Cayman Islands (2001) | Burundi (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | 8 districts; Creek, Eastern, Midland, South Town, Spot Bay, Stake Bay, West End, Western | 16 provinces; Bubanza, Bujumbura, Bururi, Cankuzo, Cibitoke, Gitega, Karuzi, Kayanza, Kirundo, Makamba, Muramvya, Muyinga, Mwaro, Ngozi, Rutana, Ruyigi |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
22.21% (male 3,807; female 4,084) 15-64 years: 69.74% (male 12,102; female 12,676) 65 years and over: 8.05% (male 1,318; female 1,540) (2001 est.) |
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.) |
Agriculture - products | vegetables, fruit; livestock, turtle farming | coffee, cotton, tea, corn, sorghum, sweet potatoes, bananas, manioc (tapioca); beef, milk, hides |
Airports | 3 (2000 est.) | 7 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 6 6
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 3 (2002) |
Area | total:
259 sq km land: 259 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 27,830 sq km
land: 25,650 sq km water: 2,180 sq km |
Area - comparative | 1.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | The Cayman Islands were colonized from Jamaica by the British during the 18th and 19th centuries. Administered by Jamaica from 1863, they remained a British dependency after 1962 when the former became independent. | 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. |
Birth rate | 13.79 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 39.87 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$265.2 million expenditures: $248.9 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997) |
revenues: $125 million
expenditures: $176 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | George Town | Bujumbura |
Climate | tropical marine; warm, rainy summers (May to October) and cool, relatively dry winters (November to April) | 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 |
Coastline | 160 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 1959, revised 1972 and 1992 | 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 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Cayman Islands |
conventional long form: Republic of Burundi
conventional short form: Burundi local long form: Republika y'u Burundi local short form: Burundi former: Urundi |
Currency | Caymanian dollar (KYD) | Burundi franc (BIF) |
Death rate | 5.15 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 16.3 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $70 million (1996) | $1.12 billion (2001 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 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 |
Disputes - international | none | 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 |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $74 million (1999) |
Economy - overview | With no direct taxation, the islands are a thriving offshore financial center. More than 40,000 companies were registered in the Cayman Islands as of 1997, including almost 600 banks and trust companies; banking assets exceed $500 billion. A stock exchange was opened in 1997. Tourism is also a mainstay, accounting for about 70% of GDP and 75% of foreign currency earnings. The tourist industry is aimed at the luxury market and caters mainly to visitors from North America. Total tourist arrivals exceeded 1.2 million visitors in 1997. About 90% of the islands' food and consumer goods must be imported. The Caymanians enjoy one of the highest outputs per capita and one of the highest standards of living in the world. | 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 306.9 million kWh (1999) | 166.64 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 29 million kWh
note: supplied by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2000) |
Electricity - production | 330 million kWh (1999) | 148 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 1%
hydro: 99% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: The Bluff 43 m |
lowest point: Lake Tanganyika 772 m
highest point: Mount Heha 2,670 m |
Environment - current issues | no natural fresh water resources; drinking water supplies must be met by rainwater catchment | 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
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban |
Ethnic groups | mixed 40%, white 20%, black 20%, expatriates of various ethnic groups 20% | Hutu (Bantu) 85%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 14%, Twa (Pygmy) 1%, Europeans 3,000, South Asians 2,000 |
Exchange rates | Caymanian dollars per US dollar - 0.83 (3 November 1995), 0.85 (22 November 1993) | Burundi francs per US dollar - 865.14 (January 2002), 830.35 (2001), 720.67 (2000), 563.56 (1999), 477.77 (1998), 352.35 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); Governor and President of the Executive Council Peter SMITH (since 5 May 1999) head of government: Kurt TIBBETTS (since November 2000) cabinet: Executive Council (three members appointed by the governor, four members elected by the Legislative Assembly) elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the governor is appointed by the monarch |
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 |
Exports | $1.5 million (1998) | $24 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Exports - commodities | turtle products, manufactured consumer goods | coffee, tea, sugar, cotton, hides |
Exports - partners | mostly US | EU 52.5%, US 11.5%, Kenya 11.5%, Switzerland 4.9% (2000 est.) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Caymanian coat of arms on a white disk centered on the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms includes a pineapple and turtle above a shield with three stars (representing the three islands) and a scroll at the bottom bearing the motto HE HATH FOUNDED IT UPON THE SEAS | 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) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $930 million (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3.7 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
1.4% industry: 3.2% services: 95.4% (1994 est.) |
agriculture: 50%
industry: 18% services: 32% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $24,500 (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $600 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.9% (1999 est.) | 1.4% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 19 30 N, 80 30 W | 3 30 S, 30 00 E |
Geography - note | important location between Cuba and Central America | landlocked; straddles crest of the Nile-Congo watershed; the Kagera, which drains into Lake Victoria, is the most remote headstream of the White Nile |
Highways | total:
406 km paved: 304 km unpaved: 102 km |
