Country Fact Sheet:
Location – Central Africa
Area – 26,338 sq km
Land boundaries - 893 km
Border countries – Uganda to the North, Tanzania to the
East, Democratic Republic of the Condo to the West and Burundi to the South.
Climate – Temperate; two rainy seasons (February to April,
November to January)
Terrain – Mostly grassy uplands and hills; relief is
mountainous with altitude declining from west to east.
Elevation – 9000 ft (2,740m)
Capital – Kigali
Official languages – Kinyarwanda, French and English
Population - ~10 million
Ethnic Groups – 84% Hutu, 15% Tutsi, 1% Twa
Religion – 56.5% Roman Catholic, 26% Protestant, 11.1%
Adventist, 4.6% Muslim, 0.1% Indigenous beliefs, 1.7% none.
Industries – Cement, agricultural products, small-scale
beverages, soap, furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles and cigarettes
Independence – From Belgium, July 1, 1962
Natural Resources – Gold, cassiterite, wolframite, methane,
hydropower and arable land
Natural Hazards: Periodic droughts; the volcanic Virunga
mountains are in the northwest along the border with Democratic Republic of the
Congo
Altitude - lowest
point: Rusizi River 950 m
highest point: Volcan Karisimbi 4,519 m
Land use - arable land: 45.56%
permanent crops: 10.25%
other: 44.19%
Environment - current issues: deforestation results from
uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel; overgrazing; soil exhaustion; soil
erosion; widespread poaching
Age structure - 0-14 years: 41.9% (male 2,143,479/female 2,124,588)
15-64 years: 55.7%
(male 2,826,557/female 2,842,020)
65 years and over:
2.4% (male 99,721/female 149,698)
Population Growth Rate - 2.779%
Birth Rate - 39.97 births/1,000 population
Death rate - 14.46 deaths/1,000 population
People living with HIV/AIDS – 250,000
Government type: republic; presidential, multiparty system
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
GPD - $8.44 billion
Population below poverty line: 60%
