stances are serious offenses in Brunei and carry a mandatory death
penalty

This page was last updated on 1 January 2002

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Burundi

Introduction

Burundi

Background: Burundi's first democratically elected president was
assassinated in October 1993 after only four months in office. Since
then, some 200,000 Burundians have perished in widespread, often
intense ethnic violence between Hutu and Tutsi factions. Hundreds
of thousands have been internally displaced or have become refugees
in neighboring countries. Burundian troops, seeking to secure their
borders, intervened in the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the
Congo in 1998. More recently, many of these troops have been redeployed
back to Burundi to deal with periodic upsurges in rebel activity. A new
transitional government, inaugurated on 1 November 2001, was to be the
first step towards holding national elections in three years. However,
the unwillingness of the Hutu rebels to enact a cease fire with Bujumbura
continues to obstruct prospects for a sustainable peace.

Geography Burundi

Location: Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo

Geographic coordinates: 3 30 S, 30 00 E

Map references: Africa

Area: total: 27,830 sq km water: 2,180 sq km land: 25,650 sq km

Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Maryland

Land boundaries: total: 974 km border countries: Democratic Republic
of the Congo 233 km, Rwanda 290 km, Tanzania 451 km

Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims: none (landlocked)

Climate: 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; wet seasons from February to May and September to November,
and dry seasons from June to August and December to January

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

Elevation extremes: lowest point: Lake Tanganyika 772 m highest point:
Mount Heha 2,670 m

Natural resources: nickel, uranium, rare earth oxides, peat, cobalt,
copper, platinum (not yet exploited), vanadium, arable land, hydropower

Land use: arable land: 30% permanent crops: 13% other: 57% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land: 740 sq km (1998 est.)

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