:Rwanda Geography Total area: 26,340 km2 Land area: 24,950 km2 Comparative area: slightly smaller than Maryland Land boundaries: 893 km total; Burundi 290 km, Tanzania 217 km, Uganda 169 km, Zaire 217 km Coastline: none - landlocked Maritime claims: none - landlocked Disputes: none Climate: temperate; two rainy seasons (February to April, November to January); mild in mountains with frost and snow possible Terrain: mostly grassy uplands and hills; mountains in west Natural resources: gold, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore), natural gas, hydropower Land use: arable land 29%; permanent crops 11%; meadows and pastures 18%; forest and woodland 10%; other 32%; includes irrigated NEGL% Environment: deforestation; overgrazing; soil exhaustion; soil erosion; periodic droughts Note: landlocked :Rwanda People Population: 8,206,446 (July 1992), growth rate 3.8% (1992) Birth rate: 52 births/1,000 population (1992) Death rate: 14 deaths/1,000 population (1992) Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1992) Infant mortality rate: 108 deaths/1,000 live births (1992) Life expectancy at birth: 51 years male, 55 years female (1992) Total fertility rate: 8.3 children born/woman (1992) Nationality: noun - Rwandan(s); adjective - Rwandan Ethnic divisions: Hutu 90%, Tutsi 9%, Twa (Pygmoid) 1% Religions: Roman Catholic 65%, Protestant 9%, Muslim 1%, indigenous beliefs and other 25% Languages: Kinyarwanda, French (official); Kiswahili used in commercial centers Literacy: 50% (male 64%, female 37%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.) Labor force: 3,600,000; agriculture 93%, government and services 5%, industry and commerce 2%; 49% of population of working age (1985) Organized labor: NA :Rwanda Government Long-form name: Republic of Rwanda Type: republic; presidential system in which military leaders hold key offices; on 31 December 1990, the government announced a National Political Charter to serve as a basis for transition to a presidential/parliamentary political system; the 1978 constitution was replaced in June 1991 via popular referendum by a new constitution creating a multiparty system with a president and prime minister Capital: Kigali Administrative divisions: 10 prefectures (prefectures, singular - prefecture in French; plural - NA, singular - prefegitura in Kinyarwanda); Butare, Byumba, Cyangugu, Gikongoro, Gisenyi, Gitarama, Kibungo, Kibuye, Rigali, Ruhengeri Independence: 1 July 1962 (from UN trusteeship under Belgian administration) Constitution: 18 June 1991 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 National holiday: Independence Day, 1 July (1962) Executive branch: president, prime minister, Council of Ministers (cabinet) Legislative branch: unicameral National Development Council (Conseil National de Developpement) Judicial branch: Constitutional Court (consists of the Court of Cassation and the Council of State in joint session) Leaders: Chief of State: President Maj. Gen. Juvenal HABYARIMANA (since 5 July 1973) Head of Government: Prime Minister Sylvestre NSANZIMANA (since NA October 1991) Political parties and leaders: Republican Revolutionary Movement for Democracy and Development (MRND), Maj. Gen. Juvenal HABYARIMANA; formerly a one-party state, Rwanda legalized independent parties in mid-1991; since then, at least 10 new political parties have registered; President HABYARIMANA's political movement - the National Revolutionary Movement for Development (MRND) - reorganized itself as a political party and changed its name to the Republican National Movement for Democracy and Development (but kept the same initials - MRND); significant independent parties include: Democratic Republican Movement (MDR), leader NA; Liberal Party (PL), leader NA; Democratic and Socialist Party (PSD), leader NA; note - since October 1990, Rwanda has been involved in a low-intensity conflict with the Rwandan Patriotic Front/Rwandan Patriotic Army (RPF/RPA); the RPF/RPA is primarily an ethnically based organization Suffrage: universal adult, exact age NA Elections: President: last held 19 December 1988 (next to be held NA December 1993); results - President Maj. Gen. Juvenal HABYARIMANA reelected :Rwanda Government National Development Council: last held 19 December 1988 (next to be held NA December 1993); results - MRND is the only party; seats - (70 total) MRND 70 Member