INFORMATION SERVICES: RESEARCH
08 September 2003
Burundi: Briefing Notes
Introduction
This research brief includes a profile of Burundi and its government; a chronology of key events; current developments, with a focus on the civil war, aid and land mines; South Africa’s relations with Burundi, with a focus on bilateral ties, trade and South Africa’s military deployments there; key information on Burundi; and lastly a political map of the country.
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Country Profile |
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Since independence in 1961 Burundi has been plagued by tension between the dominant Tutsi minority and the Hutu majority. It is now the scene of one of Africa's most intractable conflicts. In 1993 Burundi seemed poised to enter a new era when, in their first democratic elections, Burundians chose their first Hutu head of state, Melchior Ndadaye, and a parliament dominated by the Hutu Front for Democracy in Burundi (Frodebu) party. But within months Ndadaye had been assassinated, setting the scene for years of Hutu-Tutsi violence in which an estimated 300,000 people, most of them civilians, have been killed. In early 1994 parliament elected another Hutu, Cyprien Ntaryamira, as president. However, he was killed in a plane crash in April - the same incident that killed the president of neighbouring Rwanda. Another Hutu, Sylvestre Ntibantunganya, was appointed president in October 1994. But within months, the mainly Tutsi Union for National Progress (Uprona) party withdrew from the government and parliament, sparking off a new wave of ethnic violence. In 1996 Pierre Buyoya seized power in a coup. He co-opted Frodebu into the government, but inter-party talks failed to agree on crucial issues. A ceasefire signed in 2002 and a power-sharing government - agreed at talks brokered by Nelson Mandela - has failed to end the fighting. President Domitien Ndayizeye Domitien Ndayizeye, a Hutu, succeeded Pierre Buyoya, a Tutsi, as head of Burundi's three-year transitional government on 30 April 2003. Picture not included President Domitien Ndayizeye
The government was set up in November 2001 as part of efforts to end the civil war. It provided for power to be shared between the Tutsi minority, which has traditionally ruled the country, and the Hutu majority. Mr Ndayizeye served as vice-president during Pierre Buyoya's 18-month term in office. Mr Ndayizeye, a senior figure in the largest Hutu party Frodebu, faced the formidable challenge of maintaining good relations with Burundi's Tutsi-led government army while persuading Hutu rebels to stop fighting. Burundi's three previous Hutu presidents were all overthrown by the military. The Vice President, Alphonse Marie Kadage, is a Tutsi. Although the media operate under significant self-censorship and periodic government censorship, diverse political views are sometimes aired, and the opposition press does function albeit sporadically. Newspapers are sometimes forced to close, and then reappear again. The government runs the main radio station as well as the only newspaper that publishes regularly. A Chronology Of Key Events 1300s - Hutu people settle in the region, imposing their language and culture on the original inhabitants, the Twa. 1400s - Tutsi settlers establish themselves as feudal rulers. 1858 - British explorers Richard Burton and John Speke visit Burundi. 1890 - The Tutsi kingdom of Urundi and neighbouring Ruanda (Rwanda) incorporated into German East Africa. 1916 - Belgians occupy the area. 1923 Belgium granted League of Nations mandate to administer Ruanda-Urundi. 1959 - Influx of Tutsi refugees from Rwanda following ethnic violence there. Independence 1962 - Urundi is separated from Ruanda-Urundi, becomes Burundi and is given independence as a monarchy under King Mwambutsa IV. 1963 - Thousands of Hutus flee to Rwanda following ethnic violence. 1965 - King Mwambutsa refuses to appoint a Hutu prime minister even though Hutus win a majority in parliamentary elections; attempted coup by Hutu police led by Michel Micombero brutally suppressed. 1966 July - Mwambutsa deposed by his son, Ntare V. 1966 November - Micombero stages a second coup, this time successfully, and declares himself president. Overthrow Of Monarchy 1972 - Some 150,000 Hutus are massacred after Ntare V is killed, supposedly by Hutus. 1976 - Micombero is deposed in a military coup and is replaced by Jean-Baptiste Bagaza as president. 1981 - A new constitution makes Burundi a one-party state. 1987 - President Bagaza is deposed in a coup led by Pierre Buyoya. 1988 - Thousands of Hutus are massacred by Tutsis and thousands more flee to Rwanda. Dashed Hopes 1992 - A new constitution providing for a multiparty system is adopted in a referendum. Picture not included
