Rwanda (2001) | Mayotte (2005) | |
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 | none (territorial collectivity of France) |
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: 46.2% (male 44,926/female 44,521)
15-64 years: 52.1% (male 54,713/female 46,156) 65 years and over: 1.7% (male 1,666/female 1,651) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, tea, pyrethrum (insecticide made from chrysanthemums), bananas, beans, sorghum, potatoes; livestock | vanilla, ylang-ylang (perfume essence), coffee, copra |
Airports | 8 (2000 est.) | 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
4 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
4 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
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Area | total:
26,338 sq km land: 24,948 sq km water: 1,390 sq km |
total: 374 sq km
land: 374 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC |
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. | Mayotte was ceded to France along with the other islands of the Comoros group in 1843. It was the only island in the archipelago that voted in 1974 to retain its link with France and forego independence. |
Birth rate | 33.97 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 41.58 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$198 million expenditures: $411 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: NA
expenditures: $73 million, including capital expenditures of NA (1991 est.) |
Capital | Kigali | Mamoutzou |
Climate | temperate; two rainy seasons (February to April, November to January); mild in mountains with frost and snow possible | tropical; marine; hot, humid, rainy season during northeastern monsoon (November to May); dry season is cooler (May to November) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 185.2 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 | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) |
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: Territorial Collectivity of Mayotte
conventional short form: Mayotte |
Currency | Rwandan franc (RWF) | - |
Death rate | 21.13 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.9 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.3 billion (1999) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | territorial collectivity of France |
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 |
none (territorial collectivity of France) |
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 |
none (territorial collectivity of France) |
Disputes - international | Rwandan military forces are supporting the rebel forces in the civil war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo | claimed by Comoros |
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 | $107.7 million; note - extensive French financial assistance (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. | Economic activity is based primarily on the agricultural sector, including fishing and livestock raising. Mayotte is not self-sufficient and must import a large portion of its food requirements, mainly from France. The economy and future development of the island are heavily dependent on French financial assistance, an important supplement to GDP. Mayotte's remote location is an obstacle to the development of tourism. |
Electricity - consumption | 191.8 million kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 1 million kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - imports | 70 million kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - production | 132 million kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
3.03% hydro: 96.97% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Rusizi River 950 m highest point: Volcan Karisimbi 4,519 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Benara 660 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation results from uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel; overgrazing; soil exhaustion; soil erosion; widespread poaching | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Nuclear Test Ban signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
- |
Ethnic groups | Hutu 84%, Tutsi 15%, Twa (Pygmoid) 1% | NA |
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) | euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000) |
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 Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Jean-Paul KIHL (since 17 January 2005)
head of government: President of the General Council Said Omar OILI (since NA 2004) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of the Interior; president of the General Council elected by the members of the General Council for a six-year term |
Exports | $68.4 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $3.44 million f.o.b. (1997) |
Exports - commodities | coffee, tea, hides, tin ore | ylang-ylang (perfume essence), vanilla, copra, coconuts, coffee, cinnamon |
Exports - partners | Germany, Belgium, Pakistan, Italy, Kenya | France 80%, Comoros 15%, Reunion (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
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 | the flag of France is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $6.4 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
40% industry: 20% services: 40% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $900 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,600 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.8% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 2 00 S, 30 00 E | 12 50 S, 45 10 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; predominantly rural population | part of Comoro Archipelago; 18 islands |
Highways | total:
12,000 km paved: 1,000 km unpaved: 11,000 km (1997 est.) |
total: 93 km
paved: 72 km unpaved: 21 km |
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.) | $141.3 million f.o.b. (1997) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, steel, petroleum products, cement and construction material | food, machinery and equipment, transportation equipment, metals, chemicals |
