Rwanda (2007) | Slovakia (2004) | |
Administrative divisions | 5 provinces (in French - provinces, singular - province; in Kinyarwanda - prefigintara for singular and plural); East, Kigali, North, South, West | 8 regions (kraje, singular - kraj); Banskobystricky, Bratislavsky, Kosicky, Nitriansky, Presovsky, Trenciansky, Trnavsky, Zilinsky |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 41.9% (male 2,082,474/female 2,065,251)
15-64 years: 55.7% (male 2,748,189/female 2,765,767) 65 years and over: 2.5% (male 98,796/female 147,032) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 17.5% (male 485,523; female 463,173)
15-64 years: 70.8% (male 1,908,425; female 1,929,861) 65 years and over: 11.7% (male 239,081; female 397,504) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, tea, pyrethrum (insecticide made from chrysanthemums), bananas, beans, sorghum, potatoes; livestock | grains, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, cattle, poultry; forest products |
Airports | 9 (2007) | 34 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 17
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 7 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 3 (2007) |
total: 17
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 7 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 26,338 sq km
land: 24,948 sq km water: 1,390 sq km |
total: 48,845 sq km
land: 48,800 sq km water: 45 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | about twice the size of New Hampshire |
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 several thousand remained in the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo (the former Zaire) and 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 - 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 1918 the Slovaks joined the closely related Czechs to form Czechoslovakia. Following the chaos of World War II, Czechoslovakia became a Communist nation within Soviet-ruled Eastern Europe. Soviet influence collapsed in 1989 and Czechoslovakia once more became free. The Slovaks and the Czechs agreed to separate peacefully on 1 January 1993. Slovakia joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004. |
Birth rate | 40.16 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 10.57 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $682.4 million
expenditures: $714.6 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2006 est.) |
revenues: $12.03 billion
expenditures: $13.69 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003) |
Capital | name: Kigali
geographic coordinates: 1 57 S, 30 04 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Bratislava |
Climate | temperate; two rainy seasons (February to April, November to January); mild in mountains with frost and snow possible | temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | new constitution passed by referendum 26 May 2003 | ratified 1 September 1992, fully effective 1 January 1993; changed in September 1998 to allow direct election of the president; amended February 2001 to allow Slovakia to apply for NATO and EU membership |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Rwanda
conventional short form: Rwanda local long form: Republika y'u Rwanda local short form: Rwanda former: Ruanda, German East Africa |
conventional long form: Slovak Republic
conventional short form: Slovakia local long form: Slovenska Republika local short form: Slovensko |
Currency | - | Slovak koruna (SKK) |
Death rate | 14.91 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 9.48 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.4 billion (2004 est.) | $18.31 billion (2003 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Michael ARIETTI
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 (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Scott N. THAYER
embassy: Hviezdoslavovo Namestie 4, 81102 Bratislava mailing address: P.O. Box 309, 814 99 Bratislava telephone: [421] (2) 5443-3338 FAX: [421] (2) 5443-0096 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Zac NSENGA
chancery: 1714 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 232-2882 FAX: [1] (202) 232-4544 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Rastislav KACER
chancery: 3523 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 237-1054 FAX: [1] (202) 237-6438 |
Disputes - international | fighting among ethnic groups - loosely associated political rebels, armed gangs, and various government forces in Great Lakes region transcending the boundaries of Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda - abated substantially from a decade ago due largely to UN peacekeeping, international mediation, and efforts by local governments to create civil societies; nonetheless, 57,000 Rwandan refugees still reside in 21 African states, including Zambia, Gabon, and 20,000 who fled to Burundi in 2005 and 2006 to escape drought and recriminations from traditional courts investigating the 1994 massacres; the 2005 DROC and Rwanda border verification mechanism to stem rebel actions on both sides of the border remains in place | Hungary amended its status law extending special social and cultural benefits to ethnic Hungarians in Slovakia, many of whom had protested the law; Slovakia and Hungary have renewed discussions on ways to resolve differences over the Gabcikovo-Nagymaros hydroelectric dam on the Danube, with possible resort again to the ICJ for final resolution |
