Rwanda (2001) | Seychelles (2004) | |
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 | 23 administrative districts; Anse aux Pins, Anse Boileau, Anse Etoile, Anse Louis, Anse Royale, Baie Lazare, Baie Sainte Anne, Beau Vallon, Bel Air, Bel Ombre, Cascade, Glacis, Grand' Anse (on Mahe), Grand' Anse (on Praslin), La Digue, La Riviere Anglaise, Mont Buxton, Mont Fleuri, Plaisance, Pointe La Rue, Port Glaud, Saint Louis, Takamaka |
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: 26.9% (male 10,987; female 10,717)
15-64 years: 66.9% (male 26,380; female 27,731) 65 years and over: 6.2% (male 1,638; female 3,379) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, tea, pyrethrum (insecticide made from chrysanthemums), bananas, beans, sorghum, potatoes; livestock | coconuts, cinnamon, vanilla, sweet potatoes, cassava (tapioca), bananas; broiler chickens; tuna fish |
Airports | 8 (2000 est.) | 15 (2003 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: 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
4 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 4 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
26,338 sq km land: 24,948 sq km water: 1,390 sq km |
total: 455 sq km
land: 455 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | 2.5 times 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. | A lengthy struggle between France and Great Britain for the islands ended in 1814, when they were ceded to the latter. Independence came in 1976. Socialist rule was brought to a close with a new constitution and free elections in 1993. The most recent presidential elections were held 31 August-2 September 2001. President RENE, who has served since 1977, was re-elected. On 14 April 2004 RENE stepped down and Vice President James MICHEL was sworn in as president. |
Birth rate | 33.97 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 16.55 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$198 million expenditures: $411 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $338.7 million
expenditures: $323.3 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
Capital | Kigali | Victoria |
Climate | temperate; two rainy seasons (February to April, November to January); mild in mountains with frost and snow possible | tropical marine; humid; cooler season during southeast monsoon (late May to September); warmer season during northwest monsoon (March to May) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 491 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 | 18 June 1993 |
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 Seychelles
conventional short form: Seychelles |
Currency | Rwandan franc (RWF) | Seychelles rupee (SCR) |
Death rate | 21.13 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.41 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.3 billion (1999) | $213 million (2003 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 Seychelles; the ambassador to Mauritius is accredited to the Seychelles |
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 Claude Sylvestre MOREL
chancery: 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400C, New York, NY 10017 telephone: [1] (212) 972-1785 FAX: [1] (212) 972-1786 |
Disputes - international | Rwandan military forces are supporting the rebel forces in the civil war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo | together with Mauritius, Seychelles claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory) |
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 | $16.4 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. | Since independence in 1976, per capita output in this Indian Ocean archipelago has expanded to roughly seven times the old near-subsistence level. Growth has been led by the tourist sector, which employs about 30% of the labor force and provides more than 70% of hard currency earnings, and by tuna fishing. In recent years the government has encouraged foreign investment in order to upgrade hotels and other services. At the same time, the government has moved to reduce the dependence on tourism by promoting the development of farming, fishing, and small-scale manufacturing. A sharp drop illustrated the vulnerability of the tourist sector in 1991-92 due largely to the Gulf war, and once again following the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on the US. Other issues facing the government are the curbing of the budget deficit, including the containment of social welfare costs, and further privatization of public enterprises. Growth slowed in 1998-2002, due to sluggish tourist and tuna sectors. Also, tight controls on exchange rates and the scarcity of foreign exchange have impaired short-term economic prospects. The black market value of the Seychelles rupee is half the official exchange rate; without a devaluation of the currency the tourist sector should remain sluggish as vacationers seek cheaper destinations such as Comoros, Mauritius, and Madagascar. |
Electricity - consumption | 191.8 million kWh (1999) | 148.8 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) | 160 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
3.03% hydro: 96.97% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Rusizi River 950 m highest point: Volcan Karisimbi 4,519 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Morne Seychellois 905 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation results from uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel; overgrazing; soil exhaustion; soil erosion; widespread poaching | water supply depends on catchments to collect rainwater |
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, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Hutu 84%, Tutsi 15%, Twa (Pygmoid) 1% | mixed French, African, Indian, Chinese, and Arab |
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) | Seychelles rupees per US dollar - 5.4007 (2003), 5.48 (2002), 5.8575 (2001), 5.7138 (2000), 5.3426 (1999) |
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 James MICHEL (since 14 April 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President James MICHEL (since 14 April 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 31 August-2 September 2001 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: France Albert RENE re-elected president; percent of vote - France Albert RENE (SPPF) 54.19%, Wavel RAMKALAWAN (UO) 44.95%, Philippe BOULLE 0.86%; note - the first time that presidential elections have been held separately from legislative elections; France Albert RENE stepped down 14 April 2004 and Vice President James MICHEL was sworn in as president |
Exports | $68.4 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | coffee, tea, hides, tin ore | canned tuna, frozen fish, cinnamon bark, copra, petroleum products (reexports) |
Exports - partners | Germany, Belgium, Pakistan, Italy, Kenya | UK 38.8%, France 31.8%, Italy 14.5%, Germany 7.5% (2003) |
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 | five oblique bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, red, white, and green (bottom) radiating from the bottom of the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $6.4 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $626 million (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
