Rwanda-Geography+and+Statistics

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//The flag of Rwanda has three horizontal bands, sky blue, yellow, and green, with a golden sun with 24 rays near the fly end of the blue band.//¹

K//gali (in the map above) has a population of 851,024. It is the largest city in Rwanda. It became the capital after Rwanda's Independence in 1962.//¹

//water:// 1,390 sq km //land:// 24,948 sq km || //permanent crops:// 10.13% //other:// 57.44% (1998 est.) || //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 2004 est.) || //15-64 years:// 55% (male 2,178,956; female 2,194,526) //65 years and over:// 2.7% (male 85,472; female 130,790) (2004 est.) || //male:// 18 years //female:// 18.4 years (2004 est.) || //male:// 38.43 years //female:// 39.96 years (2004 est.) || //female:// 64.7% (2003 est.) //male:// 76.3% //total population:// 70.4% || //head of government:// Prime Minister Bernard MAKUZA (since 8 March 2000) //cabinet:// Council of Ministers appointed by the president //elections:// last held 25 August 2003 (next to be held NA 2008) //election results:// Paul KAGAME elected president in first direct popular vote; Paul KAGAME 95.05%, Faustin TWAGIRAMUNGU 3.62%, Jean-Nepomuscene NAYINZIRA 1.33% || //industry:// 20% //services:// 35% (2002 est.) || ¹ ||
 * Location: || Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo ||
 * Area: || //total:// 26,338 sq km
 * Area - comparative: || slightly smaller than Maryland ||
 * Climate: || Two rainy seasons (February to April, November to January); mild in mountains with frost and snow possible ||
 * Terrain: || mostly grassy uplands and hills; relief is mountainous with altitude declining from west to east ||
 * Natural resources: || gold, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore), methane, hydropower, arable land ||
 * Land use: || //arable land:// 32.43%
 * Natural hazards: || periodic droughts; the volcanic Virunga mountains are in the northwest along the border with Democratic Republic of the Congo ||
 * Geography - note: || landlocked; most of the country is savanna grassland with the population predominantly rural ||
 * Population: || 7,954,013
 * Age structure: || //0-14 years:// 42.3% (male 1,690,122; female 1,674,147)
 * Median age: || //total:// 18.2 years
 * Birth rate: || 40.01 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) ||
 * Death rate: || 21.86 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) ||
 * Life expectancy at birth: || //total population:// 39.18 years
 * HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: || 500,000 (2001 est.) ||
 * HIV/AIDS - deaths: || 49,000 (2001 est.) ||
 * Ethnic groups: || Hutu 84%, Tutsi 15%, Twa (Pygmoid) 1% ||
 * Religions: || Roman Catholic 56.5%, Protestant 26%, Adventist 11.1%, Muslim 4.6%, indigenous beliefs 0.1%, none 1.7% (2001) ||
 * Languages: || Kinyarwanda (official) universal Bantu vernacular, French (official), English (official), Kiswahili (Swahili) used in commercial centers ||
 * Literacy: || //definition:// age 15 and over can read and write
 * People - note: || Rwanda is the most densely populated country in Africa ||
 * Government type: || republic; presidential, multiparty system ||
 * Capital: || Kigali ||
 * Independence: || 1 July 1962 (from Belgium-administered UN trusteeship) ||
 * 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 ||
 * Executive branch: || //chief of state:// President Paul KAGAME (since 22 April 2000)
 * 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; 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. Export earnings, however, have been hindered by low beverage prices, depriving the country of much needed hard currency. Attempts to diversify into non-traditional agriculture exports such as flowers and vegetables have been stymied by a lack of adequate transportation infrastructure. Despite Rwanda's fertile ecosystem, food production often does not keep pace with population growth, requiring food to be imported. Rwanda continues to receive substantial aid money and was approved for IMF-World Bank Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) initiative debt relief in late 2000. But Kigali's high defense expenditures cause tension between the government and international donors and lending agencies. ||
 * GDP - composition by sector: || //agriculture:// 45%
 * Population below poverty line: || 60% (2001 est.) ||
 * Labor force - by occupation: || agriculture 90% ||
 * Industries: || cement, agricultural products, small-scale beverages, soap, furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles, cigarettes ||
 * Agriculture - products: || coffee, tea, pyrethrum (insecticide made from chrysanthemums), bananas, beans, sorghum, potatoes; livestock ||
 * Exports - commodities: || coffee, tea, hides, tin ore ||
 * Currency: || Rwandan franc (RWF) ||
 * Exchange rates: || Rwandan francs per US dollar - 537.66 (2003), 476.33 (2002), 442.8 (2001), 389.7 (2000), 333.94 (1999) ||
 * Radios: || 601,000 (1997) ||
 * Televisions: || NA; probably less than 1,000 (1997) ||
 * Airports: || 9 (2003 est.)

1. "Rwanda Information." __Country-Info__. 2005. World Factbook. 9 Apr. 2007 <[|http://www.country-info.com/facts/Rwanda.htm>.]

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