Guyana (2001) | Rwanda (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | 10 regions; Barima-Waini, Cuyuni-Mazaruni, Demerara-Mahaica, East Berbice-Corentyne, Essequibo Islands-West Demerara, Mahaica-Berbice, Pomeroon-Supenaam, Potaro-Siparuni, Upper Demerara-Berbice, Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo | 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 |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
28.19% (male 100,194; female 96,309) 15-64 years: 66.89% (male 234,976; female 231,360) 65 years and over: 4.92% (male 15,324; female 19,018) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 42.5% (male 1,667,128; female 1,651,422)
15-64 years: 54.8% (male 2,128,495; female 2,148,694) 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 85,576; female 128,741) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | sugar, rice, wheat, vegetable oils; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products; forest and fishery potential not exploited | coffee, tea, pyrethrum (insecticide made from chrysanthemums), bananas, beans, sorghum, potatoes; livestock |
Airports | 51 (2000 est.) | 9 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
6 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
45 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 36 (2000 est.) |
total: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 3 (2002) |
Area | total:
214,970 sq km land: 196,850 sq km water: 18,120 sq km |
total: 26,338 sq km
land: 24,948 sq km water: 1,390 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Idaho | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | Guyana achieved independence from the UK in 1966 and became a republic in 1970. In 1989 Guyana launched an Economic Recovery Program, which marked a dramatic reversal from a state-controlled, socialist economy towards a more open, free market system. Results through the first decade have proven encouraging. | 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, 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 Zaire. Since then, most of the refugees have returned to Rwanda. Despite substantial international assistance and political reforms - including Rwanda's first local elections in March 1999 - the country continues to struggle to boost investment and agricultural output and to foster reconciliation. A series of massive population displacements, a nagging Hutu extremist insurgency, and Rwandan involvement in two wars over the past four years in the neighboring DROC continue to hinder Rwanda's efforts. |
Birth rate | 17.92 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 40.1 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$220.1 million expenditures: $286.4 million, including capital expenditures of $86.6 million (1998) |
revenues: $199.3 million
expenditures: $445 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | Georgetown | Kigali |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; two rainy seasons (May to mid-August, mid-November to mid-January) | temperate; two rainy seasons (February to April, November to January); mild in mountains with frost and snow possible |
Coastline | 459 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 6 October 1980 | on 5 May 1995, the Transitional National Assembly adopted as Fundamental Law the constitution of 18 June 1991, provisions of the 1993 Arusha peace accord, the July 1994 Declaration by the Rwanda Patriotic Front, and the November 1994 multiparty protocol of understanding |
Country name | conventional long form:
Co-operative Republic of Guyana conventional short form: Guyana former: British Guiana |
conventional long form: Rwandese Republic
conventional short form: Rwanda local long form: Republika y'u Rwanda local short form: Rwanda former: Ruanda |
Currency | Guyanese dollar (GYD) | Rwandan franc (RWF) |
Death rate | 8.87 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 21.72 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.1 billion (2000) | $1.3 billion (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Ronald D. GODARD embassy: 100 Young and Duke Streets, Kingston, Georgetown mailing address: P. O. Box 10507, Georgetown telephone: [592] (2) 54900 through 54909, 57960 through 57969 FAX: [592] (2) 58497 |
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 Dr. Ali Odeen ISHMAEL chancery: 2490 Tracy Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-6900 consulate(s) general: New York |
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 |
Disputes - international | all of the area west of the Essequibo (river) claimed by Venezuela; Suriname claims area between New (Upper Courantyne) and Courantyne/Kutari [Koetari] rivers (all headwaters of the Courantyne) | Tutsi, Hutu, 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 |
Economic aid - recipient | $84 million (1995), Heavily Indebted Poor Country Initiative (HIPC) $253 million (1997) | $372.9 million (1999) |
Economy - overview | Severe drought and political turmoil contributed to Guyana's negative growth of -1.8% for 1998 following six straight years of growth of 5% or better. Growth came back to a positive 1.8% in 1999 and 3% in 2000. Underlying growth factors have included expansion in the key agricultural and mining sectors, a more favorable atmosphere for business initiative, a more realistic exchange rate, a moderate inflation rate, and continued support by international organizations. President JAGDEO, the former finance minister, is taking steps to reform the economy, including drafting an investment code and restructuring the inefficient and unresponsive public sector. Problems include a shortage of skilled labor and a deficient infrastructure. The government must persist in efforts to manage its sizable external debt and attract new investment. | 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 amounts of 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 | 423.2 million kWh (1999) | 140 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 50 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 455 million kWh (1999) | 96.78 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
