Burundi's first democratically elected president was assassinated in October 1993 after only 100 days in office, triggering widespread ethnic violence between Hutu and Tutsi factions. More than 200,000 Burundians perished during the conflict that spanned almost a dozen years. Hundreds of thousands of Burundians were internally displaced or became refugees in neighboring countries. An internationally brokered power-sharing agreement between the Tutsi-dominated government and the Hutu rebels in 2003 paved the way for a transition process that led to an integrated defense force, established a new constitution in 2005, and elected a majority Hutu government in 2005. The new government, led by President Pierre NKURUNZIZA, signed a South African brokered ceasefire with the country's last rebel group in September of 2006 but still faces many challenges.

Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo

slightly smaller than Maryland

equatorial; high plateau with considerable altitude variation (772 m to 2,670 m above sea level); average annual temperature varies with altitude from 23 to 17 degrees centigrade but is generally moderate as the average altitude is about 1,700 m; average annual rainfall is about 150 cm; two wet seasons (February to May and September to November), and two dry seasons (June to August and December to January)

hilly and mountainous, dropping to a plateau in east, some plains

nickel, uranium, rare earth oxides, peat, cobalt, copper, platinum, vanadium, arable land, hydropower, niobium, tantalum, gold, tin, tungsten, kaolin, limestone

flooding; landslides; drought

soil erosion as a result of overgrazing and the expansion of agriculture into marginal lands; deforestation (little forested land remains because of uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel); habitat loss threatens wildlife populations

landlocked; straddles crest of the Nile-Congo watershed; the Kagera, which drains into Lake Victoria, is the most remote headstream of the White Nile

10,216,190 (July 2011 est.)

41.01 births/1,000 population (2011 est.)

9.61 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.)

3.22 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.)

BUJUMBURA (capital) 455,000 (2009)

6.16 children born/woman (2011 est.)

urban: 83% of population

rural: 71% of population

total: 72% of population

urban: 17% of population

rural: 29% of population

total: 28% of population (2008)

urban: 49% of population

rural: 46% of population

total: 46% of population

urban: 51% of population

rural: 54% of population

total: 54% of population (2008)

Hutu (Bantu) 85%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 14%, Twa (Pygmy) 1%, Europeans 3,000, South Asians 2,000

Christian 67% (Roman Catholic 62%, Protestant 5%), indigenous beliefs 23%, Muslim 10%

Kirundi (official), French (official), Swahili (along Lake Tanganyika and in the Bujumbura area)

17 provinces; Bubanza, Bujumbura Mairie, Bujumbura Rural, Bururi, Cankuzo, Cibitoke, Gitega, Karuzi, Kayanza, Kirundo, Makamba, Muramvya, Muyinga, Mwaro, Ngozi, Rutana, Ruyigi

1 July 1962 (from UN trusteeship under Belgian administration)

Independence Day, 1 July (1962)

ratified by popular referendum 28 February 2005

mixed legal system of Belgian civil law and customary law

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

18 years of age; universal

bicameral Parliament or Parlement, consists of a Senate (54 seats; 34 members elected by indirect vote to serve five-year terms, with remaining seats assigned to ethnic groups and former chiefs of state) and a National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (minimum 100 seats, 60% Hutu and 40% Tutsi with at least 30% being women; additional seats appointed by a National Independent Electoral Commission to ensure ethnic representation; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)

Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; Constitutional Court; High Court of Justice (composed of the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court)

Forum for the Strengthening of Civil Society or FORSC [Pacifique NININAHAZWE] (civil society umbrella organization); Observatoire de lutte contre la corruption et les malversations economiques or OLUCOME [Gabriel RUFYIRI] (anti-corruption pressure group)

ACP, AfDB, AU, CEPGL, COMESA, EAC, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (subscriber), ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

divided by a white diagonal cross into red panels (top and bottom) and green panels (hoist side and fly side) with a white disk superimposed at the center bearing three red six-pointed stars outlined in green arranged in a triangular design (one star above, two stars below); green symbolizes hope and optimism, white purity and peace, and red the blood shed in the struggle for independence; the three stars in the disk represent the three major ethnic groups: Hutu, Twa, Tutsi, as well as the three elements in the national motto: unity, work, progress

