Burundi (2008) | Palau (2008) | |
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Administrative divisions | 17 provinces; Bubanza, Bujumbura Mairie, Bujumbura Rurale, Bururi, Cankuzo, Cibitoke, Gitega, Karuzi, Kayanza, Kirundo, Makamba, Muramvya, Muyinga, Mwaro, Ngozi, Rutana, Ruyigi | 16 states; Aimeliik, Airai, Angaur, Hatohobei, Kayangel, Koror, Melekeok, Ngaraard, Ngarchelong, Ngardmau, Ngatpang, Ngchesar, Ngeremlengui, Ngiwal, Peleliu, Sonsorol |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 46.3% (male 1,951,879/female 1,930,371)
15-64 years: 51.2% (male 2,131,759/female 2,162,093) 65 years and over: 2.6% (male 85,522/female 128,881) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 26% (male 2,796/female 2,633)
15-64 years: 69.2% (male 7,767/female 6,665) 65 years and over: 4.7% (male 465/female 516) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, cotton, tea, corn, sorghum, sweet potatoes, bananas, manioc (tapioca); beef, milk, hides | coconuts, copra, cassava (tapioca), sweet potatoes; fish |
Airports | 8 (2007) | 3 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2007) |
total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2007) |
Area | total: 27,830 sq km
land: 25,650 sq km water: 2,180 sq km |
total: 458 sq km
land: 458 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly more than 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC |
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. | After three decades as part of the UN Trust Territory of the Pacific under US administration, this westernmost cluster of the Caroline Islands opted for independence in 1978 rather than join the Federated States of Micronesia. A Compact of Free Association with the US was approved in 1986, but not ratified until 1993. It entered into force the following year, when the islands gained independence. |
Birth rate | 41.97 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 17.7 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $259.4 million
expenditures: $331.8 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2007 est.) |
revenues: $72.07 million
expenditures: $72.43 million (FY04/05 est.) |
Capital | name: Bujumbura
geographic coordinates: 3 22 S, 29 21 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
name: Melekeok
geographic coordinates: 7 29 N, 134 38 E time difference: UTC+9 (14 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
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) | tropical; hot and humid; wet season May to November |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 1,519 km |
Constitution | 28 February 2005; ratified by popular referendum | 1 January 1981 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Burundi
conventional short form: Burundi local long form: Republique du Burundi/Republika y'u Burundi local short form: Burundi former: Urundi |
conventional long form: Republic of Palau
conventional short form: Palau local long form: Beluu er a Belau local short form: Belau former: Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, Palau District |
Death rate | 13.17 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 6.77 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.2 billion (2003) | $0 (FY99/00) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Patricia Newton MOLLER
embassy: Avenue des Etats-Unis, Bujumbura mailing address: B. P. 1720, Bujumbura telephone: [257] 223454 FAX: [257] 222926 |
chief of mission: Charge d'Affaires Mark BEZNER
embassy: Koror (no street address) mailing address: P. O. Box 6028, Republic of Palau 96940 telephone: [680] 488-2920, 2990 FAX: [680] 488-2911 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Celestin NIYONGABO
chancery: Suite 212, 2233 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 342-2574 FAX: [1] (202) 342-2578 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Hersey KYOTA
chancery: 1700 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20006 telephone: [1] (202) 452-6814 FAX: [1] (202) 452-6281 consulate(s) general: Honolulu consulate(s): Tamuning (Guam) |
Disputes - international | conflicts among Tutsi, Hutu, other ethnic groups, associated political rebels, armed gangs, and various government forces have abated somewhat in the Great Lakes region; UN Operation in Burundi (ONUB) completed its mandate in December 2006 after a three-year peace-keeping mission | maritime delineation negotiations continue with Philippines, Indonesia |
Economic aid - recipient | $365 million (2005) | $23.46 million; note - the Compact of Free Association with the US, entered into after the end of the UN trusteeship on 1 October 1994, provides Palau with up to $700 million in US aid over 15 years in return for furnishing military facilities (2005) |