Economic aid - recipient | $576 million (2005) | ODA $113 million (2000),; $92 million EU structural adjustment funds (2000 est.) |
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 and is 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. Despite Rwanda's fertile ecosystem, food production often does not keep pace with population growth, requiring food imports. Rwanda continues to receive substantial aid money and obtained IMF-World Bank Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) initiative debt relief in 2005-06. Rwanda also received Millennium Challenge Account Threshold status in 2006. Kigali's high defense expenditures have caused tension between the government and international donors and lending agencies. Energy shortages, instability in neighboring states, and lack of adequate transportation linkages to other countries continue to handicap growth. | Slovakia has mastered much of the difficult transition from a centrally planned economy to a modern market economy. The DZURINDA government made excellent progress during 2001-03 in macroeconomic stabilization and structural reform. Major privatizations are nearly complete, the banking sector is almost completely in foreign hands, and foreign investment has picked up. Slovakia's economy exceeded expectations in 2001-03, despite the general European slowdown. Unemployment, at an unacceptable 15% in 2003, remains the economy's Achilles heel. The government faces other strong challenges in 2004, especially cutting the budget deficit, containing inflation, and strengthening the health care system. |
Electricity - consumption | 198.4 million kWh (2005) | 24.41 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 10 million kWh (2005) | 5.141 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 120 million kWh (2005) | 1.381 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 95 million kWh (2005) | 30.29 billion kWh (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Rusizi River 950 m
highest point: Volcan Karisimbi 4,519 m |
lowest point: Bodrok River 94 m
highest point: Gerlachovsky Stit 2,655 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation results from uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel; overgrazing; soil exhaustion; soil erosion; widespread poaching | air pollution from metallurgical plants presents human health risks; acid rain damaging forests |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants |
Ethnic groups | Hutu (Bantu) 84%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 15%, Twa (Pygmy) 1% | Slovak 85.7%, Hungarian 10.6%, Roma 1.6% (the 1992 census figures underreport the Gypsy/Romany community, which is about 500,000), Czech, Moravian, Silesian 1.1%, Ruthenian and Ukrainian 0.6%, German 0.1%, Polish 0.1%, other 0.2% (1996) |
Exchange rates | Rwandan francs per US dollar - 560 (2006), 610 (2005), 574.62 (2004), 537.66 (2003), 476.33 (2002) | koruny per US dollar - 36.7729 (2003), 45.3267 (2002), 48.3548 (2001), 46.0352 (2000), 41.3628 (1999) |
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: President elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (eligible for a second term); elections last held 25 August 2003 (next to be held in 2010) 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 Ivan GASPAROVIC (since 15 June 2004)
head of government: Prime Minister Mikulas DZURINDA (since 30 October 1998); Deputy Prime Minister Ivan MIKLOS (since 30 October 1998); Deputy Prime Minister Pal CSAKY (since 30 October 1998); Deputy Prime Minister Pavol RUSKO (since May 2004) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by direct, popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 3 April and 17 April 2004 (next to be held April 2009); following National Council elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the president election results: Ivan GASPAROVIC elected president in runoff; percent of vote - Ivan GASPAROVIC 59.9%, Vladimir MECIAR 40.1%; Mikulas DZURINDA reelected prime minister October 2002 note: government coalition - SDKU, SMK, KDH, ANO |
Exports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | coffee, tea, hides, tin ore | machinery and transport equipment 39.4%, intermediate manufactured goods 27.5%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 13%, chemicals 8% (1999) |
Exports - partners | China 10.3%, Germany 9.7%, US 4.3% (2006) | Germany 37.2%, Czech Republic 12%, Austria 9.8%, Italy 5.4%, Poland 4.7%, US 4.7%, Hungary 4.2% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
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 | three equal horizontal bands of white (top), blue, and red superimposed with the Slovak cross in a shield centered on the hoist side; the cross is white centered on a background of red and blue |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $72.29 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 39.9%
industry: 20.3% services: 39.7% (2006 est.) |
agriculture: 5.9%
industry: 47.9% services: 46.2% (2003) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $13,300 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.8% (2006 est.) | 3.9% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 2 00 S, 30 00 E | 48 40 N, 19 30 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; most of the country is savanna grassland with the population predominantly rural | landlocked; most of the country is rugged and mountainous; the Tatra Mountains in the north are interspersed with many scenic lakes and valleys |
Heliports | - | 1 (2003 est.) |
Highways | - | total: 42,717 km
