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Located in the Great Lakes region of Africa, its official name is the Republic of Burundi. Burundi is a landlocked country, slightly larger than the state of Maryland. This beautiful Central African
nation borders Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Rwanda.
It is one of the world’s poorest nations.
Burundi was first colonized by Germany until WW1, when Belgium took over the country. In 1962 Burundi declared it’s independence from Belgium. Since then Burundi has experienced much violent ethnic fighting between the Hutus and Tutsis including major incidents in 1964, 1972, the late 1980’s. After the first free election in 1993, the newly elected Hutu president was assassinated
unleashing a period of unprecedented violence between the Hutus and the Tutsis
during which 300,000 people were killed.
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Official language: Kirundi. French is spoken in
the major cities where the literacy rate is higher. Swahili is
spoken along the western border. |
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Capital: Bujumbura |
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Population: 8,090,068 (about the same as New Jersey) |
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Provinces: Burundi is divided into 15 provinces |
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Ethnic groups: 85% Hutu, 14% Tutsi, 1% Abatwa (Twa)
(pigmy) |
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Religious affiliations: Roman Catholic (62%), Indigenous
beliefs (23%), Muslims (10%), Protestants (5%). These figures
vary. |
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Life Expectancy: 49 years |
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Literacy Rate: 35% |
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Main Export: Coffee |
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Currency: Burundi Franc (BIF) 1.00 US Dollar = 1038 BIF. Burundian Francs bills come in denominations of 10, 50, 100, 500, 1000, 2000, and 5000. Coins come in denominations of 1, 5 and 10. We will exchange money for you, which will be available upon your arrival in Burundi. |
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Economy: Mostly agricultural. More than 90% of the population depends on subsistence agriculture. |
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Agricultural products: Coffee, cotton, tea, corn, sorghum, sweet potatoes, bananas, tapioca, beef, milk, animal hides. |
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Industries: Light consumer goods such as blankets, shoes, soap, assembly of imported components; public works construction; food processing. |
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Natural Resources: Nickel, uranium, rare earth oxides, peat, cobalt, copper, platinum, vanadium, arable land, hydropower, niobium, tantalum, gold, tin, tungsten, kaolin, limestone. |
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Education: Only one out of two Burundian children goes to school. |
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Time difference: Military time is used in Burundi. Burundi is 6 hours ahead of EST, New York during daylight savings time: |
NYC
6:00AM
12:00PM
6:00PM
12:00AM |
Burundi
1200 hours (noon)
1800 hours
12:00 midnight
600 hours |
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