98.9% hydro: 1.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 2.3%
hydro: 97.7% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Roraima 2,835 m |
lowest point: Rusizi River 950 m
highest point: Volcan Karisimbi 4,519 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution from sewage and agricultural and industrial chemicals; deforestation | 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, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94 signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | East Indian 49%, black 32%, mixed 12%, Amerindian 6%, white and Chinese 1% | Hutu 84%, Tutsi 15%, Twa (Pygmoid) 1% |
Exchange rates | Guyanese dollars per US dollar - 184.1 (November 2000), 182.2 (2000), 178.0 (1999), 150.5 (1998), 142.4 (1997), 140.4 (1996) | Rwandan francs per US dollar - 475.37 (2002), 442.99 (2001), 389.7 (2000), 333.94 (1999), 312.31 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Bharrat JAGDEO (since 11 August 1999); note - assumed presidency after resignation of President JAGAN head of government: Prime Minister Samuel HINDS (since NA December 1997) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president, responsible to the legislature elections: president elected by the majority party in the National Assembly following legislative elections, which must be held at least every five years; elections last held 19 March 2001 (next to be held NA); prime minister appointed by the president election results: President Bharrat JAGDEO reelected; percent of legislative vote - NA% |
chief of state: President Maj. Gen. Paul KAGAME (FPR) (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 (RPF) 95.05%, Faustin TWAGIRAMUNGU 3.62%, Jean-Nepomuscene NAYINZIRA 1.33% |
Exports | $570 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | sugar, gold, bauxite/alumina, rice, shrimp, molasses, rum, timber | coffee, tea, hides, tin ore |
Exports - partners | US 22%, Canada 22%, UK 18%, Netherlands Antilles 11%, Jamaica (1999) | Indonesia 30.8%, Germany 14.6%, Hong Kong 9%, South Africa 5.5% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | green, with a red isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) superimposed on a long, yellow arrowhead; there is a narrow, black border between the red and yellow, and a narrow, white border between the yellow and the green | 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $3.4 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $8.92 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
34.7% industry: 32.5% services: 32.8% (1998 est.) |
agriculture: 45%
industry: 20% services: 35% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,800 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,200 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2000 est.) | 9.7% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 5 00 N, 59 00 W | 2 00 S, 30 00 E |
Geography - note | - | landlocked; most of the country is savanna grassland with the population predominantly rural |
Highways | total:
7,970 km paved: 590 km unpaved: 7,380 km (1996) |
total: 12,000 km
paved: 996 km unpaved: 11,004 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 4.2%
highest 10%: 24.2% (1985) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for narcotics from South America - primarily Venezuela - to Europe and the US; producer of cannabis | - |
Imports | $660 million (c.i.f., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | manufactures, machinery, petroleum, food | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, steel, petroleum products, cement and construction material |
Imports - partners | US 29%, Trinidad and Tobago 18%, Netherlands Antilles 16%, UK 7%, Japan (1999) | Kenya 21.8%, Germany 8.4%, Belgium 7.9%, Israel 4.3% (2002) |
Independence | 26 May 1966 (from UK) | 1 July 1962 (from Belgium-administered UN trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7.1% (1997 est.) | 7% (2001 est.) |
Industries | bauxite, sugar, rice milling, timber, fishing (shrimp), textiles, gold mining | cement, agricultural products, small-scale beverages, soap, furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles, cigarettes |
Infant mortality rate | 38.72 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 102.61 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 107.66 deaths/1,000 live births female: 97.41 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5.9% (2000 est.) | 5.5% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, C, Caricom, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OIC, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CEEAC, CEPGL, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 3 (2000) | 2 (2002) |
Irrigated land | 1,300 sq km (1993 est.) | 40 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court of Judicature; Judicial Court of Appeal; High Court | Supreme Court; communal courts; appeals courts |
Labor force | 245,492 (1992) | 4.6 million (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | agriculture 90% |
Land boundaries | total:
2,462 km border countries: Brazil 1,119 km, Suriname 600 km, Venezuela 743 km |
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:
2% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 6% forests and woodland: 84% other: 8% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 32.43%
permanent crops: 10.13% other: 57.44% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English, Amerindian dialects, Creole, Hindi, Urdu | Kinyarwanda (official) universal Bantu vernacular, French (official), English (official), Kiswahili (Swahili) used in commercial centers |
Legal system | based on English common law with certain admixtures of Roman-Dutch law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | 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 (65 seats, 53 elected by popular vote, 10 elected by the ten Regional Democratic Councils, and 2 elected by the National Congress of Local Democratic Organs; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 19 March 2001 (next to be held NA March 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PPP/C 34, PNC 27, GAP and WPA 2, ROAR 1, TUF 1 |
