Rwanda (2004) | Micronesia, Federated States of (2002) | |
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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 | 4 states; Chuuk (Truk), Kosrae (Kosaie), Pohnpei (Ponape), Yap |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 42.3% (male 1,690,122; female 1,674,147)
15-64 years: 55% (male 2,178,956; female 2,194,526) 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 85,472; female 130,790) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: NA%
15-64 years: NA% 65 years and over: NA% |
Agriculture - products | coffee, tea, pyrethrum (insecticide made from chrysanthemums), bananas, beans, sorghum, potatoes; livestock | black pepper, tropical fruits and vegetables, coconuts, cassava (tapioca), sweet potatoes; pigs, chickens |
Airports | 9 (2003 est.) | 7 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 6
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
Area | total: 26,338 sq km
land: 24,948 sq km water: 1,390 sq km |
total: 702 sq km
land: 702 sq km water: 0 sq km (fresh water only) note: includes Pohnpei (Ponape), Chuuk (Truk) Islands, Yap Islands, and Kosrae |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | four times the size of Washington, DC (land area only) |
Background | 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 (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 the former Zaire. Since then, most of the refugees have returned to Rwanda, but about 10,000 that remain in the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo have formed an extremist insurgency bent on retaking Rwanda, much as the RPF tried in 1990. Despite substantial international assistance and political reforms - including Rwanda's first local elections in March 1999 and its first post-genocide presidential and legislative elections in August and September 2003, respectively - the country continues to struggle to boost investment and agricultural output, and ethnic reconciliation is complicated by the real and perceived Tutsi political dominance. Kigali's increasing centralization and intolerance of dissent, the nagging Hutu extremist insurgency across the border, and Rwandan involvement in two wars in recent years in the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo continue to hinder Rwanda's efforts to escape its bloody legacy. | In 1979 the Federated States of Micronesia, a UN Trust Territory under US administration, adopted a constitution. In 1986 independence was attained under a Compact of Free Association with the US. Present concerns include large-scale unemployment, overfishing, and overdependence on US aid. |
Birth rate | 40.01 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | NA births/1,000 population |
Budget | revenues: $365.9 million
expenditures: $402.9 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2003 est.) |
revenues: $161 million ($69 million less grants)
expenditures: $160 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.) |
Capital | Kigali | Palikir |
Climate | temperate; two rainy seasons (February to April, November to January); mild in mountains with frost and snow possible | tropical; heavy year-round rainfall, especially in the eastern islands; located on southern edge of the typhoon belt with occasionally severe damage |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 6,112 km |
Constitution | a new constitution was adopted 26 May 2003 | 10 May 1979 |
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: Federated States of Micronesia
conventional short form: none former: Ponape, Truk, and Yap Districts (Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands) abbreviation: FSM |
Currency | Rwandan franc (RWF) | US dollar (USD) |
Death rate | 21.86 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | NA deaths/1,000 population |
Debt - external | $1.3 billion (2000 est.) | $66.5 million |
Diplomatic representation from the US | 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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Larry DINGER
embassy: address NA, Kolonia mailing address: P. O. Box 1286, Kolonia, Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia 96941 telephone: [691] 320-2187 FAX: [691] 320-2186 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | 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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Jesse Bibiano MAREHALAU
chancery: 1725 N Street NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 223-4383 FAX: [1] (202) 223-4391 consulate(s) general: Honolulu and Tamuning (Guam) |
Disputes - international | Tutsi, Hutu, Hema, Lendu, 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 | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $372.9 million (1999) | under terms of the Compact of Free Association, the US pledged $1.3 billion in grant aid during the period 1986-2001 |
Economy - overview | 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 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. | Economic activity consists primarily of subsistence farming and fishing. The islands have few mineral deposits worth exploiting, except for high-grade phosphate. The potential for a tourist industry exists, but the remote location and a lack of adequate facilities hinder development. In 1996, the country experienced a 20% reduction in revenues from the Compact of Free Association - the agreement with the US in which Micronesia received $1.3 billion in financial and technical assistance over a 15-year period until 2001. Since these revenues accounted for 57% of consolidated government revenues, reduced Compact funding resulted in a severe depression. Economic activity recovered in 1999-2001. The country's medium-term economic outlook appears fragile due to likely further reductions in external grants made under the US Compact funding. Geographical isolation and a poorly developed infrastructure remain major impediments to long-term growth. |