total: 14,480 km
paved: 1,028 km unpaved: 13,452 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 27% (1992) (1992) |
Illicit drugs | vulnerable to drug money laundering and drug transshipment to the US and Europe | - |
Imports | $507.6 million (1998) | $125 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, manufactured goods | capital goods, petroleum products, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | US, Trinidad and Tobago, UK, Netherlands Antilles, Japan | EU 37.6%, Tanzania 10.3%, Zambia 4.3%, India 3.4%, China 3.4% (2000 est.) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 1 July 1962 (from UN trusteeship under Belgian administration) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 6.3% (1999 est.) |
Industries | tourism, banking, insurance and finance, construction, construction materials, furniture | light consumer goods such as blankets, shoes, soap; assembly of imported components; public works construction; food processing |
Infant mortality rate | 10.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 69.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3% (1998) | 14% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | Caricom (observer), CDB, Interpol (subbureau), IOC, UNESCO (associate) | 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 |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 16 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 740 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Summary Court; Grand Court; Cayman Islands Court of Appeal | 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) |
Labor force | 19,820 (1995) | 1.9 million |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 1.4%, industry 12.6%, services 86% (1995) | NA |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 974 km
border countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo 233 km, Rwanda 290 km, Tanzania 451 km |
Land use | arable land:
0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 8% forests and woodland: 23% other: 69% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 29.98%
permanent crops: 12.85% other: 57.17% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English | Kirundi (official), French (official), Swahili (along Lake Tanganyika and in the Bujumbura area) |
Legal system | British common law and local statutes | based on German and Belgian civil codes and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly (18 seats, three appointed members and 15 elected by popular vote; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 8 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2004) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - NA |
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 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
79.03 years male: 76.24 years female: 81.43 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 45.94 years
male: 45.08 years female: 46.83 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 98% male: 98% female: 98% (1970 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 35.3% male: 49.3% female: 22.5% (1995 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island group in Caribbean Sea, nearly one-half of the way from Cuba to Honduras | Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive fishing zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total:
106 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,656,452 GRT/2,643,036 DWT ships by type: bulk 21, cargo 5, chemical tanker 27, container 4, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 13, refrigerated cargo 30, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Cyprus 2, Denmark 2, Finland 1, Greece 11, Norway 3, UK 3, US 3 (2000 est.) |
- |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | - |
Military branches | Royal Cayman Islands Police Force (RCIPF) | 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 | Constitution Day, first Monday in July | Independence Day, 1 July (1962) |
Nationality | noun:
Caymanian(s) adjective: Caymanian |
noun: Burundian(s)
adjective: Burundi |
Natural hazards | hurricanes (July to November) | flooding, landslides, drought |
Natural resources | fish, climate and beaches that foster tourism | nickel, uranium, rare earth oxides, peat, cobalt, copper, platinum (not yet exploited), vanadium, arable land, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 12.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
note: major destination for Cubans trying to migrate to the US |
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | there are no formal political parties but the following loose groupings act as political organizations; National Team; Democratic Alliance; Team Cayman | 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] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Loosely organized Hutu and Tutsi militias, often affiliated with Hutu and Tutsi extremist parties or subordinate to government security forces |
Population | 35,527 (July 2001 est.) | 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.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 70% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.12% (2001 est.) | 2.36% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cayman Brac, George Town | Bujumbura |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 0, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001) |
Radios | 36,000 (1997) | 440,000 (2001) |
Railways | 0 km | 0 km |
Religions | United Church (Presbyterian and Congregational), Anglican, Baptist, Roman Catholic, Church of God, other Protestant | Christian 67% (Roman Catholic 62%, Protestant 5%), indigenous beliefs 23%, Muslim 10% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
0.86 male(s)/female under 15 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
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.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | NA years of age; universal adult |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: 1 submarine coaxial cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
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) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 19,000 (1995) | 20,000 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,534 (1995) | 16,300 (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 1 (2001) |
Terrain | low-lying limestone base surrounded by coral reefs | hilly and mountainous, dropping to a plateau in east, some plains |
Total fertility rate | 2.04 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 6.07 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.1% (1997) | NA% |
Waterways | none | Lake Tanganyika |