Economy - overview | Burundi is a landlocked, resource-poor country with an underdeveloped manufacturing sector. The economy is predominantly agricultural with more than 90% of the population dependent on subsistence agriculture. Economic growth depends on coffee and tea exports, which account for 90% of foreign exchange earnings. The ability to pay for imports, therefore, rests primarily on weather conditions and international coffee and tea prices. The Tutsi minority, 14% of the population, dominates the government and the coffee trade at the expense of the Hutu majority, 85% of the population. An ethnic-based war that lasted for over a decade resulted in more than 200,000 deaths, forced more than 48,000 refugees into Tanzania, and displaced 140,000 others internally. Only one in two children go to school, and approximately one in 15 adults has HIV/AIDS. Food, medicine, and electricity remain in short supply. Burundi grew about 5% annually in 2006, but GDP growth probably fell to under 4% in 2007. Political stability and the end of the civil war have improved aid flows and economic activity has increased, but underlying weaknesses - a high poverty rate, poor education rates, a weak legal system, and low administrative capacity - risk undermining planned economic reforms. Burundi will continue to remain heavily dependent on aid from bilateral and multilateral donors; the delay of funds after a corruption scandal cut off bilateral aid in 2007 reduced government's revenues and its ability to pay salaries. | The economy consists primarily of tourism, subsistence agriculture, and fishing. The government is the major employer of the work force, relying heavily on financial assistance from the US. Business and tourist arrivals numbered 63,000 in 2003. The population enjoys a per capita income roughly 50% higher than that of the Philippines and much of Micronesia. Long-run prospects for the key tourist sector have been greatly bolstered by the expansion of air travel in the Pacific, the rising prosperity of leading East Asian countries, and the willingness of foreigners to finance infrastructure development. |
Electricity - consumption | 161.4 million kWh (2005) | - |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | - |
Electricity - imports | 34 million kWh; note - supplied by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2005) | - |
Electricity - production | 137 million kWh (2005) | - |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Lake Tanganyika 772 m
highest point: Heha 2,670 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Ngerchelchuus 242 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 | inadequate facilities for disposal of solid waste; threats to the marine ecosystem from sand and coral dredging, illegal fishing practices, and overfishing |
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 |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Hutu (Bantu) 85%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 14%, Twa (Pygmy) 1%, Europeans 3,000, South Asians 2,000 | Palauan (Micronesian with Malayan and Melanesian admixtures) 69.9%, Filipino 15.3%, Chinese 4.9%, other Asian 2.4%, white 1.9%, Carolinian 1.4%, other Micronesian 1.1%, other or unspecified 3.2% (2000 census) |
Exchange rates | Burundi francs per US dollar - 1,065 (2007), 1,030 (2006), 1,138 (2005), 1,100.91 (2004), 1,082.62 (2003) | the US dollar is used |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Pierre NKURUNZIZA (since 26 August 2005); First Vice President Yves SAVINGUVU - Tutsi (since 9 November 2007); Second Vice President Gabriel NTISEZERANA - Hutu (since 9 February 2007)
head of government: President Pierre NKURUNZIZA (since 26 August 2005); First Vice President Yves SAVINGUVU - Tutsi (since 9 November 2007); Second Vice President Gabriel NTISEZERANA - Hutu (since 9 February 2007) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by president elections: the president is elected by popular vote to a five-year term (eligible for a second term); note - the constitution adopted in February 2005 permits the post-transition president to be elected by a two-thirds majority of the parliament; vice presidents nominated by the president, endorsed by parliament election results: Pierre NKURUNZIZA was elected president by the parliament by a vote of 151 to 9; note - the constitution adopted in February 2005 permits the post-transition president to be elected by a two-thirds majority of the legislature |
chief of state: President Tommy Esang REMENGESAU, Jr. (since 19 January 2001); Vice President Camsek CHIN (since 1 January 2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Tommy Esang REMENGESAU, Jr. (since 19 January 2001); Vice President Camsek CHIN (since 1 January 2005) cabinet: NA elections: president and vice president elected on separate tickets by popular vote for four-year terms (eligible for a second term); election last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held in November 2008) election results: Tommy Esang REMENGESAU, Jr. reelected president; percent of vote - Tommy Esang REMENGESAU, Jr. 64%, Polycarp BASILIUS 33%; Elias Camsek CHIN elected vice president; percent of vote - Elias Camsek CHIN 70%, Sandra PIERANTOZZI 29% |
Exports | 0 bbl/day (2004) | $5.882 million f.o.b. (2004 est.) |
Exports - commodities | coffee, tea, sugar, cotton, hides | shellfish, tuna, copra, garments |