paved: 37,036 km (including 296 km of expressways) unpaved: 5,681 km (2000) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.1%
highest 10%: 38.2% (2000) |
lowest 10%: 5.1%
highest 10%: 18.2% (1992) |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin bound for Western Europe; producer of synthetic drugs for regional market |
Imports | NA bbl/day | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, steel, petroleum products, cement and construction material | machinery and transport equipment 37.7%, intermediate manufactured goods 18%, fuels 13%, chemicals 11%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 9.5% (1999) |
Imports - partners | Kenya 19.6%, Germany 7.8%, Uganda 6.8%, Belgium 5.1% (2006) | Germany 27.5%, Czech Republic 18.3%, Russia 10.8%, Austria 6.4%, Italy 5.6%, Poland 4.1%, Hungary 4% (2003) |
Independence | 1 July 1962 (from Belgium-administered UN trusteeship) | 1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia) |
Industrial production growth rate | 7% (2001 est.) | 7.2% (2003 est.) |
Industries | cement, agricultural products, small-scale beverages, soap, furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles, cigarettes | metal and metal products; food and beverages; electricity, gas, coke, oil, nuclear fuel; chemicals and manmade fibers; machinery; paper and printing; earthenware and ceramics; transport vehicles; textiles; electrical and optical apparatus; rubber products |
Infant mortality rate | total: 85.27 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 90.41 deaths/1,000 live births female: 79.99 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
total: 7.62 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.88 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 8.8% (2006 est.) | 8.6% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, CEPGL, COMESA, EAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | Australia Group, BIS, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new member), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNIDO, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (member affiliate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC |
Irrigated land | 90 sq km (2003) | 1,740 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; High Courts of the Republic; Provincial Courts; District Courts; mediation committees | Supreme Court (judges are elected by the National Council); Constitutional Court (judges appointed by president from group of nominees approved by the National Council) |
Labor force | 4.6 million (2000) | 2.58 million (2003) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 90%
industry and services: 10% (2000) |
agriculture 8.9%, industry 29.3%, construction 8%, transport and communication 8.2%, services 45.6% (1994) |
Land boundaries | total: 893 km
border countries: Burundi 290 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 217 km, Tanzania 217 km, Uganda 169 km |
total: 1,524 km
border countries: Austria 91 km, Czech Republic 215 km, Hungary 677 km, Poland 444 km, Ukraine 97 km |
Land use | arable land: 45.56%
permanent crops: 10.25% other: 44.19% (2005) |
arable land: 30.16%
permanent crops: 2.62% other: 67.22% (2001) |
Languages | Kinyarwanda (official) universal Bantu vernacular, French (official), English (official), Kiswahili (Swahili) used in commercial centers | Slovak (official), Hungarian |
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 | civil law system based on Austro-Hungarian codes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction; legal code modified to comply with the obligations of Organization on Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and to expunge Marxist-Leninist legal theory |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of Senate (26 seats; 12 members elected by local councils, 8 appointed by the president, 4 by the Political Organizations Forum, 2 represent institutions of higher learning; to serve eight-year terms) and Chamber of Deputies (80 seats; 53 members elected by popular vote, 24 women elected by local bodies, 3 selected by youth and disability organizations; to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - members appointed as part of the transitional government (next to be held in 2011); Chamber of Deputies - last held 29 September 2003 (next to be held in 2008) election results: seats by party under the 2003 Constitution - RPF 40, PSD 7, PL 6, additional 27 members indirectly elected |
unicameral National Council of the Slovak Republic or Narodna Rada Slovenskej Republiky (150 seats; members are elected on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 20-21 September 2002 (next to be held NA September 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - HZDS-LS 19.5%, SDKU 15.1%, SMER 13.5%, SMK 11.2%, KDH 8.3%, ANO 8%, KSS 6.3%; seats by party - governing coalition 69 (SDKU 22, SMK 20, KDH 15, ANO 12), opposition 81 (HZDS 26, Smer 25, KSS 9, Free Forum 6, People's Union 5, and independents 10) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 48.99 years
male: 47.87 years female: 50.16 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 74.19 years
male: 70.21 years female: 78.37 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 70.4% male: 76.3% female: 64.7% (2003 est.) |
definition: NA
total population: NA male: NA female: NA |
Location | Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo | Central Europe, south of Poland |
