Rwanda (2008) | Gibraltar (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 4 provinces (in French - provinces, singular - province; in Kinyarwanda - intara for singular and plural) and 1 city* (in French - ville; in Kinyarwanda - umujyi); Est (Eastern), Kigali*, Nord (Northern), Ouest (Western), Sud (Southern) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
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: 18.5% (male 2,633; female 2,509)
15-64 years: 66.3% (male 9,456; female 8,907) 65 years and over: 15.2% (male 1,803; female 2,406) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, tea, pyrethrum (insecticide made from chrysanthemums), bananas, beans, sorghum, potatoes; livestock | none |
Airports | 9 (2007) | 1 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 3 (2007) |
- |
Area | total: 26,338 sq km
land: 24,948 sq km water: 1,390 sq km |
total: 6.5 sq km
land: 6.5 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | about 11 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC |
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. | Strategically important, Gibraltar was ceded to Great Britain by Spain in the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht; the British garrison was formally declared a colony in 1830. In referendums held in 1967 and 2002, Gibraltarians ignored Spanish pressure and voted overwhelmingly to remain a British dependency. |
Birth rate | 40.16 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 11.19 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $702.6 million
expenditures: $779.6 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2007 est.) |
revenues: $307 million
expenditures: $284 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY00/01 est. ) |
Capital | name: Kigali
geographic coordinates: 1 57 S, 30 04 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Gibraltar |
Climate | temperate; two rainy seasons (February to April, November to January); mild in mountains with frost and snow possible | Mediterranean with mild winters and warm summers |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 12 km |
Constitution | new constitution passed by referendum 26 May 2003 | 30 May 1969 |
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: none
conventional short form: Gibraltar |
Currency | - | Gibraltar pound (GIP) |
Death rate | 14.91 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 8.88 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.4 billion (2004 est.) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
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 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador James KOMONYO
chancery: 1714 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 232-2882 FAX: [1] (202) 232-4544 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
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 | Spain and UK are discussing "total shared sovereignty" to resolve 300-year dispute over Gibraltar, but resolution is subject to a constitutional referendum by Gibraltarians, who have largely expressed opposition to any form of cession to Spain |
Economic aid - recipient | $576 million (2005) | $NA; note - if an agreement between Spain and the UK is reached, could receive 50 million euros from the EU |
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. The government has embraced an expansionary fiscal policy to reduce poverty by improving education, infrastructure, and foreign and domestic investment and pursuing market-oriented reforms, although energy shortages, instability in neighboring states, and lack of adequate transportation linkages to other countries continue to handicap growth. | Gibraltar benefits from an extensive shipping trade, offshore banking, and its position as an international conference center. The British military presence has been sharply reduced and now contributes about 11% to the local economy. The financial sector accounts for 20% of GDP; tourism (almost 6 million visitors in 1998), shipping services fees, and duties on consumer goods also generate revenue. In recent years, Gibraltar has seen major structural change from a public to a private sector economy, but changes in government spending still have a major impact on the level of employment. |
Electricity - consumption | 198.4 million kWh (2005) | 90.21 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 10 million kWh (2005 est.) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 120 million kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 95 million kWh (2005) | 97 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Rusizi River 950 m
highest point: Volcan Karisimbi 4,519 m |
lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Rock of Gibraltar 426 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation results from uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel; overgrazing; soil exhaustion; soil erosion; widespread poaching | limited natural freshwater resources: large concrete or natural rock water catchments collect rainwater (no longer used for drinking water) and adequate desalination plant |
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 |
- |
Ethnic groups | Hutu (Bantu) 84%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 15%, Twa (Pygmy) 1% | Spanish, Italian, English, Maltese, Portuguese |
Exchange rates | Rwandan francs per US dollar - 585 (2007), 560 (2006), 610 (2005), 574.62 (2004), 537.66 (2003) | Gibraltar pounds per US dollar - 0.6981 (January 2002), 0.8977 (2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998), 0.6106 (1997); note - the Gibraltar pound is at par with the British pound |
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: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor and Commander-in-Chief David DURIE (since 5 April 2000); note - Sir Francis RICHARDS was appointed governor 18 December 2002 and will take office in May 2003
head of government: Chief Minister Peter CARUANA (since 17 May 1996) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed from among the 15 elected members of the House of Assembly by the governor in consultation with the chief minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed chief minister by the governor |
Exports | 0 bbl/day (2004) | $81.1 million f.o.b. (1997) |
Exports - commodities | coffee, tea, hides, tin ore | (principally reexports) petroleum 51%, manufactured goods 41%, other 8% |
Exports - partners | China 10.3%, Germany 9.7%, US 4.3% (2006) | UK, Morocco, Portugal, Netherlands, Spain, US, Germany |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
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 | two horizontal bands of white (top, double width) and red with a three-towered red castle in the center of the white band; hanging from the castle gate is a gold key centered in the red band |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $500 million (1997 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 38.2%
industry: 20.1% services: 41.7% (2007 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $17,500 (1997 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6% (2007 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 2 00 S, 30 00 E | 36 8 N, 5 21 W |
