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'Burundi' (IPA: ), officially the 'Republic of Burundi', is a small country in the Great Lakes region of Africa. It is bordered by Rwanda on the north, Tanzania on the south and east, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the west. Although the country is landlocked, much of its western border is adjacent to Lake Tanganyika. The country's modern name is derived from its Bantu language, Kirundi.
Geographically isolated, facing population pressures and having sparse resources, Burundi has the lowest GDP per capita in the world, arguably making it the poorest country on the planet. It is also one of the most conflict-ridden countries in Africa and in the world. Its small size belies the magnitude of the problems it faces in reconciling the claims of the Tutsi minority with the Hutu majority.

Contents

History

Genocide and mass killings

Politics

Provinces, communes, and collines

Geography

Economy

Demographics

Culture

See also

References

Notes

Further reading

External links

History

Main articles: History of Burundi

The earliest inhabitants of the area were the pygmoid Twa. They were largely replaced and absorbed by Bantu tribes during Bantu migrations.
Burundi existed as an independent kingdom from the sixteenth century. In 1903, it became a German colony and passed to Belgium in World War I. It was part of the Belgian League of Nations mandate of Ruanda-Urundi in 1923, later a United Nations Trust Territory under Belgian administrative authority following World War II.
The origins of Burundi monarchy are veiled in myth. According to some legends, Ntare Rushatsi, founder of the original dynasty, came to Burundi from Rwanda in seventeenth century; other, more reliable sources, suggest that Ntare came from Buha, in the south-east, and laid the foundation for his kingdom in the Nkoma region.
Until the downfall of the monarchy in 1966, kingship remained one of the last links that bound Burundi with its past.
From independence in 1962, until the elections of 1993, Burundi was controlled by a series of military dictators. These years saw extensive ethnic violence. In 1965 Hutu extremists attempted to wipe out ethnic Tutsi at Busangana in the central province of Muramvya. In 1972, 1988, and 1993, the Tutsi minority was victim of a genocide at the hands of Hutu extremist organisations such as UBU (Umugambwe w'Abakozi b'Uburundi or Burundi Workers Party), PALIPEHUTU, FRODEBU, and more recently the now ruling CNDD-FDD. In 1993 Burundi held democratic presidential elections which were won by the Hutu-dominated Front for Democracy in Burundi (FRODEBU). FRODEBU leader Melchior Ndadaye became Burundi's first Hutu President, but a few months later he was assassinated by a group of Tutsi army officers. The killing was a pretense for the ruling party FRODEBU to start a new genocide against the Tutsi minority. Hutu extremists massacred thousands of Tutsi civilians. Years of instability followed until 1996, when former president Pierre Buyoya took power in a coup. In August 2000, a peace deal was agreed by most of Burundi's political groups. Unfortunately, it made no distinction between political parties and genocidal forces, as both were allowed to play a role in the national institutions. The deal laid out a timetable for the restoration of democracy. After several more years of genocide against the Tutsi minority, a cease-fire was signed in 2003 between the government and the largest Hutu rebel group, CNDD-FDD. In April of that year, FRODEBU leader Domitien Ndayizeye had replaced Buyoya as President. Yet the most extreme Hutu group, PALIPEHUTU-FNL (commonly known as "FNL"), continued to refuse negotiations. In August 2004, the group massacred 152 Congolese Tutsi refugees at the Gatumba refugee camp in western Burundi. In response to the attack, the Burundian government issued arrest warrants for the FNL leaders Agathon Rwasa and Pasteur Habimana, and declared the group a terrorist organisation. However, the arrest warrants were never effected. On the contrary, a few months later, the UN representative to Burundi went to meet the two men in Nairobi, Kenya.
In May 2005, a cease-fire was finally agreed between the FNL and the Burundian government, but fighting continued. Renewed negotiations are now under way, amid fears that the FNL will demand a blanket amnesty in exchange for laying down their arms. A series of elections, held in mid-2005 were won by the former Hutu rebel National Council for the Defense of Democracy-Forces for the Defense of Democracy (CNDD-FDD). On September 7, 2006, a second ceasefire agreement was signed.

