Rwanda (2008) | United Arab Emirates (2006) | |
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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) | 7 emirates (imarat, singular - imarah); Abu Zaby (Abu Dhabi), 'Ajman, Al Fujayrah, Ash Shariqah (Sharjah), Dubayy (Dubai), Ra's al Khaymah, Umm al Qaywayn (Quwayn) |
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: 24.9% (male 331,012/female 317,643)
15-64 years: 71.2% (male 1,125,286/female 726,689) 65 years and over: 3.9% (male 74,700/female 27,383) note: 73.9% of the population in the 15-64 age group is non-national (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coffee, tea, pyrethrum (insecticide made from chrysanthemums), bananas, beans, sorghum, potatoes; livestock | dates, vegetables, watermelons; poultry, eggs, dairy products; fish |
Airports | 9 (2007) | 37 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
total: 23
over 3,047 m: 10 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 3 (2007) |
total: 14
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: 4 (2006) |
Area | total: 26,338 sq km
land: 24,948 sq km water: 1,390 sq km |
total: 82,880 sq km
land: 82,880 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly smaller than Maine |
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. | The Trucial States of the Persian Gulf coast granted the UK control of their defense and foreign affairs in 19th century treaties. In 1971, six of these states - Abu Zaby, 'Ajman, Al Fujayrah, Ash Shariqah, Dubayy, and Umm al Qaywayn - merged to form the United Arab Emirates (UAE). They were joined in 1972 by Ra's al Khaymah. The UAE's per capita GDP is on par with those of leading West European nations. Its generosity with oil revenues and its moderate foreign policy stance have allowed the UAE to play a vital role in the affairs of the region. |
Birth rate | 40.16 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 18.96 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $702.6 million
expenditures: $779.6 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2007 est.) |
revenues: $34.93 billion
expenditures: $29.41 billion; including capital expenditures of $3.4 billion (2005 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) |
name: Abu Dhabi
geographic coordinates: 24 28 N, 54 22 E time difference: UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | temperate; two rainy seasons (February to April, November to January); mild in mountains with frost and snow possible | desert; cooler in eastern mountains |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 1,318 km |
Constitution | new constitution passed by referendum 26 May 2003 | 2 December 1971; made permanent in 1996 |
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: United Arab Emirates
conventional short form: none local long form: Al Imarat al Arabiyah al Muttahidah local short form: none former: Trucial Oman, Trucial States abbreviation: UAE |
Death rate | 14.91 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 4.4 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.4 billion (2004 est.) | $34.47 billion (2005 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 Michele J. SISON
embassy: Embassies District, Plot 38 Sector W59-02, Street No. 4, Abu Dhabi mailing address: P. O. Box 4009, Abu Dhabi telephone: [971] (2) 414-2200 FAX: [971] (2) 414-2603 consulate(s) general: Dubai |
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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Saqr Ghobash Said GHOBASH
chancery: 3522 International Court NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 243-2400 FAX: [1] (202) 243-2432 consulate(s): New York, Houston |
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 | the United Arab Emirate 2006 Yearbook published a map and text rescinding the 1974 boundary with Saudi Arabia, as stipulated in a treaty filed with the UN in 1993, on the grounds that the agreement was not formally ratified; boundary agreement was signed and ratified with Oman in 2003 for entire border, including Oman's Musandam Peninsula and Al Madhah enclaves, but contents of the agreement and maps showing the alignment have not been published; Iran and UAE dispute Tunb Islands and Abu Musa Island, which Iran occupies |
Economic aid - donor | - | since its founding in 1971, the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development has given about $5.2 billion in aid to 56 countries (2004) |
Economic aid - recipient | $576 million (2005) | - |
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. | The UAE has an open economy with a high per capita income and a sizable annual trade surplus. Its wealth is based on oil and gas output (about 30% of GDP), and the fortunes of the economy fluctuate with the prices of those commodities. Since the discovery of oil in the UAE more than 30 years ago, the UAE has undergone a profound transformation from an impoverished region of small desert principalities to a modern state with a high standard of living. At present levels of production, oil and gas reserves should last for more than 100 years. The government has increased spending on job creation and infrastructure expansion and is opening up its utilities to greater private sector involvement. Higher oil revenue, strong liquidity, and cheap credit in 2005 led to a surge in asset prices (shares and real estate) and consumer inflation. Any sharp correction to the UAE's equity markets could damage investor and consumer sentiment and affect bank asset quality. In April 2004, the UAE signed a Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) with Washington and in November 2004 agreed to undertake negotiations toward a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the US. |
Electricity - consumption | 198.4 million kWh (2005) | 38.32 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 10 million kWh (2005 est.) | 0 kWh (2004) |
Electricity - imports | 120 million kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2004) |