of: ACCT, ACP, AfDB, ECA, CCC, CEEAC, CEPGL, FAO, G-77, GATT, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Aloys UWIMANA; Chancery at 1714 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009; telephone (202) 232-2882 US: Ambassador Robert A. FLATEN; Embassy at Boulevard de la Revolution, Kigali (mailing address is B. P. 28, Kigali); telephone [250] 75601 through 75603; FAX [250] 72128 Flag: three equal vertical bands of red (hoist side), yellow, and green with a large black letter R centered in the yellow band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia; similar to the flag of Guinea, which has a plain yellow band :Rwanda Economy Overview: Almost 50% of GDP comes from the agricultural sector; coffee and tea make up 80-90% of total exports. The amount of fertile land is limited, however, and deforestation and soil erosion have created problems. The industrial sector in Rwanda is small, contributing only 17% to GDP. Manufacturing focuses mainly on the processing of agricultural products. The Rwandan economy remains dependent on coffee exports and foreign aid. Weak international prices since 1986 have caused the economy to contract and per capita GDP to decline. A structural adjustment program with the World Bank began in October 1990. An outbreak of insurgency, also in October, has dampened any prospects for economic improvement. GDP: exchange rate conversion - $2.1 billion, per capita $300; real growth rate -6.8% (1990 est.) Inflation rate (consumer prices): 4.2% (1990) Unemployment rate: NA% Budget: revenues $391 million; expenditures $491 million, including capital expenditures of $225 million (1989 est.) Exports: $111.7 million (f.o.b., 1990 est.) commodities: coffee 85%, tea, tin, cassiterite, wolframite, pyrethrum partners: Germany, Belgium, Italy, Uganda, UK, France, US Imports: $279.2 million (f.o.b., 1990 est.) commodities: textiles, foodstuffs, machines and equipment, capital goods, steel, petroleum products, cement and construction material partners: US, Belgium, Germany, Kenya, Japan External debt: $911 million (1990 est.) Industrial production: growth rate 1.2% (1988); accounts for 17% of GDP Electricity: 30,000 kW capacity; 130 million kWh produced, 15 kWh per capita (1991) Industries: mining of cassiterite (tin ore) and wolframite (tungsten ore), tin, cement, agricultural processing, small-scale beverage production, soap, furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles, cigarettes Agriculture: accounts for almost 50% of GDP and about 90% of the labor force; cash crops - coffee, tea, pyrethrum (insecticide made from chrysanthemums); main food crops - bananas, beans, sorghum, potatoes; stock raising; self-sufficiency declining; country imports foodstuffs as farm production fails to keep up with a 3.8% annual growth in population Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $128 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $2.0 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $45 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $58 million; note - in October 1990 Rwanda launched a Structural Adjustment Program with the IMF; since September 1991, the EC has given $46 million and the US $25 million in support of this program Currency: Rwandan franc (plural - francs); 1 Rwandan franc (RF) = 100 centimes :Rwanda Economy Exchange rates: Rwandan francs (RF) per US$1 - 121.40 (January 1992), 125.14 (1991), 82.60 (1990), 79.98 (1989), 76.45 (1988), 79.67 (1987) Fiscal year: calendar year :Rwanda Communications Highways: 4,885 km total; 460 km paved, 1,725 km gravel and/or improved earth, 2,700 km unimproved Inland waterways: Lac Kivu navigable by shallow-draft barges and native craft Civil air: 2 major transport aircraft Airports: 8 total, 8 usable; 3 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 1 with runway 2,440-3,659 m;2 with runways 1,220-2,439 m Telecommunications: fair system with low-capacity radio relay system centered on Kigali; broadcast stations - 2 AM, 1 (7 repeaters) FM, no TV; satellite earth stations - 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT and 1 SYMPHONIE :Rwanda Defense Forces Branches: Army (including Air Wing), Gendarmerie Manpower availability: males 15-49, 1,719,936; 876,659 fit for military service; no conscription Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $37 million, 1.6% of GDP (1988 est.)