Genocide and mass killings

There was a well prepared genocide against Hutu population in Burundi in 1972 and an estimated 250,000 Hutu and moderate Tutsi died. Those who participated in that genocide are free after the current government of Burundi continue to urge all the people to forgive each other on all of the killings. There have been other mass killings against the Hutu population in Burundi, like in 1988, when the government struck innocent civilians in the region of Ntenga and Marangara in Burundi. In 1993, Burundi's first democratically elected Hutu president, Melchior Ndadaye, was assassinated by Tutsi extremists. His assassination was followed by a long civil war which killed both Hutu and Tutsi. A 1996 UN report into Ndadaye's assassination and its aftermath^[2], concluded that "acts of genocide against the Tutsi minority were committed in Burundi in October 1993". The report also implicated senior figures in Burundi's Tutsi-dominated army in the assassination. In Burundi, both Hutu and Tutsi civilians have been targets of mass killings and acts of genocide organized by the state and by armed militia groups. The current government is made up of both Hutu and Tutsi. The Military is made up of both former Hutu rebels and former Tutsi government soldiers. The restoration of a multi-ethnic, multi-party democracy has seen renewed expectations of an end to Burundi's conflict.

Politics

Main articles: Politics of Burundi

The politics of Burundi take place in a framework of a transitional presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the President of Burundi is both head of state and head of government, and of a pluriform multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the two chambers of parliament, the Senate and the National Assembly.
The President has officially called a cease-fire between the two warring parties in the civil war.
Decades of ethnic violence makes the achievement of political and social harmony difficult, as is evident in the reports of seminars of ministers of religion and teachers on the prospects for a 'nonkilling society' conducted in 2005-2006 by Fondation chirezi

Provinces, communes, and collines

Main articles: Provinces of Burundi, Communes of Burundi, Collines of Burundi

Burundi is divided into 17 provinces, 117 communes, and 2,638 collines.
The provinces are:

★ Bubanza ★ Bujumbura Mairie ★ Bujumbura Rural ★ Bururi ★ Cankuzo ★ Cibitoke ★ Gitega ★ Karuzi ★ Kayanza

★ Kirundo ★ Makamba ★ Muramvya ★ Muyinga ★ Mwaro ★ Ngozi ★ Rutana ★ Ruyigi

The capital city, consists on burumbi rural.

Geography

Main articles: Geography of Burundi

Burundi is a landlocked country with an equatorial climate. Called "''The heart of Africa''" it lies on a rolling plateau, with Lake Tanganyika in its south west corner. The average elevation of the central plateau is 5,600 feet, with lower elevations at the borders. The highest peak, Mount Karonje, at 2 760 m [2], lies to the southeast of the capital, Bujumbura. The southeastern and southern borders are at roughly 4,500 feet (1,370 m). A strip of land along the Ruzizi River, north of Lake Tanganyika, is the only area below 3,000 feet (915 m): this area forms part of the Albertine Rift, the western extension of the Great Rift Valley.
The land is mostly agricultural or pasture, the creation of which has led to deforestation, soil erosion and habitat loss. Deforestation of the entire country is almost complete due to overpopulation, with a mere 600 km² remaining and an ongoing loss of about nine percent per annum[3]. There are two national parks, Kibira National Park to the northwest (a small region of montane rainforest, adjacent to Nyungwe Forest National Park in Rwanda), Rurubu National Park to the north east (along the Rurubu River, also known as Ruvubu or Ruvuvu).
The farthest headstream of the Nile is in Burundi. Although Lake Victoria is commonly considered to be the source of the Nile, the Kagera River flows for 429 miles (690 km) before reaching Lake Victoria. The source of the Ruvyironza River, an upper branch of the Kagera River, is at Mount Kikizi in Burundi.

Economy

Main articles: Economy of Burundi

Burundi's largest industry is agriculture, which accounted for 58% of GDP in 1997. Coffee is the nation's biggest revenue earner with 78% of all exported goods. Other agriculture products include cotton, tea, maize, sorghum, sweet potatoes, bananas (of which Burundi is one of the world's ten largest producers), manioc (tapioca); beef, milk, and hides. Besides agriculture, other industries include light consumer goods such as blankets, shoes, soap; assembly of imported components; public works construction; food processing. The currency is the Burundian franc (BIF).
Burundi is the poorest country in the world, in terms of GDP per capita: US$90 as of 2007. The economy is supported by foreign aid from Western Europe and other parts of the world. In 2000 this amount reached US$92.7 million. 68% of the population lived below the poverty line in 2002. The country's estimated gross domestic product (GDP) was US$700 million in 2001. According to the World Food Programme, the majority of children aged under 5 (56.8%) suffer from chronic malnutrition. [4]