Burundi is a landlocked, resource-poor country with an underdeveloped manufacturing sector. The economy is predominantly agricultural which accounts for just over 30% of GDP and employs more than 90% of the population. Burundi's primary exports are coffee and tea, which account for 90% of foreign exchange earnings, though exports are a relatively small share of GDP. Burundi's export earnings - and its ability to pay for imports - rests primarily on weather conditions and international coffee and tea prices. The Tutsi minority, 14% of the population, dominates the coffee trade. An ethnic-based war that lasted for over a decade resulted in more than 200,000 deaths, forced more than 48,000 refugees into Tanzania, and displaced 140,000 others internally. Only one in two children go to school, and approximately one in 15 adults has HIV/AIDS. Food, medicine, and electricity remain in short supply. Less than 2% of the population has electricity in its homes. Burundi's GDP grew around 4% annually in 2006-10. Political stability and the end of the civil war have improved aid flows and economic activity has increased, but underlying weaknesses - a high poverty rate, poor education rates, a weak legal system, a poor transportation network, overburdened utilities, and low administrative capacity - risk undermining planned economic reforms. The purchasing power of most Burundians has decreased as wage increases have not kept up with inflation. Burundi will continue to remain heavily dependent on aid from bilateral and multilateral donors; the delay of funds after a corruption scandal cut off bilateral aid in 2007 reduced government's revenues and its ability to pay salaries. Burundi joined the East African Community, which should boost Burundi's regional trade ties, and received $700 million in debt relief in 2009. Government corruption is also hindering the development of a healthy private sector as companies seek to navigate an environment with ever-changing rules.

$3.397 billion (2010 est.)

$3.272 billion (2009 est.)

$3.161 billion (2008 est.)

$1.489 billion (2010 est.)

4.245 million (2007)

25.1% of GDP (2010 est.)

10% (31 December 2009)

10.08% (31 December 2008)

14.08% (31 December 2009 est.)

16.52% (31 December 2008 est.)

$329.3 million (31 December 2010 est.)

$293.6 million (31 December 2009 est.)

$568.3 million (31 December 2010 est.)

$506.7 million (31 December 2009 est.)

$465.7 million (31 December 2010 est.)

$415.2 million (31 December 2009 est.)

coffee, cotton, tea, corn, sorghum, sweet potatoes, bananas, manioc (tapioca); beef, milk, hides

light consumer goods such as blankets, shoes, soap; assembly of imported components; public works construction; food processing

92 million kWh (2007 est.)

125.6 million kWh (2007 est.)

40 million kWh; note - supplied by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2007 est.)

0 bbl/day (2009 est.)

3,000 bbl/day (2009 est.)

0 bbl/day (2007 est.)

2,495 bbl/day (2007 est.)

0 bbl (1 January 2010 est.)

0 cu m (1 January 2010 est.)

$-136 million (2010 est.)

$-127 million (2009 est.)

$71 million (2010 est.)

$68 million (2009 est.)

coffee, tea, sugar, cotton, hides

Germany 21.6%, Switzerland 14.86%, Belgium 9.32%, Sweden 8.94%, Pakistan 5.82% (2009)

$336 million (2010 est.)

$275 million (2009 est.)

capital goods, petroleum products, foodstuffs

Saudi Arabia 16.87%, Belgium 11.17%, Uganda 8.62%, Kenya 7.57%, China 5.66%, France 5.35%, Germany 4.46%, India 4.24%, Tanzania 4.21% (2009)

$320 million (31 December 2010 est.)

$323 million (31 December 2009 est.)

Burundi francs (BIF) per US dollar -

state-controlled La Radiodiffusion et Television Nationale de Burundi (RTNB) operates the lone TV broadcast station and the only national radio network; about 10 privately-owned radio broadcast stations; transmissions of several international broadcasters are available in Bujumbura (2007)

(mainly on Lake Tanganyika between Bujumbura, Burundi's principal port, and lake ports in Tanzania, Zambia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo) (2010)

National Defense Forces (Forces de Defense Nationale, FDN): Army (includes naval detachment, Air Wing, and Coast Guard), National Gendarmerie (2011)

military service is voluntary; the armed forces law of 31 December 2004 did not specify a minimum age for enlistment, but the government had previously said each recruit must have a primary school-leaving certificate; mandatory retirement age 45 (enlisted), 50 (NCOs), and 55 (officers) (2010)

5.9% of GDP (2006 est.)

Burundi and Rwanda dispute two sq km (0.8 sq mi) of Sabanerwa, a farmed area in the Rukurazi Valley where the Akanyaru/Kanyaru River shifted its course southward after heavy rains in 1965; cross-border conflicts among Tutsi, Hutu, other ethnic groups, associated political rebels, armed gangs, and various government forces persist in the Great Lakes region