Background: Established in the 1600s, the Burundi Kingdom has had borders similar to those of modern Burundi since the 1800s. Burundi’s two major ethnic groups, the majority Hutu and minority Tutsi, share a common language and culture and largely lived in peaceful cohabitation under Tutsi monarchs in pre-colonial Burundi. Regional, class, and clan distinctions contributed to social status in the Burundi Kingdom, yielding a complex class structure. German colonial rule in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and Belgian rule after World War I preserved Burundi’s monarchy. Seeking to simplify administration, Belgian colonial officials reduced the number of chiefdoms and eliminated most Hutu chiefs from positions of power. In 1961, the Burundian Tutsi king’s oldest son, Louis Rwagasore was murdered by a competing political faction shortly before he was set to become prime minister, triggering increased political competition that contributed to later instability. Burundi gained its independence from Belgium in 1962 as the Kingdom of Burundi.

Geographic coordinates: 3 30 S, 30 00 E

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total: 27,830 km²
Land: 25,680 km²
Water: 2,150 km²
Comparative: slightly smaller than Maryland

Land boundaries
Total: 1,140 km
Border countries: (3) Democratic Republic of the Congo 236 km; , Rwanda 315 km; , Tanzania 589 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 Celsius but is generally moderate as the average altitude is about 1,700 m; average annual rainfall is about 150 cm; two wet seasons (February to May and September to November), and two dry seasons (June to August and December to January)

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

Elevation
Highest point: Heha 2,670 m
Lowest point: Lake Tanganyika 772 m
Mean elevation: 1,504 m

Natural resources: nickel, uranium, rare earth oxides, peat, cobalt, copper, platinum, vanadium, arable land, hydropower, niobium, tantalum, gold, tin, tungsten, kaolin, limestone

Land use
Agricultural land: 73.3% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land arable land: 38.9% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land permanent crops: 15.6% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land permanent pasture: 18.8% (2018 est.)
Forest: 6.6% (2018 est.)
Other: 20.1% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land: 230 km² (2012)

Major rivers
By length in km: Nile (shared with Egypt, Sudan, South Sudan, Uganda, Rwanda, and Tanzania) - 6,650 km;

Major watersheds area km²: Atlantic Ocean drainage: Congo (3,730,881 km²), (Mediterranean Sea) Nile (3,254,853 km²)

Total water withdrawal
Municipal: 43.1 million cubic meters (2017 est.)
Industrial: 15 million cubic meters (2017 est.)
Agricultural: 222 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

Total renewable water resources: 12.536 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)

Natural hazards: flooding; landslides; drought

Geography
Note: landlocked; straddles crest of the Nile-Congo watershed; the Kagera, which drains into Lake Victoria, is the most remote headstream of the White Nile

Population
Distribution: one of Africa's most densely populated countries; concentrations tend to be in the north and along the northern shore of Lake Tanganyika in the west; most people live on farms near areas of fertile volcanic soil: 12,241,065 (July 2021 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, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected
Growth rate: 3.68% (2021 est.)
Below poverty line: 64.6% (2014 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Burundian(s)
Adjective: Burundian

Ethnic groups: Hutu, Tutsi, Twa (Pygmy)

Languages: Kirundi only 29.7% (official); French only .3% (official); Swahili only .2%; English only .1% (official); Kirundi and French 8.4%; Kirundi, French, and English 2.4%, other language combinations 2%, unspecified 56.9% (2008 est.)
Major language samples:
Note: data represent languages read and written by people 10 years of age or older; spoken Kirundi is nearly universal

Religions: Roman Catholic 58.6%, Protestant 35.3% (includes Adventist 2.7% and other Protestant 32.6%), Muslim 3.4%, other 1.3%, none 1.3% (2016-17 est.)

Demographic profile: Burundi is a densely populated country with a high population growth rate, factors that combined with land scarcity and poverty place a large share of its population at risk of food insecurity. About 90% of the population relies on subsistence agriculture. Subdivision of land to sons, and redistribution to returning refugees, results in smaller, overworked, and less productive plots. Food shortages, poverty, and a lack of clean water contribute to a 60% chronic malnutrition rate among children. A lack of reproductive health services has prevented a significant reduction in Burundi’s maternal mortality and fertility rates, which are both among the world’s highest. With two-thirds of its population under the age of 25 and a birth rate of about 6 children per woman, Burundi’s population will continue to expand rapidly for decades to come, putting additional strain on a poor country.

Age structure
0-14 years: 43.83% (male 2,618,868/female 2,581,597)
15-24 years: 19.76% (male 1,172,858/female 1,171,966)
25-54 years: 29.18% (male 1,713,985/female 1,748,167)
55-64 years: 4.17% (male 231,088/female 264,131)
65 years and over: 3.06% (male 155,262/female 207,899) (2020 est.)

Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 91
Youth dependency ratio: 86.4
Elderly dependency ratio: 4.5
Potential support ratio: 22 (2020 est.)

Median age
Total: 17.7 years
Male: 17.4 years
Female: 18 years (2020 est.)

Population growth rate: 3.68% (2021 est.)

Birth rate: 35.48 births/1000 population (2021 est.)

Death rate: 6.07 deaths/1000 population (2021 est.)

Net migration rate: 7.35 migrant(s)/1000 population (2021 est.)

Population distribution: one of Africa's most densely populated countries; concentrations tend to be in the north and along the northern shore of Lake Tanganyika in the west; most people live on farms near areas of fertile volcanic soil

Urbanization
Urban population: 14.1% of total population (2021)
Rate of urbanization: 5.43% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Major urban areas
Population: 1.075 million BUJUMBURA (capital) (2021)

Environment
Current issues: soil erosion as a result of overgrazing and the expansion of agriculture into marginal lands; deforestation (little forested land remains because of uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel); habitat loss threatens wildlife populations
International agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
International agreements signed but not ratified: Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban

Air pollutants
Particulate matter emissions: 35.61 micrograms per cubic meter (2016 est.)
Carbon dioxide emissions: 0.5 megatons (2016 est.)
Methane emissions: 1.42 megatons (2020 est.)

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.87 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2020 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth: 21.5 years (2016/17 est.)
Note: median age at first birth among women 25-49

Maternal mortality ratio: 548 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Total: 38.96 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 43.21 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 34.58 deaths/1000 live births (2021 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 67.07 years
Male: 64.98 years
Female: 69.22 years (2021 est.)

Total fertility rate: 5.1 children born/woman (2021 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate: 28.5% (2016/17)

Drinking water source
Improved urban: 97.6% of population
Improved rural: 77.8% of population
Improved total: 80.3% of population
Unimproved urban: -1.1% of population
Unimproved rural: 22.2% of population
Unimproved total: 19.7% of population (2017 est.)

Current health expenditure: 7.7% (2018)

Physicians density: 0.1 physicians/1000 population (2017)

Hospital bed density: 0.8 beds/1000 population (2014)

Sanitation facility access
Improved urban: 85.2% of population
Improved rural: 53.4% of population
Improved total: 57.4% of population
Unimproved urban: 14.8% of population
Unimproved rural: 46.6% of population
Unimproved total: 42.6% of population (2017 est.)

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 1% (2020 est.)
People living with hivaids: 83,000 (2020 est.)
Deaths: 1,700 (2020 est.)

Major infectious diseases
Degree of risk: very high (2020)
Food or water borne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
Vector borne diseases: malaria and dengue fever
Watercontactdiseases: schistosomiasis
Animalcontactdiseases: rabies

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 5.4% (2016)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight: 27% (2018/19)

Education expenditures: 5.1% of GDP (2018)

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 68.4%
Male: 76.3%
Female: 61.2% (2017)

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 11 years
Male: 11 years
Female: 11 years (2018)

Youth unemployment
Rate ages 15-24 total: 2.9%
Rate ages 15-24 male: 4.4%
Rate ages 15-24 female: 2% (2014 est.)

Country name
Conventional long form: Republic of Burundi
Conventional short form: Burundi
Local long form: Republique du Burundi/Republika y'u Burundi
Local short form: Burundi
Former: Urundi, German East Africa, Ruanda-Urundi, Kingdom of Burundi
Etymology: name derived from the pre-colonial Kingdom of Burundi (17th-19th century)

Government type: presidential republic

Capital
Name: Gitega (political capital), Bujumbura (commercial capital); note - in January 2019, the Burundian parliament voted to make Gitega the political capital of the country while Bujumbura would remain its economic capital; all branches of the government are expected to have moved from Bujumbura to Gitega by 2022
Geographic coordinates: 3 25 S, 29 55 E
Time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Etymology: the naming origins for both Gitega and Bujumbura are obscure; Bujumbura's name prior to independence in 1962 was Usumbura

Administrative divisions: 18 provinces; Bubanza, Bujumbura Mairie, Bujumbura Rural, Bururi, Cankuzo, Cibitoke, Gitega, Karuzi, Kayanza, Kirundo, Makamba, Muramvya, Muyinga, Mwaro, Ngozi, Rumonge, Rutana, Ruyigi

Independence: 1 July 1962 (from UN trusteeship under Belgian administration)

National holiday: Independence Day, 1 July (1962)