Map references | Africa | Europe |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | - | total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 41,891 GRT/63,185 DWT
by type: bulk 4, cargo 4 foreign-owned: Bulgaria 3, Estonia 1, Greece 1, India 1, Liberia 1, Panama 1 (2004 est.) |
Military branches | Rwandan Defense Forces: Army, Air Force | Ground Forces (including Home Guard [Domobrana]), Air and Air Defense Forces (January 2003) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $406 million (2002) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.9% (2006 est.) | 1.89% (2002) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 1,477,017 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 1,129,935 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 43,029 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 July (1962) | Constitution Day, 1 September (1992) |
Nationality | noun: Rwandan(s)
adjective: Rwandan |
noun: Slovak(s)
adjective: Slovak |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts; the volcanic Virunga mountains are in the northwest along the border with Democratic Republic of the Congo | NA |
Natural resources | gold, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore), methane, hydropower, arable land | brown coal and lignite; small amounts of iron ore, copper and manganese ore; salt; arable land |
Net migration rate | 2.41 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 0.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
People - note | Rwanda is the most densely populated country in Africa | - |
Pipelines | - | gas 6,769 km; oil 449 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | Centrist Democratic Party or PDC [Alfred MUKEZAMFURA]; Democratic Popular Union of Rwanda or UDPR [Adrien RANGIRA]; Democratic Republican Movement or MDR [Celestin KABANDA] (officially banned); Islamic Democratic Party or PDI [Andre BUMAYA]; Liberal Party or PL [Prosper HIGIRO]; Party for Democratic Renewal (officially banned); Rwandan Patriotic Front or RPF [Paul KAGAME]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Vincent BIRUTA] | Christian Democratic Movement or KDH [Pavol HRUSOVSKY]; Direction (Smer) [Robert FICO]; Free Forum [Zuzana MARTINAKOVA]; Movement for Democracy or HZD [Jozef GRAPA]; Movement for a Democratic Slovakia-People's Party or HZDS-LS [Vladimir MECIAR]; New Citizens Alliance or ANO [Pavol RUSKO]; Party of the Hungarian Coalition or SMK [Bela BUGAR]; People's Union or LU [Gustav KRAJCI]; Slovak Communist Party or KSS [Jozef SEVC]; Slovak Democratic and Christian Union or SDKU [Mikulas DZURINDA]; Slovak National Party or SNS [Peter SULOVSKY] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | IBUKA - association of genocide survivors | Association of Employers of Slovakia; Association of Towns and Villages or ZMOS; Confederation of Trade Unions or KOZ; Metal Workers Unions or KOVO and METALURG |
Population | 9,907,509
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 2007 est.) |
5,423,567 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 60% (2001 est.) | NA |
Population growth rate | 2.766% (2007 est.) | 0.14% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Bratislava, Komarno |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 8 (two main FM programs are broadcast through a system of repeaters, three international FM programs include the BBC, VOA, and Deutchewelle), shortwave 1 (2005) | AM 15, FM 78, shortwave 2 (1998) |
Railways | - | total: 3,661 km
broad gauge: 100 km 1.520-m gauge standard gauge: 3,512 km 1.435-m gauge (1,588 km electrified) narrow gauge: 49 km (1.000-m or 0.750-m gauge) (2003) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 56.5%, Protestant 26%, Adventist 11.1%, Muslim 4.6%, indigenous beliefs 0.1%, none 1.7% (2001) | Roman Catholic 60.3%, atheist 9.7%, Protestant 8.4%, Orthodox 4.1%, other 17.5% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.008 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.994 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.672 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 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 provinces 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: a modernization and privatization program is increasing accessibility to telephone service, reducing the waiting time for new subscribers, and generally improving service quality
domestic: predominantly an analog system that is now receiving digital equipment and is being enlarged with fiber-optic cable, especially in the larger cities; mobile cellular capability has been added international: country code - 421; three international exchanges (one in Bratislava and two in Banska Bystrica) are available; Slovakia is participating in several international telecommunications projects that will increase the availability of external services |
Telephones - main lines in use | 22,000 (2005) | 1,294,700 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 290,000 (2005) | 3,678,800 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (2004) | 6 national broadcasting, 7 regional, 67 local (2004) |
Terrain | mostly grassy uplands and hills; relief is mountainous with altitude declining from west to east | rugged mountains in the central and northern part and lowlands in the south |
Total fertility rate | 5.37 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 1.31 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 15.2% (2003 est.) |
Waterways | Lac Kivu navigable by shallow-draft barges and native craft (2006) | 172 km (on Danube River) (2004) |