1993 June - Melchior Ndadaye, a Hutu, beats Pierre Buyoya in the country's first ever presidential election to become Burundi's first Hutu president. 1993 October - Ndadaye is assassinated by pro-Bagaza paratroopers, provoking more massacres. 1994 - Parliament appoints Cyprien Ntaryamira - a Hutu - as president; Ntaryamira is killed in a plane crash together with his Rwandan counterpart; more ethnic violence and refugees fleeing to Rwanda; parliament speaker Sylvestre Ntibantunganya appointed president. 1995 - Massacre of Hutu refugees leads to renewed ethnic violence in the capital, Bujumbura. 1996 - Pierre Buyoya stages a second coup, deposing Ntibantunganya and suspending the constitution. Buyoya Sworn In 1998 - Buyoya and parliament agree on a transitional constitution under which Buyoya is formally sworn in as president. 1999 - Talks between warring factions held under the auspices of former Tanzanian President Julius Nyerere. 2000 - Government and three Tutsi groups sign a ceasefire accord, but two main Hutu groups refuse to join in. 2001 January - President Buyoya agrees to open direct ceasefire talks with the leader of the country's main ethnic Hutu rebel group, the Forces for the Defence of Democracy, in an attempt to end seven years of civil war. Transitional Government 2001 October - Talks brokered by Nelson Mandela lead to the installation of a transitional government under which Hutu and Tutsi leaders will share power. But the main Hutu rebel groups refuse to sign a ceasefire and fighting intensifies. 2002 January - Jean Minani, leader of the main Hutu party Frodebu, is elected president of the transitional national assembly set up to bridge the country's ethnic divide. 2002 December - Government and main rebel group sign ceasefire agreement at talks in Tanzania. Under the deal rebels will be part of new national army. Despite this, heavy fighting breaks out between government forces and rebels in January 2003. 2003 30 April - Domitien Ndayizeye - a Hutu - succeeds Pierre Buyoya as president, under the terms of the three-year power-sharing government inaugurated in 2001. 2003 July - Major rebel assault on Bujumbura. Some 300 rebels and 15 government soldiers are killed. Thousands flee their homes. |
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Current Developments
Upsurge In Fighting
Thousands of residents of Mubimbi Commune in Bujumbura Rural Province have fled fighting that erupted on Saturday between rebels of the Forces Nationales de Liberation (FNL) and Forces de Defense de la Democratie (FDD). The two rebel groups are also fighting each other in the northwestern province of Bubanza, a region affected by repeated fighting between the army and rebel groups.
Emergency Aid
The UN World Food Programme said on Friday it had provided emergency food aid this week to some 20,800 people who were recently displaced by fighting in Burundi's Bubanza Province. The agency's office in Bujumbura, the Burundi capital, reported that the beneficiaries had received 78 mt of food in initial emergency aid, which was expected to sustain them for seven days.
As security continued to improve in the area, it said, most of the Bubanza displaced had started returning to their hilltop homes. The agency said its teams would evaluate the impact of the fighting on the affected areas, as well as determine the levels of vulnerability and further needs of the populations. The fighting was between the army and Forces nationales de liberation rebels. Besides these displaced persons, the agency also said it reached 22,400 food-insecure people who were unaided the previous week in Kayanza and Karuzi provinces due to distribution constraints. It said 1,278 mt of food aid was distributed in Kayanza, Makamba, Muramvya, Bubanza and Karuzi provinces during the week.
A total of 21,860 war-displaced people in Mpanda Commune in Burundi's northwestern Bubanza Province urgently need humanitarian aid as they have been without adequate food and shelter for two weeks. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in charge of humanitarian affairs in the western provinces of Bujumbura Rural, Bubanza and Cibitoke, are waiting for an improvement in security before organising aid distribution. Additional fighting occurred on Saturday and Sunday between the army and rebels in Mpanda.
Land Mines
A UNICEF report titled "Mine Victims in Burundi" says that 230 people suffered from landmine blasts in 2001 and 2002. It said 44 of the victims died; others were crippled for life. Anti-personnel mines accounted for the greatest number of victims, 116 in 2001 and 87 the following year. Children, most of them under 10 years old, accounted for 36 victims. Anti-tank mines accounted for eight victims in 2002 while other unexploded objects such as grenades and rockets crippled 19 the same year.
Of the provinces named in the report as the worst affected by mines - Bujumbura Rural, Bubanza, Makamba, Ruyigi and Rutana - Bujumbura Rural heads the list of victims with 71 for 2001 and 2003. Government forces may plant them to protect their positions and sometimes may forget them; rebels also use them to sabotage the infrastructure. Systematic destruction of unexploded ordnance is impossible without a ceasefire agreement. While waiting for that to happen the Ministry of Interior and Public Security, with UNICEF support, is informing the public on the risk of mines. Components of the public information strategy include aid to mine victims.
Profile of South Africa - Burundian Relations
South Africa and Burundi established diplomatic relations on 23 June 1995. South Africa does not have residential representation in Burundi. The South African High Commission in Kampala, Uganda is responsible for bilateral relations. Former ANC MP, BH Vilakazi is the High Commissioner. 5 diplomats assist him. Burundi has an Embassy in Pretoria with 3 diplomats. A bilateral air transport agreement was signed on 6 February 1992.
