Rwanda (2001) | Equatorial Guinea (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | 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 | 7 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Annobon, Bioko Norte, Bioko Sur, Centro Sur, Kie-Ntem, Litoral, Wele-Nzas |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
42.4% (male 1,555,878; female 1,544,942) 15-64 years: 54.73% (male 1,989,501; female 2,013,012) 65 years and over: 2.87% (male 83,769; female 125,654) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 42.2% (male 108,179; female 107,164)
15-64 years: 54% (male 132,342; female 143,509) 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 8,576; female 10,703) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, tea, pyrethrum (insecticide made from chrysanthemums), bananas, beans, sorghum, potatoes; livestock | coffee, cocoa, rice, yams, cassava (tapioca), bananas, palm oil nuts; livestock; timber |
Airports | 8 (2000 est.) | 3 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
4 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
4 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Area | total:
26,338 sq km land: 24,948 sq km water: 1,390 sq km |
total: 28,051 sq km
land: 28,051 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | In 1959, three years before independence, 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 (RPF) 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, now called the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DROC). 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. | Equatorial Guinea gained independence in 1968 after 190 years of Spanish rule. President OBIANG NGUEM MBASOGO has ruled the tiny country, composed of a mainland portion plus five inhabited islands and one of the smallest countries on the African continent, since he seized power in a coup in 1979. Although nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, the 1996 and 2002 presidential elections - as well as the 1999 legislative elections - were widely seen as being flawed. |
Birth rate | 33.97 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 36.94 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$198 million expenditures: $411 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $200 million
expenditures: $158 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | Kigali | Malabo |
Climate | temperate; two rainy seasons (February to April, November to January); mild in mountains with frost and snow possible | tropical; always hot, humid |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 296 km |
Constitution | 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 | approved by national referendum 17 November 1991; amended January 1995 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Rwandese Republic conventional short form: Rwanda local long form: Republika y'u Rwanda local short form: Rwanda former: Ruanda |
conventional long form: Republic of Equatorial Guinea
conventional short form: Equatorial Guinea local long form: Republica de Guinea Ecuatorial local short form: Guinea Ecuatorial former: Spanish Guinea |
Currency | Rwandan franc (RWF) | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States |
Death rate | 21.13 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 12.54 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.3 billion (1999) | $248 million (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador George M. STAPLES embassy: Boulevard de la Revolution, Kigali mailing address: B. P. 28, Kigali telephone: [250] 756 01 through 03, 721 26, 771 47 FAX: [250] 721 28 |
the US does not have an embassy in Equatorial Guinea (embassy closed September 1995); the US ambassador to Cameroon is accredited to Equatorial Guinea; the US State Department is considering opening a Consulate Agency in Malabo |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Richard SEZIBERA chancery: 1714 New Hampshire Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 232-2882 FAX: [1] (202) 232-4544 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Teodoro Biyogo NSUE
chancery: 2020 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 518-5700 FAX: [1] (202) 518-5252 |
Disputes - international | Rwandan military forces are supporting the rebel forces in the civil war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo | in 2002, ICJ ruled on an equidistance settlement of Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea, but states have not yet agreed to abide by the decision; creation of a maritime boundary in hydrocarbon-rich Corisco Bay with Gabon is hampered by dispute over small islets on Mbane/Mbagne bank, administered and occupied by Gabon since the 1970s |
Economic aid - recipient | $591.5 million (1997); note - in summer 1998, Rwanda presented its policy objectives and development priorities to donor governments resulting in multiyear pledges in the amount of $250 million | $33.8 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Rwanda is a rural country with about 90% of the population engaged in (mainly subsistence) agriculture. It is the most densely populated country in Africa; is landlocked; and has few natural resources and minimal industry. Primary exports 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 significant progress in stabilizing and rehabilitating its economy. GDP has rebounded, and inflation has been curbed. In June 1998, Rwanda signed an Enhanced Structural Adjustment Facility (ESAF) with the IMF. Rwanda has also embarked upon an ambitious privatization program with the World Bank. Continued growth in 2001 depends on the maintenance of international aid levels and the strengthening of world prices of coffee and tea. | The discovery and exploitation of large oil reserves have contributed to dramatic economic growth in recent years. Forestry, farming, and fishing are also major components of GDP. Subsistence farming predominates. Although pre-independence Equatorial Guinea counted on cocoa production for hard currency earnings, the neglect of the rural economy under successive regimes has diminished potential for agriculture-led growth (the government has stated its intention to reinvest some oil revenue into agriculture). A number of aid programs sponsored by the World Bank and the IMF have been cut off since 1993 because of corruption and mismanagement. No longer eligible for concessional financing because of large oil revenues, the government has been unsuccessfully trying to agree on a "shadow" fiscal management program with the World Bank and IMF. Businesses, for the most part, are owned by government officials and their family members. Undeveloped natural resources include titanium, iron ore, manganese, uranium, and alluvial gold. Growth will remain strong in 2003, led by oil. |