Electricity - production | 95 million kWh (2005) | 45.12 billion kWh (2004) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Rusizi River 950 m
highest point: Volcan Karisimbi 4,519 m |
lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
highest point: Jabal Yibir 1,527 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation results from uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel; overgrazing; soil exhaustion; soil erosion; widespread poaching | lack of natural freshwater resources compensated by desalination plants; desertification; beach pollution from oil spills |
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: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | Hutu (Bantu) 84%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 15%, Twa (Pygmy) 1% | Emirati 19%, other Arab and Iranian 23%, South Asian 50%, other expatriates (includes Westerners and East Asians) 8% (1982)
note: less than 20% are UAE citizens (1982) |
Exchange rates | Rwandan francs per US dollar - 585 (2007), 560 (2006), 610 (2005), 574.62 (2004), 537.66 (2003) | Emirati dirhams per US dollar - 3.6725 (2005), 3.6725 (2004), 3.6725 (2003), 3.6725 (2002), 3.6725 (2001)
note: officially pegged to the US dollar since February 2002 |
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 KHALIFA bin Zayid al-Nuhayyan (since 3 November 2004), ruler of Abu Zaby (Abu Dhabi) (since 4 November 2004); Vice President and Prime Minister MUHAMMAD bin Rashid al-Maktum (since 5 January 2006)
head of government: Prime Minister and Vice President MUHAMMAD bin Rashid al-Maktum (since 5 January 2006); Deputy Prime Ministers SULTAN bin Zayid al-Nuhayyan (since 20 November 1990) and HAMDAN bin Zayid al-Nuhayyan (since 20 October 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president note: there is also a Federal Supreme Council (FSC) composed of the seven emirate rulers; the FSC is the highest constitutional authority in the UAE; establishes general policies and sanctions federal legislation; meets four times a year; Abu Zaby (Abu Dhabi) and Dubayy (Dubai) rulers have effective veto power elections: president and vice president elected by the FSC for five-year terms (no term limits); election last held 3 November 2004 upon the death of the UAE's Founding Father and first President ZAYID bin Sultan Al Nuhayyan (next to be held 2009); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president election results: KHALIFA bin Zayid al-Nuhayyan elected president by a unanimous vote of the FSC; MUHAMMAD bin Rashid al-Maktum unanimously reaffirmed vice president |
Exports | 0 bbl/day (2004) | 2.5 million bbl/day (2004 est.) |
Exports - commodities | coffee, tea, hides, tin ore | crude oil 45%, natural gas, reexports, dried fish, dates |
Exports - partners | China 10.3%, Germany 9.7%, US 4.3% (2006) | Japan 24.6%, South Korea 9.8%, Thailand 5.6%, India 4.3% (2005) |
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 green (top), white, and black with a wider vertical red band on the hoist side |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 38.2%
industry: 20.1% services: 41.7% (2007 est.) |
agriculture: 4%
industry: 58.5% services: 37.5% (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6% (2007 est.) | 8.8% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 2 00 S, 30 00 E | 24 00 N, 54 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; most of the country is savanna grassland with the population predominantly rural | strategic location along southern approaches to Strait of Hormuz, a vital transit point for world crude oil |
Heliports | - | 4 (2006) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.1%
highest 10%: 38.2% (2000) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | the UAE is a drug transshipment point for traffickers given its proximity to Southwest Asian drug producing countries; the UAE's position as a major financial center makes it vulnerable to money laundering; anti-money-laundering controls improving, but informal banking remains unregulated |
Imports | 5,165 bbl/day (2004) | 0 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, steel, petroleum products, cement and construction material | machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, food |
Imports - partners | Kenya 19.6%, Germany 7.9%, Uganda 6.8%, Belgium 5.1% (2006) | UK 10%, China 9.7%, US 9.4%, India 9.2%, Germany 5.9%, Japan 5.4%, France 4.7%, Singapore 4.1% (2005) |
Independence | 1 July 1962 (from Belgium-administered UN trusteeship) | 2 December 1971 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4.8% (2007 est.) | 4% (2000) |
Industries | cement, agricultural products, small-scale beverages, soap, furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles, cigarettes | petroleum and petrochemicals; fishing, aluminum, cement, fertilizers, commercial ship repair, construction materials, some boat building, handicrafts, textiles |
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: 14.09 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 16.57 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.48 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 8% (2007 est.) | 10.5% (2005 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, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, FAO, G-77, GCC, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 90 sq km (2003) | 760 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; High Courts of the Republic; Provincial Courts; District Courts; mediation committees | Union Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president) |
Labor force | 4.6 million (2000) | 2.8 million (2005 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 90%
industry and services: 10% (2000) |
agriculture: 7%
industry: 15% services: 78% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 893 km
border countries: Burundi 290 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 217 km, Tanzania 217 km, Uganda 169 km |