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 - FPR 40, PSD 7, PL 6 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
63.31 years male: 60.52 years female: 66.24 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 39.33 years
male: 38.51 years female: 40.18 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school total population: 98.1% male: 98.6% female: 97.5% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 70.4% male: 76.3% female: 64.7% (2003 est.) |
Location | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Suriname and Venezuela | Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo |
Map references | South America | Africa |
Maritime claims | continental shelf:
200 NM or to the outer edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total:
2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,929 GRT/4,507 DWT ships by type: cargo 2 (2000 est.) |
- |
Military branches | Guyana Defense Force (GDF; includes Ground Forces, Coast Guard, and Air Corps), Guyana People's Militia (GPM), Guyana National Service (GNS), Guyana Police Force | Army, Navy, Air Force, Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $7 million (FY94) | $59.57 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.7% (FY94) | 3% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
204,938 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 1,932,637 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
154,259 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 982,909 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Republic Day, 23 February (1970) | Independence Day, 1 July (1962) |
Nationality | noun:
Guyanese (singular and plural) adjective: Guyanese |
noun: Rwandan(s)
adjective: Rwandan |
Natural hazards | flash floods are a constant threat during rainy seasons | periodic droughts; the volcanic Virunga mountains are in the northwest along the border with Democratic Republic of the Congo |
Natural resources | bauxite, gold, diamonds, hardwood timber, shrimp, fish | gold, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore), methane, hydropower, arable land |
Net migration rate | -8.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
People - note | - | Rwanda is the most densely populated country in Africa |
Political parties and leaders | Alliance for Guyana or AFG (includes Guyana Labor Party or GLP and Working People's Alliance or WPA [Rupert ROOPNARINE]; Guyana Action Party or GAP [leader NA]; Guyana Labor Party or GLP [leader NA]; People's National Congress or PNC [Hugh Desmond HOYTE]; People's Progressive Party or PPP [Janet JAGEN]; Rise, Organize and Rebuild or ROAR [Ravi DEV]; The United Force or TUF [Manzoor NADIR]; Working People's Alliance or WPA [Rupert ROOPARNINE] | Centrist Democratic Party or PDC [Jean-Nipomuscene NAYINZIRA]; Democratic Socialist Party or PSD [J. Damascene NTAWUKURIRYAYO]; Democratic Popular Union of Rwanda or UDPR [leader NA]; Democratic Republican Movement or MDR [Celestin KABANDA]; Islamic Democratic Party or PDI [Andre BUMAYA]; Liberal Party or PL [Pie MUGABO]; Party for Democratic Renewal (officially banned) [Pasteur BIZIMUNGU and Charles NTAKARUTINKA]; Rwanda Patriotic Front or FPR [Maj. Gen. Paul KAGAME]; Rwandan Socialist Party or PSR [leader NA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Civil Liberties Action Committee or CLAC; Guyana Council of Indian Organizations or GCIO; Rise, Organize and Rebuild or ROAR [Ravi DEV]; Trades Union Congress or TUC
note: the GCIO and the CLAC are small and active but not well organized |
IBUKA - association of genocide survivors |
Population | 697,181
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 2001 est.) |
7,810,056
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 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 60% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.07% (2001 est.) | 1.84% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bartica, Georgetown, Linden, New Amsterdam, Parika | Cyangugu, Gisenyi, Kibuye |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 3, shortwave 1 (1998) | 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) |
Radios | 420,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
187 km (all dedicated to ore transport) standard gauge: 139 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 48 km 0.914-m gauge |
0 km |
Religions | Christian 50%, Hindu 33%, Muslim 9%, other 8% | Roman Catholic 56.5%, Protestant 26%, Adventist 11.1%, Muslim 4.6%, indigenous beliefs 0.1%, none 1.7% (2001) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
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: 0.66 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal adult |
Telephone system | general assessment:
fair system for long-distance calling domestic: microwave radio relay network for trunk lines international: tropospheric scatter to Trinidad; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
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: 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 | 70,000 (2000) | 600,000 note - 90% in Kigali (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 6,100 (2000) | 81,000 (2001)
note: Rwanda has mobile cellular service between Kigali and several prefecture capitals (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (one public station; two private stations which relay US satellite services) (1997) | NA |
Terrain | mostly rolling highlands; low coastal plain; savanna in south | mostly grassy uplands and hills; relief is mountainous with altitude declining from west to east |
Total fertility rate | 2.1 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 5.6 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 12% (1992 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | 5,900 km (total length of navigable waterways)
note: Berbice, Demerara, and Essequibo rivers are navigable by oceangoing vessels for 150 km, 100 km, and 80 km, respectively |
note: Lac Kivu navigable by shallow-draft barges and native craft |