 km
border countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo 233 km, Rwanda 290 km, Tanzania 451 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 29.98%
permanent crops: 12.85% other: 57.17% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 0% (soil is thin and infertile)
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
Languages | Kirundi (official), French (official), Swahili (along Lake Tanganyika and in the Bujumbura area) | Tokelauan (a Polynesian language), English |
Legal system | based on German and Belgian civil codes and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | New Zealand and local statutes |
Legislative branch | bicameral, consists of a National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (expanded from 121 to approximately 140 seats under the transitional government inaugurated 1 November 2001; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and a Senate (54 seats; term length is undefined, the current senators will likely serve out the three-year transition period)
elections: last held 29 June 1993 (next was scheduled to be held in 1998, but were suspended by presidential decree in 1996; elections are planned to follow the completion of the three-year transitional government) election results: percent of vote by party - FRODEBU 71.04%, UPRONA 21.4%, other 7.56%; seats by party - FRODEBU 65, UPRONA 16, civilians 27, other parties 13 |
unicameral General Fono (21 seats; based upon proportional representation from the three islands elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms; Nukunonu has 6 seats, Fakaofo has 7 seats, Atafu has 8 seats); note - the Tokelau Amendment Act of 1996 confers limited legislative power on the General Fono
elections: last held January 2002 (next to be held January 2005) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 45.94 years
male: 45.08 years female: 46.83 years (2002 est.) |
total population: NA
male: -9 years female: -9 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 35.3% male: 49.3% female: 22.5% (1995 est.) |
NA |
Location | Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo | Oceania, group of three atolls in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand |
Map references | Africa | Oceania |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of New Zealand |
Military branches | Army (including naval and air units), Gendarmerie | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $36.9 million (FY01) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 5.3% (FY01) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,439,032 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 752,584 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 16 years of age (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 79,360 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 July (1962) | Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840) |
Nationality | noun: Burundian(s)
adjective: Burundi |
noun: Tokelauan(s)
adjective: Tokelauan |
Natural hazards | flooding, landslides, drought | lies in Pacific typhoon belt |
Natural resources | nickel, uranium, rare earth oxides, peat, cobalt, copper, platinum (not yet exploited), vanadium, arable land, hydropower | NEGL |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | NA |
Political parties and leaders | the two national, mainstream, governing parties are: Unity for National Progress or UPRONA [Luc RUKINGAMA, president]; Burundi Democratic Front or FRODEBU [Jean MINANI, president]
note: a multiparty system was introduced after 1998, included are: Burundi African Alliance for the Salvation or ABASA [Terrence NSANZE]; Rally for Democracy and Economic and Social Development or RADDES [Joseph NZENZIMANA]; Party for National Redress or PARENA [Jean-Baptiste BAGAZA]; People's Reconciliation Party or PRP [Mathias HITIMANA] |
none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Loosely organized Hutu and Tutsi militias, often affiliated with Hutu and Tutsi extremist parties or subordinate to government security forces | none |
Population | 6,373,002
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 2002 est.) |
1,405 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 70% (2001 est.) | NA |
Population growth rate | 2.36% (2002 est.) | -0.01% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bujumbura | none; offshore anchorage only |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001) | AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA
note: 1 radio station provides service to all islands (2002) |
Radios | 440,000 (2001) | - |
Railways | 0 km | - |
Religions | Christian 67% (Roman Catholic 62%, Protestant 5%), indigenous beliefs 23%, Muslim 10% | Congregational Christian Church 70%, Roman Catholic 28%, other 2%
note: on Atafu, all Congregational Christian Church of Samoa; on Nukunonu, all Roman Catholic; on Fakaofo, both denominations, with the Congregational Christian Church predominant |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
NA |
Suffrage | NA years of age; universal adult | 21 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: primitive system
domestic: sparse system of open wire, radiotelephone communications, and low-capacity microwave radio relay international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
general assessment: modern satellite-based communications system;
domestic: radiotelephone service between islands international: country code - 690; radiotelephone service to Samoa; government-regulated telephone service (TeleTok), with 3 satellite earth stations, established in 1997 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 20,000 (2000) | 300 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 16,300 (2000) | 0 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2001) | - |
Terrain | hilly and mountainous, dropping to a plateau in east, some plains | low-lying coral atolls enclosing large lagoons |
Total fertility rate | 6.07 children born/woman (2002 est.) | NA |
Unemployment rate | NA% | NA% |
Waterways | Lake Tanganyika | - |