Electricity - consumption | 140 million kWh (2001) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | - |
Electricity - imports | 50 million kWh (2001) | - |
Electricity - production | 96.78 million kWh (2001) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: NA%
hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Rusizi River 950 m
highest point: Volcan Karisimbi 4,519 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Dolohmwar (Totolom) 791 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation results from uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel; overgrazing; soil exhaustion; soil erosion; widespread poaching | overfishing, climate change, pollution |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Hutu 84%, Tutsi 15%, Twa (Pygmoid) 1% | nine ethnic Micronesian and Polynesian groups |
Exchange rates | Rwandan francs per US dollar - 537.658 (2003), 476.327 (2002), 442.801 (2001), 389.696 (2000), 333.942 (1999) | the US dollar is used |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Paul KAGAME (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 95.05%, Faustin TWAGIRAMUNGU 3.62%, Jean-Nepomuscene NAYINZIRA 1.33% |
chief of state: President Leo A. FALCAM (since 21 July 1999); Vice President Redley KILLION (since 21 July 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Leo A. FALCAM (since 21 July 1999); Vice President Redley KILLION (since 21 July 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet elections: president and vice president elected by Congress from among the four senators-at-large for four-year terms; election last held NA May 1999 (next to be held NA May 2003); note - a proposed constitutional amendment to establish popular elections for president and vice president failed election results: Leo A. FALCAM elected president; percent of Congress vote - NA%; Redley KILLION elected vice president; percent of Congress vote - NA% |
Exports | NA (2001) | $22 million (f.o.b.) |
Exports - commodities | coffee, tea, hides, tin ore | fish, garments, bananas, black pepper |
Exports - partners | Indonesia 39.2%, Germany 4.6%, China 3.9% (2003) | Japan, US, Guam |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 October - 30 September |
Flag description | 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 | light blue with four white five-pointed stars centered; the stars are arranged in a diamond pattern |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $10.11 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $269 million
note: GDP is supplemented by grant aid, averaging perhaps $100 million annually (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 40.7%
industry: 21.5% services: 37.8% (2003 est.) |
agriculture: 50%
industry: 4% services: 46% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,300 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,000 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.5% (2003 est.) | 2% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 2 00 S, 30 00 E | 6 55 N, 158 15 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; most of the country is savanna grassland with the population predominantly rural | four major island groups totaling 607 islands |
Highways | total: 12,000 km
paved: 996 km unpaved: 11,004 km (1999 est.) |
total: 240 km
paved: 42 km unpaved: 198 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 4.2%
highest 10%: 24.2% (1985) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | NA (2001) | $149 million f.o.b. |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, steel, petroleum products, cement and construction material | food, manufactured goods, machinery and equipment, beverages |
Imports - partners | Kenya 23.3%, Germany 7.5%, Belgium 6.4%, Uganda 6.4%, France 5% (2003) | US, Australia, Japan |
Independence | 1 July 1962 (from Belgium-administered UN trusteeship) | 3 November 1986 (from the US-administered UN Trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Industries | cement, agricultural products, small-scale beverages, soap, furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles, cigarettes | tourism, construction, fish processing, craft items from shell, wood, and pearls |
Infant mortality rate | total: 101.68 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 106.68 deaths/1,000 live births female: 96.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
NA deaths/1,000 live births |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 7.5% (2003 est.) | 2.5% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, CEPGL, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACP, AsDB, ESCAP, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFC, IFRCS (associate), IMF, IOC, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO, WMO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 40 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; communal courts; appeals courts | Supreme Court |
Labor force | 4.6 million (2000) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 90% | two-thirds are government employees |
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: 40.54%
permanent crops: 12.16% other: 47.3% (2001) |
arable land: 5.71%