Constitution
History: several previous, ratified by referendum 28 February 2005
Amendments: proposed by the president of the republic after consultation with the government or by absolute majority support of the membership in both houses of Parliament; passage requires at least two-thirds majority vote by the Senate membership and at least four-fifths majority vote by the National Assembly; the president can opt to submit amendment bills to a referendum; constitutional articles including those on national unity, the secularity of Burundi, its democratic form of government, and its sovereignty cannot be amended; amended 2018 (amendments extended the presidential term from 5 to 7 years, reintroduced the position of prime minister, and reduced the number of vice presidents from 2 to 1)

Legal system: mixed legal system of Belgian civil law and customary law

International law organization participation: has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; withdrew from ICCt in October 2017

Citizenship
Citizenship by birth: no
Citizenship by descentonly: the father must be a citizen of Burundi
Dual citizenship recognized: no
Residency requirement for naturalization: 10 years

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Evariste NDAYISHIMIYE (since 18 June 2020); Vice President Prosper BAZOMBANZA (since 24 June 2020); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
Head of government: President Evariste NDAYISHIMIYE (since 18 June 2020); Vice President Prosper BAZOMBANZA (since 24 June 2020); Prime Minister Alain-Guillaume BUNYONI (since 24 June 2020)
Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by president
Elections and appointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 7-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 20 May 2020 (next to be held in 2025); vice presidents nominated by the president, endorsed by Parliament; note - a 2018 constitutional referendum effective for the 2020 election, increased the presidential term from 5 to 7 years with a 2-consecutive-term limit, reinstated the position of the prime minister position, and reduced the number of vice presidents from 2 to 1
Election results: Evariste NDAYISHIMIYE elected president; percent of vote - Evariste NDAYISHIMIYE (CNDD-FDD) 71.5%, Agathon RWASA (CNL) 25.2%, Gaston SINDIMWO (UPRONA) 1.7%, OTHER 1.6%

Legislative branch
Description: bicameral Parliament or Parlement consists of:
Senate or Inama Nkenguzamateka (39 seats in the July 2020 election); 36 members indirectly elected by an electoral college of provincial councils using a three-round voting system, which requires a two-thirds majority vote in the first two rounds and simple majority vote for the two leading candidates in the final round; 3 seats reserved for Twas, and 30% of all votes reserved for women; members serve 5-year terms)
National Assembly or Inama Nshingamateka (123 seats in the May 2020 election; 100 members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote and 23 co-opted members; 60% of seats allocated to Hutu and 40% to Tutsi; 3 seats reserved for Twas; 30% of total seats reserved for women; members serve 5-year terms)
Elections: Senate - last held on 20 July 2020 (next to be held in 2025)
National Assembly - last held on 20 May 2020 (next to be held in 2025)
Election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - CNDD-FDD 87.2%, Twa 7.7%, CNL 2.6%, UPRONA 2.6%; seats by party - CNDD-FDD 34, CNL 1, UPRONA 1, Twa 3; composition - men 23, women 16, percent of women 37.2%
National Assembly - percent of vote by party - CNDD-FDD 70.9%, CNL 23.4%, UPRONA 2.5%, other (co-opted Twa) 3.2%; seats by party - CNDD-FDD 86, CNL 32, UPRONA 2, Twa 3; composition - men 76, women 47, percent of women 38.2%; note - total Parliament percent of women 38%

Judicial branch
Highest courts: Supreme Court (consists of 9 judges and organized into judicial, administrative, and cassation chambers); Constitutional Court (consists of 7 members)
Judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges nominated by the Judicial Service Commission, a 15-member independent body of judicial and legal profession officials), appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate; judge tenure NA; Constitutional Court judges appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate and serve 6-year nonrenewable terms
Subordinate courts: Courts of Appeal; County Courts; Courts of Residence; Martial Court; Court Against Corruption; Commercial Court

Political parties and leaders: Front for Democracy in Burundi-Nyakuri or FRODEBU-Nyakuri [Keffa NIBIZI]
Front for Democracy in Burundi-Sahwanya or FRODEBU-Sahwanya [Pierre Claver NAHIMANA]
National Congress for Liberty or CNL [Agathon RWASA]
National Council for the Defense of Democracy - Front for the Defense of Democracy or CNDD-FDD [Evariste NDAYISHIMIYE]
National Liberation Forces or FNL [Jacques BIGITIMANA]
Union for National Progress (Union pour le Progress Nationale) or UPRONA [Abel GASHATSI]

International organization participation: ACP, AfDB, AU, CEMAC, CEPGL, CICA, COMESA, EAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNISFA, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador [link]