Exports - partners | Switzerland 33.7%, UK 12.2%, Pakistan 8.5%, Rwanda 5.3%, Egypt 4.2% (2006) | US, Japan, Singapore (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 October - 30 September |
Flag description | divided by a white diagonal cross into red panels (top and bottom) and green panels (hoist side and fly 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) | light blue with a large yellow disk (representing the moon) shifted slightly to the hoist side |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 44.9%
industry: 20.9% services: 34.1% (2006 est.) |
agriculture: 6.2%
industry: 12% services: 81.8% (2003) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.5% (2007 est.) | 5.5% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 3 30 S, 30 00 E | 7 30 N, 134 30 E |
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 | westernmost archipelago in the Caroline chain, consists of six island groups totaling more than 300 islands; includes World War II battleground of Beliliou (Peleliu) and world-famous rock islands |
Heliports | 1 (2007) | - |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 1.7%
highest 10%: 32.8% (1998) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | 2,687 bbl/day (2004) | $107.3 million f.o.b. (2004 est.) |
Imports - commodities | capital goods, petroleum products, foodstuffs | machinery and equipment, fuels, metals; foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | Saudi Arabia 12.6%, Kenya 8.2%, Japan 7.8%, Russia 4.7%, UK 4.6%, France 4.4%, China 4.4% (2006) | US, Singapore, Japan, South Korea (2006) |
Independence | 1 July 1962 (from UN trusteeship under Belgian administration) | 1 October 1994 (from the US-administered UN trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7.5% (2007 est.) | NA% |
Industries | light consumer goods such as blankets, shoes, soap; assembly of imported components; public works construction; food processing | tourism, craft items (from shell, wood, pearls), construction, garment making |
Infant mortality rate | total: 61.93 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 68.91 deaths/1,000 live births female: 54.75 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 14.07 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 15.78 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.26 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 7% (2007 est.) | 2.7% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, CEPGL, COMESA, EAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (subscriber), ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ACP, ADB, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IMF, IOC, IPU, MIGA, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO |
Irrigated land | 210 sq km (2003) | NA |
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; Court of Common Pleas; Land Court |
Labor force | 2.99 million (2002) | 9,777 (2005) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 93.6%
industry: 2.3% services: 4.1% (2002 est.) |
agriculture: 20%
industry: NA% services: NA% (1990) |
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: 35.57%
permanent crops: 13.12% other: 51.31% (2005) |
arable land: 8.7%
permanent crops: 4.35% other: 86.95% (2005) |
Languages | Kirundi (official), French (official), Swahili (along Lake Tanganyika and in the Bujumbura area) | Palauan 64.7% official in all islands except Sonsoral (Sonsoralese and English are official), Tobi (Tobi and English are official), and Angaur (Angaur, Japanese, and English are official), Filipino 13.5%, English 9.4%, Chinese 5.7%, Carolinian 1.5%, Japanese 1.5%, other Asian 2.3%, other languages 1.5% (2000 census) |
Legal system | based on German and Belgian civil codes and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament or Parlement, consists of a National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (minimum 100 seats, 60% Hutu and 40% Tutsi with at least 30% being women; additional seats appointed by a National Independent Electoral Commission to ensure ethnic representation; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and a Senate (54 seats; 34 members elected by indirect vote to serve five-year terms, with remaining seats assigned to ethnic groups and former chiefs of state)
elections: National Assembly - last held 4 July 2005 (next to be held in 2010); Senate - last held 29 July 2005 (next to be held in 2010) election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - CNDD-FDD 58.6%, FRODEBU 21.7%, UPRONA 7.2%, CNDD 4.1%, MRC-Rurenzangemero 2.1%, others 6.2%; seats by party - CNDD-FDD 59, FRODEBU 25, UPRONA 10, CNDD 4, MRC-Rurenzangemero 2; Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - CNDD-FDD 30, FRODEBU 3, CNDD 1 |
bicameral National Congress or Olbiil Era Kelulau (OEK) consists of the Senate (9 seats; members elected by popular vote on a population basis to serve four-year terms) and the House of Delegates (16 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held in November 2008); House of Delegates - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held in November 2008) election results: Senate - percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 9; House of Delegates - percent of vote - NA; seats - independents 16 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 51.29 years