Trade Statistics (All Figures In ZAR)
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South African Exports |
South African Imports |
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1994 |
24 574 100 |
1 495 057 |
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1995 |
13 571 770 |
10 625 |
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1996 |
10 168 671 |
133 586 |
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1997 |
39 072 041 |
2 378 548 |
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1998 |
21 690 170 |
513 918 |
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1999 |
19 513 021 |
5 431 |
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2000 |
44 072 022 |
215 |
South Africa Military Deployment In Burundi
In 1999 a Military Liaison Officers/Observer was deployed in Burundi as part of the peace process in the DRC and the Great Lakes region. In 2001 the South African government authorised the deployment of 1 431 military personnel at the request of the Burundian government and in support of the peace process there. The UN and AU have endorsed it. The estimated cost per annum is US$m 158. Former President Nelson Mandela has negotiated donor funding for the operation from countries such as Belgium and the USA, as well as the European Union.
In May 2003 President Mbeki announced the deployment of 1600 SANDF personnel to Burundi to assist in overseeing the implementation and verification of the respective cease-fire agreements, and assist in the disarmament, demobilization and re-integration (DDR) programme. Their estimated costs are n area as Rm 783.3.
South African troops participating in the African peacekeeping mission will stay in Burundi despite funding shortfalls, the South African National Defence Force chief, Gen Siphiwe Nyanda, told IRIN on Wednesday at the end of a four-day inspection.
"We are aware of the difficulties the peacekeepers are faced with, but we do not have an alternative, we will continue to do our job until all combatants come to the cantonment areas, he said in Bujumbura, the Burundi capital. He added, "We are here to protect them in the cantonment areas, disarm them, demobilise them by sending them back to their homes and helping them to integrate into new security forces."
Of a 3,099-strong peacekeeping force that was supposed to have been deployed in Burundi since June 2003, only 1,600 South Africans have arrived. Although Mozambique agreed to provide 202 troops and Ethiopia 1,297 troops, their deployment has been delayed due to a lack of money. However, Nyanda said he expected they would be arriving "in the coming days".
The EU recently granted €174 million to the government of Burundi, some €57 million of which was earmarked to support the African Mission in Burundi, also known as AMIB. Nyanda said he would like to the peace process to move faster, and called on all belligerents to implement the ceasefire agreements they had signed. "Perhaps we are unhappy with the pace of how things are moving, but there is no doubt that things are moving," he said.
Key Information
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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 neighbouring countries. Burundi 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 toward holding national elections in three years. While the Government of Burundi signed a cease-fire agreement in December 2002 with three of Burundi's four Hutu rebel groups, implementation of the agreement has been problematic and one rebel group refuses to sign on, clouding prospects for a sustainable peace. |
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Area: |
water: 2,180 sq kmland: 25,650 sq km |
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Natural resources: |
nickel, uranium, rare earth oxides, peat, cobalt, copper, platinum (not yet exploited), vanadium, arable land, hydropower |
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Land use: |
arable land: 29.98%permanent crops: 12.85% |
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Irrigated land: |
740 sq km (1998 est.) |
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Natural hazards: |
flooding, landslides, drought |
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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 |
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Geography - note: |
straddles crest of the Nile-Congo watershed; the Kagera, which drains into Lake Victoria, is the most remote headstream of the White Nile |
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Population: |
6,096,156 (July 2003 est.) |
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Median age: |
total: 16.3 yearsmale: 15.9 years female: 16.7 years (2002) |
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Population growth rate: |
2.18% (2003 est.) |
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Birth rate: |
39.72 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
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Death rate: |
17.8 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
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Net migration rate: |
-0.12 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
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Infant mortality rate: |
total: 71.54 deaths/1,000 live birthsfemale: 64.42 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) male: 78.45 deaths/1,000 live births |
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Life expectancy: |
male: 42.54 yearsfemale: 43.88 years (2003 est.) |
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Fertility rate: |
5.99 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - prevalence rate: |
8.3% (2001 est.) |
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People living with HIV/AIDS: |
390,000 (2001 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - deaths: |
40,000 (2001 est.) |
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Ethnic groups: |
Hutu (Bantu) 85%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 14%, Twa (Pygmy) 1%, Europeans 3,000, South Asians 2,000 |
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Religions: |
Christian 67% (Roman Catholic 62%, Protestant 5%), indigenous beliefs 23%, Muslim 10% |
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Languages: |
Kirundi (official), French (official), Swahili (along Lake Tanganyika and in the Bujumbura area) |
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Literacy: |
total population: 51.6%male: 58.5% female: 45.2% (2003 est.) |
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Capital: |
Bujumbura |