permanent crops: 45.71% other: 48.58% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Kinyarwanda (official) universal Bantu vernacular, French (official), English (official), Kiswahili (Swahili) used in commercial centers | English (official and common language), Trukese, Pohnpeian, Yapese, Kosrean, Ulithian, Woleaian, Nukuoro, Kapingamarangi |
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 adapted Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws |
Legislative branch | 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 - RPF 40, PSD 7, PL 6 |
unicameral Congress (14 seats; members elected by popular vote; four - one elected from each state - to serve four-year terms and 10 - elected from single-member districts delineated by population - to serve two-year terms)
elections: elections for four-year term seats last held 2 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2003); elections for two-year term seats last held 6 March 2001 (next to be held NA March 2003) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 14 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 39.18 years
male: 38.43 years female: 39.96 years (2004 est.) |
total population: NA years
male: NA years female: NA years |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 70.4% male: 76.3% female: 64.7% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 89% male: 91% female: 88% (1980 est.) |
Location | Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo | Oceania, island group in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to Indonesia |
Map references | Africa | Oceania |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none
note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: United States 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) is a sovereign, self-governing state in free association with the US; FSM is totally dependent on the US for its defense |
Military branches | Rwandan Defense Forces (Army, Air Forces) | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $47.7 million (2003) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.9% (2003) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,973,713 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,004,296 (2004 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 July (1962) | Constitution Day, 10 May (1979) |
Nationality | noun: Rwandan(s)
adjective: Rwandan |
noun: Micronesian(s)
adjective: Micronesian; Chuukese, Kosraen(s), Pohnpeian(s), Yapese |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts; the volcanic Virunga mountains are in the northwest along the border with Democratic Republic of the Congo | typhoons (June to December) |
Natural resources | gold, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore), methane, hydropower, arable land | forests, marine products, deep-seabed minerals |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | NA migrant(s)/1,000 population |
People - note | Rwanda is the most densely populated country in Africa | - |
Political parties and leaders | Centrist Democratic Party or PDC [Alfred MUKEZAMFURA]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Vincent BIRUTA]; Democratic Popular Union of Rwanda or UDPR [Adrien RANGIRA ]; Democratic Republican Movement or MDR (officially banned) [Celestin KABANDA]; Islamic Democratic Party or PDI [Andre BUMAYA]; Liberal Party or PL [Prosper HIGIRO]; Party for Democratic Renewal (officially banned) [Pasteur BIZIMUNGU and Charles NTAKARUTINKA]; Rwandan Patriotic Front or RPF [Paul KAGAME] | no formal parties |
Political pressure groups and leaders | IBUKA - association of genocide survivors | - |
Population | 7,954,013
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 2004 est.) |
135,869 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 60% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.82% (2004 est.) | NA% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Cyangugu, Gisenyi, Kibuye | Colonia (Yap), Kolonia (Pohnpei), Lele, Moen |
Radio broadcast stations | 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) | AM 5, FM 1, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 9,400 (1996) |
Railways | - | 0 km (2003) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 56.5%, Protestant 26%, Adventist 11.1%, Muslim 4.6%, indigenous beliefs 0.1%, none 1.7% (2001) | Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 47% |
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: 0.65 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
NA |
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 and, recently, by cellular telephone service; much of the network depends on wire and HF radiotelephone international: country code - 250; 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: adequate system
domestic: islands interconnected by shortwave radiotelephone (used mostly for government purposes) international: satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) (2002) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 23,200 (2002) | 11,000 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 134,000
note: Rwanda has mobile cellular service between Kigali and several prefecture capitals (2003) |
newly installed in Pohnpei and Yap |
Television broadcast stations | NA | 2 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly grassy uplands and hills; relief is mountainous with altitude declining from west to east | islands vary geologically from high mountainous islands to low, coral atolls; volcanic outcroppings on Pohnpei, Kosrae, and Truk |
Total fertility rate | 5.55 children born/woman (2004 est.) | NA children born/woman |
Unemployment rate | NA | 16% (1999 est.) |
Waterways | Lac Kivu navigable by shallow-draft barges and native craft (2004) | none |