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Mount Mikeno (DR Congo) and Mount Karisimbi, Rwanda's highest mountain
Two extinct volcanoes in the Virunga mountain range, Mount Mikeno (DR Congo) and Mount Karisimbi, Rwanda's highest mountain.
Image: MONUSCO
 

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Flag of Rwanda
Location map of Rwanda. Where in Africa is Rwanda?
Location map of Rwanda

A virtual guide to "the land of a thousand hills". Rwanda is a relative small landlocked, hilly country in Central Africa, located south of the Equator and east of Lake Kivu, one of the African Great Lakes. It is bordered by Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, and Uganda.


The country covers an area of 26,338 km², compared it is about the size of Macedonia (Rep.), or slightly smaller than the US state of Maryland.

Rwanda has a population of 11.5 million People (2016; Rwanda's population density is among the highest in Sub-Saharan Africa). Capital and largest city is Kigali (est. pop. 1 million people). Spoken languages are Kinyarwanda (official language of Rwanda), English and French, Swahili as the lingua franca in the African Great Lakes region.

Republika y'u Rwanda

Country Profile



Background:
In 1959, three years before independence, the majority ethnic group, the Hutus overthrew the ruling Tutsi king. Over the next several years thousands of Tutsis were killed, and some 150,000 driven into exile in neighboring countries.
The children of these exiles later formed a rebel group, the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) and began a civil war in 1990. The war, along with several political and economic upheavals, exacerbated ethnic tensions culminating in April 1994 in the genocide of roughly 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus.

The Tutsi rebels defeated the Hutu regime and ended the killing in July 1994, but approximately 2 million Hutu refugees - many fearing Tutsi retribution - fled to neighboring Burundi, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zaire, now called the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DROC). Since then most of the refugees have returned to Rwanda.

Despite substantial international assistance and political reforms - including Rwanda's first local elections in March 1999 - the country continues to struggle to boost investment and agricultural output and to foster reconciliation. A series of massive population displacements, a nagging Hutu extremist insurgency, and Rwandan involvement in two wars over the past four years in the neighboring DROC continue to hinder Rwanda's efforts.
(Source: CIA - The World Factbook)

for a more detailed history see: History of a People
 
 

Official Name:
Republika y'u Rwanda
short form: Rwanda
int'l long form: Republic of Rwanda

ISO Country Code: RW, RWA, .rw

Time:
Local Time = UTC +2h
Actual Time: Sun-Mar-17  22:03

Country Calling Code: +250

Capital City: Kigali (over 1 million people)

Other Cities: Gitarama, Butare, Ruhengeri, Gisenyi.

Government:
Type: Republic.
Independence: 1 July 1962 (from Belgium-administered UN trusteeship).
Constitution: 26 May 2003.

Geography:
Location: Central Africa, south of the Equator at the Great Lakes region, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Area: 26,338 km² (10,169 sq. mi.)
Terrain: From Grasslands and rolling hills to areas of rugged mountains that extend southeast from a chain of volcanoes in the northwest.
Highest point: Volcano Karisimbi 4,519 m.

Climate: Mild and temperate, with two rainy seasons (February to April, November to January).

People:
Nationality: Rwandan(s).
Population: 11.5 million (2016; Rwanda's population density is among the highest in Sub-Saharan Africa).
Ethnic groups: Hutu 85%, Tutsi 14%, Twa 1%.
Religions: Christian 93.5%, traditional African 0.1%, Muslim 4.6%, 1.7% claim no religious beliefs.
Languages: French, English, Kinyarwanda.
Literacy: 65%

Natural resources: Gold, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore), methane, hydropower, arable land.

Agriculture products: Coffee, tea, pyrethrum (insecticide made from chrysanthemums), bananas, beans, sorghum, potatoes; livestock.

Industries: Cement, agricultural products, small-scale beverages, soap, furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles, cigarettes.

Exports - commodities: coffee, tea, hides, tin ore.

Exports partners: Democratic Republic of the Congo 19.8%, US 10.8%, China 10.3%, Swaziland 7.9%, Malaysia 7%, Pakistan 6.2%, Germany 5.9%, Thailand 5.5% (2015)

Imports - commodities: foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, steel, petroleum products, cement and construction material.

Imports partners: Uganda 15.7%, Kenya 11.8%, India 8.7%, China 8.7%, UAE 8.6%, Russia 6.6%, Tanzania 5.1% (2015)

Currency: Rwandan Franc (RWF)



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Official Sites of Rwanda

Rwanda is a presidential republic with a multi-party system. Head of State and Head of Government is the President. The President is elected by popular vote every seven years, he appoints the Prime Minister and all other members of Cabinet.