male: 50.48 years female: 52.12 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 70.71 years
male: 67.54 years female: 74.06 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 59.3% male: 67.3% female: 52.2% (2000 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 92% male: 93% female: 90% (1980 est.) |
Location | Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo | Oceania, group of islands in the North Pacific Ocean, southeast of the Philippines |
Map references | Africa | Oceania |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 3 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the US; under a Compact of Free Association between Palau and the US, the US military is granted access to the islands for 50 years, but no military forces are stationed there (2005) |
Military branches | National Defense Force (Forces de Defense Nationales, FDN): Army (includes Naval Detachment and Air Wing) (2008) | no regular military forces; Palau National Police (2008) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 5.9% (2006 est.) | NA |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 July (1962) | Constitution Day, 9 July (1979) |
Nationality | noun: Burundian(s)
adjective: Burundian |
noun: Palauan(s)
adjective: Palauan |
Natural hazards | flooding, landslides, drought | typhoons (June to December) |
Natural resources | nickel, uranium, rare earth oxides, peat, cobalt, copper, platinum, vanadium, arable land, hydropower, niobium, tantalum, gold, tin, tungsten, kaolin, limestone | forests, minerals (especially gold), marine products, deep-seabed minerals |
Net migration rate | 7.13 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 1.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | governing parties: Burundi Democratic Front or FRODEBU [Leonce NGENDAKUMANA]; National Council for the Defense of Democracy - Front for the Defense of Democracy or CNDD-FDD [Jeremie NGENDAKUMANA]; Unity for National Progress or UPRONA [Aloys RUBUKA]
note: a multiparty system was introduced after 1998, included are: National Council for the Defense of Democracy or CNDD [Leonard NYANGOMA]; National Resistance Movement for the Rehabilitation of the Citizen or MRC-Rurenzangemero [Epitace BANYAGANAKANDI]; Party for National Redress or PARENA [Jean-Baptiste BAGAZA] |
none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | NA |
Population | 8,390,505
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 2007 est.) |
20,842 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 68% (2002 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 3.593% (2007 est.) | 1.233% (2007 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001) | AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001) |
Religions | Christian 67% (Roman Catholic 62%, Protestant 5%), indigenous beliefs 23%, Muslim 10% | Roman Catholic 41.6%, Protestant 23.3%, Modekngei 8.8% (indigenous to Palau), Seventh-Day Adventist 5.3%, Jehovah's Witness 0.9%, Latter-Day Saints 0.6%, other 3.1%, unspecified or none 16.4% (2000 census) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.011 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.986 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.664 male(s)/female total population: 0.988 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.062 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.165 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.901 male(s)/female total population: 1.124 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | NA years of age; universal (adult) | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: primitive system; telephone density one of the lowest in the world; fixed-line connections stand at well less than 1 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular usage is increasing but remains at a meager 2 per 100 persons
domestic: sparse system of open-wire, radiotelephone communications, and low-capacity microwave radio relay international: country code - 257; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) (2007) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: country code - 680; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 31,100 (2005) | 6,700 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 153,000 (2005) | 1,000 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2001) | 1 (cable) (2005) |
Terrain | hilly and mountainous, dropping to a plateau in east, some plains | varying geologically from the high, mountainous main island of Babelthuap to low, coral islands usually fringed by large barrier reefs |
Total fertility rate | 6.48 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 2.46 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 4.2% (2005 est.) |
Waterways | mainly on Lake Tanganyika (2005) | - |