Demographics

Main articles: Demographics of Burundi

As of July 2006, Burundi is projected to have an estimated population of 8,090,068, approximately half of whom are aged 14 or less. This estimate explicitly takes into account the effects of AIDS, which has a significant effect on the demographics of the country. Roughly 85% of the population are of Hutu ethnic origin; most of the remaining population are Tutsi, with a minority of Twa (Pygmy), and a few thousand Europeans and South Asians. The population density of around 315 people per square kilometre (753/sq mi) is the second highest in Sub-Saharan Africa, behind only Rwanda. The Twa are thought to be the original inhabitants of the area, with Hutu and then Tutsi settlers arriving in the 1300s and 1400s respectively.
The largest religion is Roman Catholicism (62%), followed by indigenous beliefs (23%) and a minority of Protestants (5%) and Muslims (10%). However, The Anglican Church of Burundi [5] claims over 10% of the population as members and recent reports indicate the Christian population may be as high as 90% with most of the remainder being Muslim. [6]. Care should therefore be taken with these statistics.
The official languages are Kirundi and French, although Swahili is spoken along the eastern border.

Culture

Main articles: Culture of Burundi


The culture of Burundi is based on local tradition and the influence of its neighbors, though its prominence has been hindered by the civil unrest. Most Burundians live in rural areas as extended families in hilltop compounds called ''rugos''. Arranged marriages are not uncommon, with the groom’s family sometimes paying a bride price. City residents often take a siesta, and most businesses will be closed in the early afternoon.
Traditional drumming is an important part of Burundian cultural heritage, as indicated by the world-famous Royal Drummers of Burundi. Traditional dance often accompanies the drumming, which is frequently seen in celebrations and family gatherings. Burundians also adhere to a strong oral tradition which relays history and life lessons through storytelling, poetry, and song. Cattle herders engage in ''kivivuga amazina'', an improvisational poetry contest in which they boast their abilities or accomplishments.
Football is a popular pastime throughout the country, as are mancala games. Many Burundians celebrate Christian holidays and Burundian Independence Day, though the largest celebration occurs on New Year’s Day with feasting and traditional drumming and dancing.

See also

★ List of Burundi-related topics

★ Association des Scouts du Burundi

★ Communications in Burundi

★ Fondation chirezi

★ Foreign relations of Burundi

★ Military of Burundi

★ Transport in Burundi

References

★ ''Much of the material in these articles comes from the CIA World Factbook 2000 and the 2003 U.S. Department of State website.''

★

★ [7]

Notes

1. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/br.html#Econ
2. [1]

Further reading

★ ''Burundi: Ethnic Conflict and Genocide'' Reni Lemarchand and Lee H. Hamilton

External links

; Government

★ Official government website (in French)
; News

★ allAfrica - Burundi

★ East African Business Week business news for Burundi, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and Rwanda

★ IRIN News for Burundi, from the United Nations

★ Agence Burundaise de Presse (ABP) (in French)

★ Radio Isanganiro Burundi's independent radio station, one of the few independent sources of daily news in Burundi. You can listen online in French and Kirundi.

★ umuco.com Burundian-run news site, with detailed news and analysis, mainly in French

★ Burundi Réalités News and analysis, French&English

★ Burundi Agnews info News and analysis, Kirundi&French&English
; Overviews

★ Rural poverty in Burundi (IFAD)

★ BBC News - ''Country Profile: Burundi''

★

★ Encyclopaedia Britannica's Burundi Country Page

★ Congressional Research Service (CRS) Reports regarding Burundi
; Directories

★ Open Directory Project - ''Burundi'' directory category

★ Stanford University - Africa South of the Sahara: ''Burundi'' directory category

★ University of Pennsylvania - African Studies Center: ''Burundi'' directory category

★ Yahoo! - ''Burundi'' directory category
; Tourism

★

★ 'L'Afrique.com' - 'Photographs of and articles about Burundi'
; Other

★ Burundian Human Rights Organisation "Ligue Iteka" - with up-to-date news in English and French

★ Human Rights Watch reports on Burundi

★ Woodrow Wilson Center Reports on Burundi

★ Human Rights Watch special report on the August 2004 Gatumba massacre

★ Links to political analyses from 1998 on by the International Crisis Group

★ Reuters Alertnet - Burundi humanitarian news

★ Burundi's location on a 3D globe (Java)

★ Updated humanitarian news from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

★ Transcend Africa Network to bring peace to regions of Africa

★ UNESCO Nairobi office on HIV/AIDS in Burundi

★ UNESCO Nairobi office on education in Burundi

★ UNESCO Nairobi Office - Fact Book on Education For All, Burundi 2006

★ Canadian Cultural Profiles Project, Burundi

★ More detailed map from UNHCR