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Administrative divisions: |
16 provinces; Bubanza, Bujumbura, Bururi, Cankuzo, Cibitoke, Gitega, Karuzi, Kayanza, Kirundo, Makamba, Muramvya, Muyinga, Mwaro, Ngozi, Rutana, Ruyigi |
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Independence: |
1 July 1962 (from UN trusteeship under Belgian administration) |
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Constitution: |
13 March 1992; provided for establishment of a plural political system; supplanted on 6 June 1998 by a Transitional Constitution which enlarged the National Assembly and created two vice presidents |
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Legal system: |
based on German and Belgian civil codes and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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Executive branch: |
head of government: President Domitien NDAYIZEYE (since 30 April 2003); note - NDAYIZEYE, a Hutu, was sworn in as president for the second half of the three-year transitional government inaugurated on 1 November 2001; Vice President Alphonse KADEGE (since 30 April 2003); note - from the Tutsi minority
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Legislative branch: |
bicameral, consists of a National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (expanded from 121 to approximately 140 seats under the transitional government inaugurated 1 November 2001; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and a Senate (54 seats; term length is undefined, the current senators will likely serve out the three-year transition period)
election results: percent of vote by party - FRODEBU 71.04%, UPRONA 21.4%, other 7.56%; seats by party - FRODEBU 65, UPRONA 16, civilians 27, other parties 13 |
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Judicial branch: |
Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; Constitutional Court; Courts of Appeal |
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Political parties and leaders: |
the two national, mainstream, governing parties are: Unity for National Progress or UPRONA [Alphonse KADEGE, president]; Burundi Democratic Front or FRODEBU [Jean MINANI, president]
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Political pressure groups: |
loosely organized Hutu and Tutsi militias, often affiliated with Hutu and Tutsi extremist parties or subordinate to government security forces |
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Economy - overview: |
Burundi is a landlocked, resource-poor country with an underdeveloped manufacturing sector. The economy is predominantly agricultural with roughly 90% of the population dependent on subsistence agriculture. Economic growth depends on coffee and tea exports, which account for 90% of foreign exchange earnings. The ability to pay for imports, therefore, rests primarily on weather conditions and international coffee and tea prices. The Tutsi minority, 14% of the population, dominates the government and the coffee trade at the expense of the Hutu majority, 85% of the population. Since October 1993 an ethnic-based war has resulted in the death of over 200,000 persons, sent 800,000 refugees into Tanzania, and displaced 525,000 others internally. Doubts about the prospects for sustainable peace continue to impede development. Only one in two children go to school, and approximately one in ten adults has HIV/AIDS. Food, medicine, and electricity remain in short supply. |
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GDP: |
purchasing power parity - $3.8 billion (2002 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate: |
2.1% (2002 est.) |
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GDP - per capita: |
purchasing power parity - $600 (2002 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector: |
agriculture: 50%industry: 19% services: 31% (2002 est.) |
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Population below poverty line: |
70% (2002 est.) |
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Household income or consumption by % share: |
lowest 10%: 1.8%highest 10%: 32.9% (1998) |
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Inflation rate: |
12% (2002 est.) |
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Labour force: |
3.7 million (2000) |
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Budget: |
revenues: $125 millionexpenditures: $176 million, (2000 est.) |
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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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Industrial production growth rate: |
18% (2001) |
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Agriculture - products: |
coffee, cotton, tea, corn, sorghum, sweet potatoes, bananas, manioc (tapioca); beef, milk, hides |
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Exports: |
$26 million f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
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Exports - commodities: |
coffee, tea, sugar, cotton, hides |
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Exports - partners: |
EU 45%, Switzerland 32.6%, Kenya 17.4%, US 6% (2001 est.) |
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Imports: |
$135 million f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
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Imports - commodities: |
capital goods, petroleum products, foodstuffs |
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Imports - partners: |
EU 39%, Tanzania 9.5%, Kenya 6.2%, US 4% (2001) |
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Debt - external: |
$1.14 billion (2001) |
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Economic aid - recipient: |
$92.7 million (2000) |
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Currency: |
Burundi franc (BIF) |
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Exchange rates: |
Burundi francs per US$ - 830.353 (2001), 720.673 (2000), 563.562 (1999), 447.766 (1998) |
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Telephones: |
18,000 (2002) |
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Cellphones: |
30,000 (2002) |
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Internet users: |
6,000 (2002) |
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Highways: |
paved: 1,014 kmunpaved: 13,466 km (1999) |
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Military expenditures - US$ figure: |
$42.13 million (FY02) |
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Military expenditures - % of GDP: |
5.3% (FY02) |
http://www.gouv.sn/discours_pres/detail.cfm?numero=289
Sources