Geography - note | landlocked; most of the country is savanna grassland with the population predominantly rural | strategic location on Strait of Gibraltar that links the North Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea |
Highways | - | total: 46.25 km
paved: 46.25 km unpaved: 0 km (2001) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.1%
highest 10%: 38.2% (2000) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | 5,165 bbl/day (2004) | $492 million c.i.f. (1997) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, steel, petroleum products, cement and construction material | fuels, manufactured goods, and foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | Kenya 19.6%, Germany 7.9%, Uganda 6.8%, Belgium 5.1% (2006) | UK, Spain, Japan, Netherlands |
Independence | 1 July 1962 (from Belgium-administered UN trusteeship) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4.8% (2007 est.) | NA% |
Industries | cement, agricultural products, small-scale beverages, soap, furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles, cigarettes | tourism, banking and finance, ship-building and repairing; tobacco, mineral water, beer |
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.) |
5.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 8% (2007 est.) | 1.5% (1998) |
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, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | Interpol (subbureau) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 90 sq km (2003) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; High Courts of the Republic; Provincial Courts; District Courts; mediation committees | Supreme Court; Court of Appeal |
Labor force | 4.6 million (2000) | 14,800 (including non-Gibraltar laborers) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 90%
industry and services: 10% (2000) |
services 60%, industry 40%, agriculture NEGL% |
Land boundaries | total: 893 km
border countries: Burundi 290 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 217 km, Tanzania 217 km, Uganda 169 km |
total: 1.2 km
border countries: Spain 1.2 km |
Land use | arable land: 45.56%
permanent crops: 10.25% other: 44.19% (2005) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Kinyarwanda (official) universal Bantu vernacular, French (official), English (official), Kiswahili (Swahili) used in commercial centers | English (used in schools and for official purposes), Spanish, Italian, Portuguese |
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 | English law |
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 House of Assembly (18 seats - 15 elected by popular vote, one appointed for the Speaker, and two ex officio members; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 10 February 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - GSD 58%, GSLP 41%; seats by party - GSD 8, GSLP 7 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 48.99 years
male: 47.87 years female: 50.16 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 79.23 years
male: 76.37 years female: 82.25 years (2002 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: above 80% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo | Southwestern Europe, bordering the Strait of Gibraltar, which links the Mediterranean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southern coast of Spain |
Map references | Africa | Europe |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 3 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total: 75 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 900,400 GRT/1,277,611 DWT
ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 35, chemical tanker 6, container 10, multi-functional large-load carrier 3, passenger 3, petroleum tanker 14, roll on/roll off 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Belgium 1, Cyprus 1, France 2, Germany 55, Greece 6, Ireland 1, Monaco 2, Norway 3, United Kingdom 13 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Rwandan Defense Forces: Army, Air Force | no regular indigenous military forces; British Army, Royal Navy, Royal Air Force |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.9% (2006 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 July (1962) | National Day, 10 September (1964); note - day of the national referendum to decide whether to remain with the UK or go with Spain |
Nationality | noun: Rwandan(s)
adjective: Rwandan |
noun: Gibraltarian(s)
adjective: Gibraltar |
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 | NEGL |
Net migration rate | 2.41 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | NEGL migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
People - note | Rwanda is the most densely populated country in Africa | - |
Pipelines | - | 0 km |
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 [Protais MITALI]; Party for Democratic Renewal (officially banned); Rwandan Patriotic Front or RPF [Paul KAGAME]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Vincent BIRUTA] | Gibraltar Social Democrats or GSD [Peter CARUANA]; Gibraltar Socialist Labor Party or GSLP [Joseph John BOSSANO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | IBUKA - association of genocide survivors | Chamber of Commerce; Gibraltar Representatives Organization; Women's Association |
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.) |
27,714 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 60% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.766% (2007 est.) | 0.23% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Gibraltar |
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 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 37,000 (1997) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 56.5%, Protestant 26%, Adventist 11.1%, Muslim 4.6%, indigenous beliefs 0.1%, none 1.7% (2001) | Roman Catholic 76.9%, Church of England 6.9%, Muslim 6.9%, Jewish 2.3%, none or other 7% (1991) |
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: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal, plus other UK subjects who have been residents six months or more |
Telephone system | general assessment: small, inadequate 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; combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular telephone density is only about 4 telephones per 100 persons 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, automatic domestic system and adequate international facilities
domestic: automatic exchange facilities international: radiotelephone; microwave radio relay; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 22,000 (2005) | 19,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 290,000 (2005) | 1,620 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (2004) | 1 (plus three low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly grassy uplands and hills; relief is mountainous with altitude declining from west to east | a narrow coastal lowland borders the Rock of Gibraltar |
Total fertility rate | 5.37 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 1.65 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 13.5% (1996) (1996) |
Waterways | Lac Kivu navigable by shallow-draft barges and native craft (2006) | none |