total: 867 km
border countries: Oman 410 km, Saudi Arabia 457 km |
Land use | arable land: 45.56%
permanent crops: 10.25% other: 44.19% (2005) |
arable land: 0.77%
permanent crops: 2.27% other: 96.96% (2005) |
Languages | Kinyarwanda (official) universal Bantu vernacular, French (official), English (official), Kiswahili (Swahili) used in commercial centers | Arabic (official), Persian, English, Hindi, Urdu |
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 | federal court system introduced in 1971; applies to all emirates except Dubayy (Dubai) and Ra's al Khaymah, which are not fully integrated into the federal judicial system; all emirates have secular courts to adjudicate criminal, civil, and commercial matters and Islamic courts to review family and religious disputes |
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 Federal National Council (FNC) or Majlis al-Ittihad al-Watani (40 seats; members appointed by the rulers of the constituent states to serve two-year terms)
elections: President KHALIFA in December 2005 announced that indirect elections would be held in early 2006 for half of the seats in the FNC; the other half would be filled by appointment note: reviews legislation, but cannot change or veto |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 48.99 years
male: 47.87 years female: 50.16 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 75.44 years
male: 72.92 years female: 78.08 years (2006 est.) |
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: 77.9% male: 76.1% female: 81.7% (2003 est.) |
Location | Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo | Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf, between Oman and Saudi Arabia |
Map references | Africa | Middle East |
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: 58 ships (1000 GRT or over) 656,003 GRT/891,837 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 6, cargo 7, chemical tanker 5, container 6, liquefied gas 1, passenger/cargo 6, petroleum tanker 20, roll on/roll off 6, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 10 (Greece 2, Kuwait 8) registered in other countries: 259 (Bahamas 16, Barbados 1, Belize 5, Cambodia 1, Comoros 6, Cyprus 11, Dominica 2, Georgia 1, Hong Kong 2, India 6, Iran 1, Jordan 11, Kiribati 1, North Korea 6, Liberia 18, Malta 5, Marshall Islands 3, Mexico 1, Mongolia 5, Norway 1, Panama 105, Philippines 1, Saint Kitts and Nevis 19, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 11, Saudi Arabia 1, Sierra Leone 3, Singapore 7, Somalia 1, Sri Lanka 2, Syria 1, unknown 5) (2006) |
Military branches | Rwandan Defense Forces: Army, Air Force | Army, Navy (includes Marines and Coast Guard), Air and Air Defense Force, paramilitary forces (includes Federal Police Force) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $1.6 billion (FY00) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.9% (2006 est.) | 3.1% (FY00) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 1 July (1962) | Independence Day, 2 December (1971) |
Nationality | noun: Rwandan(s)
adjective: Rwandan |
noun: Emirati(s)
adjective: Emirati |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts; the volcanic Virunga mountains are in the northwest along the border with Democratic Republic of the Congo | frequent sand and dust storms |
Natural resources | gold, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore), methane, hydropower, arable land | petroleum, natural gas |
Net migration rate | 2.41 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 0.66 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
People - note | Rwanda is the most densely populated country in Africa | - |
Pipelines | - | condensate 520 km; gas 2,580 km; liquid petroleum gas 300 km; oil 2,950 km; oil/gas/water 5 km; refined products 156 km (2006) |
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] | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | IBUKA - association of genocide survivors | NA |
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.) |
2,602,713 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 60% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.766% (2007 est.) | 1.52% (2006 est.) |
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 13, FM 8, shortwave 2 (2004) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 56.5%, Protestant 26%, Adventist 11.1%, Muslim 4.6%, indigenous beliefs 0.1%, none 1.7% (2001) | Muslim 96% (Shi'a 16%), Christian, Hindu, and other 4% |
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: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.55 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 2.73 male(s)/female total population: 1.43 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | none |
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: modern fiber-optic integrated services; digital network with rapidly growing use of mobile cellular telephones; key centers are Abu Dhabi and Dubai
domestic: microwave radio relay, fiber optic and coaxial cable international: country code - 971; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat; submarine cables to Qatar, Bahrain, India, and Pakistan; tropospheric scatter to Bahrain; microwave radio relay to Saudi Arabia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 22,000 (2005) | 1.237 million (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 290,000 (2005) | 4.535 million (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (2004) | 15 (2004) |
Terrain | mostly grassy uplands and hills; relief is mountainous with altitude declining from west to east | flat, barren coastal plain merging into rolling sand dunes of vast desert wasteland; mountains in east |
Total fertility rate | 5.37 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 2.88 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 2.4% (2001) |
Waterways | Lac Kivu navigable by shallow-draft barges and native craft (2006) | - |