Rwanda in Brief

Rwanda, just south of the Equator in central Africa, is a mountainous land. Situated literally in the ‘heart’ of Africa, the small, landlocked country is on the border of East and Central Africa. Its neighbours are the Democratic Republic of Congo (former Zaire) to the west, Tanzania to the east, Uganda to the north and Burundi to the south.

Anyone visiting 'the land of a thousand hills' is in for a multitude of surprises. The loveliness and variety of the landscapes in this 'green country' is dominated to the north by volcanoes and bordered by Lake Kivu to the west. In Rwanda the great animals of the wild are protected from poachers and roam free in the vast national parks. The Volcanoes National park in the Virunga volcanic mountains with its high altitude forests, are world famous for mountain gorillas - timid and passive family oriented giants - which is teeming with wildlife both large and small, while Lake Kivu to the west offers beautiful beaches, jutting peninsulas and an archipelago of islands.

History. This tiny, landlocked country—the continent's most densely populated—gained independence from Belgium in 1962. In 1959, three years before independence, the majority ethnic group, the Bahutu, overthrew the ruling Tutsi king. Over the next several years, thousands of Batutsi’s were killed, and some 150,000 driven into exile in neighboring countries. The diaspora later formed a rebel group, the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), which after several attempts to return to Rwanda peacefully were denied, began a civil war in 1990 to force the government to allow Tutsi refugees to return to Rwanda. This civil war culminated into what has come to be known as the worst genocide since the Jewish holocaust, in which hundreds of thousands of Tutsi and some Bahutu opposition were killed in a government sanctioned genocide. The RPF took over power and stopped the genocide in July 1994.

Rwanda is well known to many Americans because of these tragic events that unfolded there in the spring of 1994. Much has been written about the genocide and resources are widely available on the web and elsewhere for those who wish to be informed about its history, probable causes and about the way forward. Rwandans today struggle to recover not just from that singular event, but from a long history of hatred and killings.

In June of 2003, the UK’s former International Development Secretary, Claire Short, spoke on a popular BBC Radio 4 Today program about a trip she had made to Rwanda.

‘We rarely hear stories of hope from Africa but Rwanda is a story of hope despite its terrible history. Only nine years ago, it suffered a terrible genocide…. But despite all of this Rwanda has been rebuilding. There is now peace and order in the country. There are more children in school than ever in the history of the country…..Much remains to be done to secure a safe and dignified future for the long-suffering people of this beautiful country. But if Rwanda continues to make progress in reconciliation, economic and social development as it has in the last six years, then there is real hope of the future without strife and genocidal killing.’

In just short 14 years since the genocide was stopped, the country has been resilient with the help of a pro-active government to promote security, reconciliation, and general economic development. When one visits Rwanda today, it’s hard to imagine how the country has bounced from its devastating past. Today Rwanda has much to show the world about confronting the legacy of the past and tackling the challenge of recovery.

The Government of National Unity and the Rwandese people, with some support from the International community, have registered progress in the difficult process of moving from emergency to long-term development to promote a multi-ethnic idea of Rwandan national identity.

Rwanda is about the size of Vermont, but boasts a population of about ten million; its population density is the highest of any country in Africa and currently has one of the world’s highest birth rates. According to UNICEF, An estimated 1 million orphans and “other vulnerable children” live in Rwanda.


Please visit the Rwanda Website: www.gov.rw
Rwanda Fast Facts
Population8,722,000
CapitalKigali; 656,000
Area26,340 square kilometers(10,169 square miles)
LanguageKinyarwanda, French, English, Kiswahili
ReligionRoman Catholic, Protestant, Adventist, Muslim
CurrencyRwandan francs
Life Expectancy49.76
GDP per CapitaU.S. $1,000
Literacy Percent
76.8


Food in Daily Life. Rwandan food is quite simple, with beans, bananas, sweet potatoes, potatoes, and sorghum being the most common foods. Dairy products are also widely consumed, particularly a traditional drink of curdled milk. Those who can afford to do so also eat meat, primarily beef, goat, and chicken. Sorghum and banana beers are common as well.

Basic Economy. Rwanda has an overwhelmingly agrarian economy. Most residents live largely from subsistence farming, growing some coffee on the side as a means of earning income. The level of industrialization remains extremely low.

Government. Rwanda has a President, assisted by a multiparty cabinet and a Prime Minister.
In 2003 a new constitution was promulgated which for the fist time enshrined principles that mark any modern democracy. The constitution established the principle of separation of powers by which the executive, legislative, and judicial branches are to be independent and not infringe upon each other's rights and duties. This is one of the most important doctrines in the Rwandan constitution. By distributing the essential business of government among three separate but interdependent branches, the Constitutional framers ensured that the principal powers of the government will not be concentrated in the hands of any single branch.

The country is divided in five provinces and subdivided into thirty districts. The provinces are: North Province ,East Province, South Province, West Province and Kigali City.

The Presidential elections were held peacefully and in August 2003, Paul Kagame returned as President for a term of seven years with 95.05% of the total votes. In September 2003, Parliamentary elections followed. An interesting fact to note is that Rwanda has the highest number of women parliamentarians in the world and the Rwanda constitution mandates 30% of women representation at every level of administration in the country.