Imports - partners | Kenya, Tanzania, US, Benelux, France, India | France 66%, Africa 14%, Southeast Asia 11% (2000 est.) |
Independence | 1 July 1962 (from Belgium-administered UN trusteeship) | none (territorial collectivity of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 8.7% (1998 est.) | NA% |
Industries | cement, agricultural products, small-scale beverages, soap, furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles, cigarettes | newly created lobster and shrimp industry, construction |
Infant mortality rate | 118.92 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 62.4 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 68.51 deaths/1,000 live births female: 56.11 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4% (2000) | NA% |
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 | UPU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 40 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; communal courts; appeals courts | Supreme Court or Tribunal Superieur d'Appel |
Labor force | 3.6 million | 48,800 (2000) |
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 |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
35% permanent crops: 13% permanent pastures: 18% forests and woodland: 22% other: 12% (1993 est.) |
arable land: NA%
permanent crops: NA% other: NA% |
Languages | Kinyarwanda (official) universal Bantu vernacular, French (official), English (official), Kiswahili (Swahili) used in commercial centers | Mahorian (a Swahili dialect), French (official language) spoken by 35% of the population |
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 | French law |
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 General Council or Conseil General (19 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 21 and 28 March 2004 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - MDM 23.3%, UMP 22.8%, PS 10.2%, MRC 8.9%, FRAP 6.5%, MPM 1.2%; seats by party - MDM 6, UMP 9, MRC 2, MPM 1, diverse left 1 note: Mayotte elects one member of the French Senate; elections last held 24 September 2001 (next to be held September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Mayotte also elects one member to the French National Assembly; elections last held 16 June 2002 (next to be held as a special election in June 2005); results - percent of vote by party - UMP-RPR 55.08%, UDF 44.92%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
38.99 years male: 38.35 years female: 39.65 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 61.39 years
male: 59.22 years female: 63.62 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 48% male: 52% female: 45% (1995 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo | Southern Africa, island in the Mozambique Channel, about one-half of the way from northern Madagascar to northern Mozambique |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France; small contingent of French forces stationed on the island |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $58 million (FY01) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.2% (FY01) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,815,633 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
924,544 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 July (1962) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun:
Rwandan(s) adjective: Rwandan |
noun: Mahorais (singular and plural)
adjective: Mahoran |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts; the volcanic Virunga mountains are in the northwest along the border with Democratic Republic of the Congo | cyclones during rainy season |
Natural resources | gold, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore), methane, hydropower, arable land | NEGL |
Net migration rate | -1.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.62 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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] | Democratic Front or FD [Youssouf MOUSSA]; Mahoran Popular Movement or MPM [Ahmed MADI]; FARC [leader NA]; Federation of Mahorans or RPR (UMP) [Mansour KAMARDINE]; Movement for Department Status Mayotte or MDM [Mouhoutar SALIM]; Renewed Communist Party of Mayotte or MRC [Omar SIMBA]; Socialist Party or PS (local branch of French Parti Socialiste) [Ibrahim ABUBACAR]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Henri JEAN-BAPTISTE] |
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.) |
193,633 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 70% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.16% (2001 est.) | 3.93% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cyangugu, Gisenyi, Kibuye | Dzaoudzi |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2001) |
Radios | 601,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 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) | Muslim 97%, Christian (mostly Roman Catholic) |
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: 1.18 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.01 male(s)/female total population: 1.1 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal adult | 18 years of age; universal |
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: small system administered by French Department of Posts and Telecommunications
domestic: NA international: country code - 269; microwave radio relay and HF radiotelephone communications to Comoros (2001) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 15,000 (1995) | 10,000 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA
note: however, Rwanda has mobile cellular service between Kigali and several prefecture capitals (2000) |
21,700 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1997) | 3 (2001) |
Terrain | mostly grassy uplands and hills; relief is mountainous with altitude declining from west to east | generally undulating, with deep ravines and ancient volcanic peaks |
Total fertility rate | 4.89 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 5.89 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 38% (1999) |
Waterways | note:
Lac Kivu navigable by shallow-draft barges and native craft |
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