40% industry: 20% services: 40% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 2.8%
industry: 28.7% services: 68.9% (2003) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $900 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $7,800 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.8% (2000 est.) | 1.5% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 2 00 S, 30 00 E | 4 35 S, 55 40 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; predominantly rural population | 40 granitic and about 50 coralline islands |
Highways | total:
12,000 km paved: 1,000 km unpaved: 11,000 km (1997 est.) |
total: 373 km
paved: 315 km unpaved: 58 km (1997 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 | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals |
Imports - partners | Kenya, Tanzania, US, Benelux, France, India | Saudi Arabia 15.7%, South Africa 10.9%, Spain 10.4%, France 9.7%, Italy 9.2%, Singapore 7%, UK 6.8% (2003) |
Independence | 1 July 1962 (from Belgium-administered UN trusteeship) | 29 June 1976 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 8.7% (1998 est.) | NA |
Industries | cement, agricultural products, small-scale beverages, soap, furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles, cigarettes | fishing; tourism; processing of coconuts and vanilla, coir (coconut fiber) rope, boat building, printing, furniture; beverages |
Infant mortality rate | 118.92 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 15.97 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 20.2 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4% (2000) | 3.3% (2003 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, AU, C, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 40 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; communal courts; appeals courts | Court of Appeal; Supreme Court; judges for both courts are appointed by the president |
Labor force | 3.6 million | 30,900 (1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 90% | agriculture 10%, industry 19%, services 71% (1989) |
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: 2.22%
permanent crops: 13.33% other: 84.45% (2001) |
Languages | Kinyarwanda (official) universal Bantu vernacular, French (official), English (official), Kiswahili (Swahili) used in commercial centers | English (official), French (official), Creole |
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 | based on English common law, French civil law, and customary 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 National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (34 seats - 25 elected by popular vote, 9 allocated on a proportional basis to parties winning at least 10% of the vote; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 4-6 December 2002 (next held by 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - SPPF 54.3%, SNP 42.6%, DP 3.1%; seats by party - SPPF 23, SNP 11 note: the 9 awarded seats are apportioned according to the percentage that each party won of the total vote |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
38.99 years male: 38.35 years female: 39.65 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 71.53 years
male: 66.1 years female: 77.14 years (2004 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: 58% male: 56% female: 60% (1971 est.) |
Location | Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo | Eastern Africa, group of islands in the Indian Ocean, northeast of Madagascar |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | - | total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 42,223 GRT/63,538 DWT
by type: cargo 4, chemical tanker 3, container 1 foreign-owned: Bulgaria 1, Cyprus 1, Nigeria 1, South Africa 2 (2004 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force | Army, Coast Guard (including Navy Wing, Air Wing), National Guard, Presidential Protection Unit (includes Presidential Guard), Seychelles National Police (includes Police Mobile Unit) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $58 million (FY01) | $11.6 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.2% (FY01) | 1.8% (2003) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,815,633 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 23,661 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
924,544 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 11,712 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 July (1962) | Constitution Day (National Day), 18 June (1993) |
Nationality | noun:
Rwandan(s) adjective: Rwandan |
noun: Seychellois (singular and plural)
adjective: Seychellois |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts; the volcanic Virunga mountains are in the northwest along the border with Democratic Republic of the Congo | lies outside the cyclone belt, so severe storms are rare; short droughts possible |
Natural resources | gold, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore), methane, hydropower, arable land | fish, copra, cinnamon trees |
Net migration rate | -1.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -5.69 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 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 Party or DP [James MANCHAM, Daniel BELLE]; Mouvement Seychellois pour la Democratie [Jacques HODOUL]; Seychelles National Party or SNP (formerly the United Opposition or UO) [Wavel RAMKALAWAN]; Seychelles People's Progressive Front or SPPF [France Albert RENE, James MICHEL] - the governing party |
Political pressure groups and leaders | IBUKA - association of genocide survivors | Roman Catholic Church; trade unions |
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.) |
80,832 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 70% (2000 est.) | NA |
Population growth rate | 1.16% (2001 est.) | 0.45% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cyangugu, Gisenyi, Kibuye | Victoria |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 2 (1998) |
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) | Roman Catholic 86.6%, Anglican 6.8%, other Christian 2.5%, other 4.1% |
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: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.49 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal adult | 17 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: effective system
domestic: radiotelephone communications between islands in the archipelago international: country code - 248; direct radiotelephone communications with adjacent island countries and African coastal countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 15,000 (1995) | 21,700 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA
note: however, Rwanda has mobile cellular service between Kigali and several prefecture capitals (2000) |
54,500 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (1997) | 2 (plus 9 repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly grassy uplands and hills; relief is mountainous with altitude declining from west to east | Mahe Group is granitic, narrow coastal strip, rocky, hilly; others are coral, flat, elevated reefs |
Total fertility rate | 4.89 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.77 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | NA |
Waterways | note:
Lac Kivu navigable by shallow-draft barges and native craft |
- |