Electricity - consumption | 191.8 million kWh (1999) | 21.91 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 1 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 70 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 132 million kWh (1999) | 23.56 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
3.03% hydro: 96.97% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 94.3%
hydro: 5.7% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Rusizi River 950 m highest point: Volcan Karisimbi 4,519 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico Basile 3,008 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation results from uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel; overgrazing; soil exhaustion; soil erosion; widespread poaching | tap water is not potable; deforestation |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Nuclear Test Ban signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Hutu 84%, Tutsi 15%, Twa (Pygmoid) 1% | Bioko (primarily Bubi, some Fernandinos), Rio Muni (primarily Fang), Europeans less than 1,000, mostly Spanish |
Exchange rates | Rwandan francs per US dollar - 432.24 (January 2001), 389.70 (2000), 333.94 (1999) 312.31 (1998), 301.53 (1997), 306.82 (1996) | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.7 (1999), 589.95 (1998) |
Executive branch | 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: normally the president is elected by popular vote for a five-year term; special election for new president by deputies of the National Assembly and governmental ministers held 17 April 2000 (next national election to be held NA 2003); prime minister is appointed by the president election results: Paul KAGAME (FPR) elected president in a special parliamentary/ministerial ballot receiving 81 of a possible 86 votes |
chief of state: President Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO (since 3 August 1979 when he seized power in a military coup)
head of government: Prime Minister Candido Muatetema RIVAS (since 26 February 2001); First Deputy Prime Minister Miguel OYONO NDONG (since NA January 1998); Deputy Prime Minister Demetrio Elo NDONG NZE FUMU (since NA January 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 15 December 2002 (next to be held NA December 2009); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO reelected president; percent of vote - Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO 97.1%, Celestino Bonifacio BACALE 2.2%; elections marred by widespread fraud |
Exports | $68.4 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | coffee, tea, hides, tin ore | petroleum, methanol, timber, cocoa |
Exports - partners | Germany, Belgium, Pakistan, Italy, Kenya | US 28.3%, Spain 25.3%, China 17.4%, Canada 10.6%, France 4.9% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 January - 31 December |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of red (hoist side), yellow, and green with a large black letter R centered in the yellow band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia; similar to the flag of Guinea, which has a plain yellow band | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side and the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms has six yellow six-pointed stars (representing the mainland and five offshore islands) above a gray shield bearing a silk-cotton tree and below which is a scroll with the motto UNIDAD, PAZ, JUSTICIA (Unity, Peace, Justice) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $6.4 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1.27 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
40% industry: 20% services: 40% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 20%
industry: 60% services: 20% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $900 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,700 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.8% (2000 est.) | 20% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 2 00 S, 30 00 E | 2 00 N, 10 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; predominantly rural population | insular and continental regions rather widely separated |
Highways | total:
12,000 km paved: 1,000 km unpaved: 11,000 km (1997 est.) |
total: 2,880 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
4.2% highest 10%: 24.2% (1983-85) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $245.9 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, steel, petroleum products, cement and construction material | petroleum sector equipment, other equipment |
Imports - partners | Kenya, Tanzania, US, Benelux, France, India | US 29.1%, Spain 15.9%, UK 14.8%, France 10.4%, Norway 7.2%, Netherlands 4.8%, Italy 4.7% (2002) |
Independence | 1 July 1962 (from Belgium-administered UN trusteeship) | 12 October 1968 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | 8.7% (1998 est.) | 30% (2002 est.) |
Industries | cement, agricultural products, small-scale beverages, soap, furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles, cigarettes | petroleum, fishing, sawmilling, natural gas |
Infant mortality rate | 118.92 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 89.02 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 95.25 deaths/1,000 live births female: 82.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4% (2000) | 6% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, CCC, CEEAC, CEPGL, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CEEAC, CEMAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OAU, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 1 (2002) |
Irrigated land | 40 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; communal courts; appeals courts | Supreme Tribunal |
Labor force | 3.6 million | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 90% | - |
Land boundaries | total:
893 km border countries: Burundi 290 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 217 km, Tanzania 217 km, Uganda 169 km |
total: 539 km
border countries: Cameroon 189 km, Gabon 350 km |
Land use | arable land:
35% permanent crops: 13% permanent pastures: 18% forests and woodland: 22% other: 12% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 4.63%
permanent crops: 3.57% other: 91.8% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Kinyarwanda (official) universal Bantu vernacular, French (official), English (official), Kiswahili (Swahili) used in commercial centers | Spanish (official), French (official), pidgin English, Fang, Bubi, Ibo |