The Republic of Rwanda
The Rwanda Government.

President of the Republic of Rwanda
Official website of Rwanda's President H.E. Paul Kagame.

Parliament of Rwanda
Official website of Rwanda's Chamber of Deputies and the Senate.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation
Official website of the ministry.

National Institute of Statistics


Diplomatic Missions
Embassy of Rwanda
Washington D.C.
Embassy of the Republic of Rwanda to Germany
The embassy provides also an address list of
Rwanda's Diplomatic Missions abroad.


Maps

Administrative Map of Rwanda
Administrative Map of Rwanda (until January 2006).
New Administrative Map of Rwanda
Administrative Map of Rwanda (since January 2006).
Political Map of Rwanda
Political map of Rwanda.
Google Earth Google Earth Rwanda
Searchable map and satellite view of Rwanda.
Google Earth Google Earth Kigali
Searchable map and satellite view of Rwanda's capital city.

Political Map of Africa
The 54 countries of Africa.
Map of Africa
A Relief Map of Africa.
 

Ancient King's Palace in Nyanza, Rwanda
The ancient King's Palace in the former royal capital of Rwanda, Nyanza (the palace was converted into Rwesero Art Museum).
Image: Szymon Łukaszyk

News


Imvaho Nshya
News site (in Iryibanze and Amakuru language)
Newsupdate
Official News From the Government of Rwanda by the Department of Information (in Kinyarwanda language)
IRIN Rwanda
Rwanda related news and news archive
The Newtimes
Rwandas leading English newspaper.
Rwanda Information Exchange
Information on Rwanda from various sources.

Radio/TV
ORINFOR
Rwanda Office of Information.

 

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Arts & Culture


National Museum of Rwanda
Has historical, ethnographic, artistic and archaeological collections.
 

Business & Economy


Banque Nationale du Rwanda
The Rwanda National Bank, Central Bank of Rwanda. (in French).

COOPAC Coffee Cooperative
Cooperative of Rwandan coffee farmers.

Transportation
Rwandair Express
The new national carrier.
 
Rwanda's parliament building
Rwanda's parliament
© Parliament of Rwanda
Travel and Tour Consumer Information


Destination Rwanda - Travel and Tour Guides


Discover Rwanda: Lake Kivu, Akagera National Park, Nyungwe National Park, Virunga volcanos,
accommodation, hotels, attractions, festivals, events, tourist boards, biking, hiking, climbing, rainforest, volcano trekking, tours and much more.

Rwanda
Discover Rwanda, the official travel guide to Rwanda.

 

Education


Institut des Sciences Agronomiques du Rwanda
The National Agricultural Research Institute.
Kigali Institute of Science, Technology and Management
The first public technological institute of higher learning in Rwanda.
National University of Rwanda
Founded in 1963; university home page (English/French)
 
 

Environment & Nature


The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International
Dedicated to the conservation and protection of the endangered mountain gorilla and its habitat in East Central Africa.

International Gorilla Conservation Programme:
The goal of IGCP is to ensure the conservation of mountain gorillas and their regional afromontane forest habitat in Rwanda, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). 
Mountain Gorilla
Mountain Gorilla
© Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund
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History


Frontline: the triumph of evil
A report on the Rwanda genocide and how the United Nations and the West ignored warnings.
Rwanda - A Historical Chronology
Rwanda in the XXth century.
History of a People
Rwandas history from Precolonial times until today.
Rwanda -- History
by African Studies Center.
Rwanda: How the genocide happened
BBC article about the genocide.

Rwanda rainforest
Rwanda rainforest
© rwandatourism.com
Issues Rwanda

International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda
Recognizing that serious violations of humanitarian law were committed in Rwanda, and acting under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter, the Security Council created the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) in 1994. The purpose of this measure is to contribute to the process of national reconciliation in Rwanda and to the maintenance of peace in the region.

Ghosts of Rwanda
How could it happen, that America and the West stood aside and did nothing to stop the slaughter of 800,000 human beings over 100 days.

 
 

Sources and additional Information about Rwanda


African Studies WWW - Rwanda

Africa South of Sahara (Karen Fung) Rwanda

BBC Country Profile: Rwanda

Open Directory Project: Rwanda

Wikipedia: Rwanda

The World Factbook -- Rwanda
 
 Support UNICEF

Other Countries of Central Africa
Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Dem. Rep. (Kinshasa), Congo, Rep. (Brazzaville)
Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, São Tomé and Príncipe

Other Countries of Eastern Africa
Burundi, Comoros, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique
Réunion, Seychelles, Somalia, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe
 
 
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