Legal system | 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 | partly based on Spanish civil law and tribal custom |
Legislative branch | unicameral Transitional National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale de Transition (a power-sharing body with 70 seats established on 12 December 1994 following a multiparty protocol of understanding; members were named by their parties, number of seats per party predetermined by the Arusha peace accord)
note: four additional seats, two for women and two for youth, added in 2001 elections: the last national legislative elections were held 16 December 1988 for the National Development Council (the legislature prior to the advent of the Transitional National Assembly); no elections have been held for the Transitional National Assembly as the distribution of seats was predetermined by the Arusha peace accord election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FPR 13, MDR 13, PSD 13, PL 13, PDC 6, RPA 6, PSR 2, PDI 2, UDPR 2; note - the distribution of seats was predetermined, four additional seats (two for women and two for youth) added in 2001 |
unicameral House of People's Representatives or Camara de Representantes del Pueblo (80 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 7 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - PDGE 80%, UP 6%, CPDS 5%; seats by party - PDGE 75, UP 4 and CPDS 1 note: opposition parties have refused to take up their seats in the House to protest widespread irregularities in the 1999 legislative elections |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
38.99 years male: 38.35 years female: 39.65 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 54.75 years
male: 52.63 years female: 56.93 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 48% male: 52% female: 45% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 85.7% male: 93.3% female: 78.4% (2003 est.) |
Location | Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Cameroon and Gabon |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 7,571 GRT/9,670 DWT
ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 1, passenger/cargo 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force | Army, Navy, Air Force, Rapid Intervention Force, National Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $58 million (FY01) | $30 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.2% (FY01) | 2.5% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,815,633 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 116,496 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
924,544 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 59,110 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 July (1962) | Independence Day, 12 October (1968) |
Nationality | noun:
Rwandan(s) adjective: Rwandan |
noun: Equatorial Guinean(s) or Equatoguinean(s)
adjective: Equatorial Guinean or Equatoguinean |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts; the volcanic Virunga mountains are in the northwest along the border with Democratic Republic of the Congo | violent windstorms, flash floods |
Natural resources | gold, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore), methane, hydropower, arable land | oil, petroleum, timber, small unexploited deposits of gold, manganese, uranium, titanium, iron ore |
Net migration rate | -1.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | condensate 37 km; gas 39 km; liquid natural gas 4 km; oil 24 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | Centrist Democratic Party or PDC [Jean-Nipomuscene NAYINZIRA]; Democratic Socialist Party or PSD [Charles NTAKIRUTINKA, Vincent BIRUTA, Augusin IYAMUREMYE]; Democratic Popular Union of Rwanda or UDPR [Adrien RANGIRA]; Democratic Republican Movement or MDR [Celestin KABANDA, Emile NTWARABAKIGA, Christian MARARA]; Islamic Democratic Party or PDI [Andre BUMAYA]; Liberal Party or PL [Pie MUGABO, Enock KABERA, Prosper MUGIRANEZA]; Rwanda Patriotic Army or RPA [Maj. Gen. Paul KAGAME, commander]; Rwanda Patriotic Front or FPR [Maj. Gen. Paul KAGAME]; Rwandan Socialist Party or PSR [Medard RUTIJANWA] | Convergence Party for Social Democracy or CPDS [Placido MIKO Abogo]; Democratic Party for Equatorial Guinea or PDGE (ruling party) [Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO]; Party for Progress of Equatorial Guinea or PPGE [Severo MOTO]; Popular Action of Equatorial Guinea or APGE [Miguel Esono EMAN]; Popular Union or UP [Andres Moises Bda ADA]; Progressive Democratic Alliance or ADP [Victorino Bolekia BONAY]; Union of Independent Democrats of UDI [Daniel OYONO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | IBUKA - association of genocide survivors | NA |
Population | 7,312,756
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.) |
510,473 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 70% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.16% (2001 est.) | 2.44% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cyangugu, Gisenyi, Kibuye | Bata, Luba, Malabo |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 5 (2002) |
Radios | 601,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 0 km |
Religions | Roman Catholic 52.7%, Protestant 24%, Adventist 10.4%, Muslim 1.9%, indigenous beliefs and other 6.5%, none 4.5% (1996) | nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic, pagan practices |
Sex ratio | 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: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal adult | 18 years of age; universal adult |
Telephone system | 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; the remainder 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) |
general assessment: poor system with adequate government services
domestic: NA international: international communications from Bata and Malabo to African and European countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 15,000 (1995) | 6,000 (1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA
note: however, Rwanda has mobile cellular service between Kigali and several prefecture capitals (2000) |
300 (1998) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1997) | 1 (2002) |
Terrain | mostly grassy uplands and hills; relief is mountainous with altitude declining from west to east | coastal plains rise to interior hills; islands are volcanic |
Total fertility rate | 4.89 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 4.75 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 30% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | note:
Lac Kivu navigable by shallow-draft barges and native craft |
none |