BURUNDI


Meaning of BURUNDI in English

officially Republic of Burundi, French Rpublique du Burundi, Rundi Republika y'u Burundi, landlocked republic in east-central Africa south of the Equator. The capital is Bujumbura. To the north it is bounded by Rwanda, to the east and south by Tanzania, to the southwest by Lake Tanganyika, and to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Kinshasa); Burundi extends only about 215 miles (345 km) from north to south and 165 miles (265 km) from east to west. With some 600 people per square mile (230 per square km) of land, it is one of the most densely populated countries in Africa. Area 10,740 square miles (27,816 square km). Pop. (1990) 5,292,793; (1997 est.) 6,053,000. officially Republic of Burundi, French Rpublique du Burundi, Rundi Republika y'u Burundi republic in east-central Africa south of the Equator, covering an area of 10,740 square miles (27,816 square km). The capital is Bujumbura. It is bounded by Rwanda to the north, Tanzania to the east and south, Lake Tanganyika to the southwest, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Congo [Kinshasa]; formerly Zaire) to the west. Burundi extends only about 215 miles (345 km) from north to south and 165 miles (265 km) from east to west. Landlocked, beset by population pressures and meagre economic resources, Burundi is one of the poorest and most conflict-ridden countries in Africa and in the world. Its small size belies the magnitude of the problems it faces in seeking to reconcile the supremacist claims of the ruling Tutsi minority with the growing demands for political participation of the Hutu majority. Additional reading An introduction to the country's geography can be found in Franoise Cazenave-Piarrot, Alain Cazenave-Piarrot, and Albert Lopez, Gographie du Burundi: le pays et les hommes (1979); and Atlas du Burundi (1979). Useful sources on language, literature, and arts include Ethel M. Albert, Rhetoric,' Logic,' and Poetics' in Burundi: Culture Patterning of Speech Behavior, American Anthropologist, special issue, pp. 3554 (winter 196465); Alexandre Kimenyi, Kinyarwanda and Kirundi Names: A Semiolinguistic Analysis of Bantu Onomastics (1989); F.M. Rodegem, Prcis de grammaire rundi (1967) and Sagesse kirundi (1961); R.P. Bagein, Grammaire kirundi l'usage des commenants (1951); and the classic Jan Vansina, De la tradition orale: essai de mthode historique (1961).The classic source for precolonial ethnography and history is Hans Mayer, Die Barundi (1916), also available in a French edition excellently annotated by Jean-Pierre Chrtien, Les Barundi (1984). Also useful for this period of history is Emile Mworoha (ed.), Histoire du Burundi: des origines la fin du XIXe sicle (1987). For colonial history, some useful sources are Michel Lechat, Le Burundi politique; and Joseph Gahama, Le Burundi sous administration Belge (1983), which also includes an English-language summary. Postindependence developments and politics are dealt with at length in Ren Lemarchand, Rwanda and Burundi (1970); Ren Lemarchand and David Martin, Selective Genocide in Burundi (1974); Ren Lemarchand, Burundi: Ethnocide as Discourse and Practice (1994, also published as Burundi: Ethnic Conflict and Genocide, 1996); and Marc Manirakiza, La Fin de la monarchie burundaise (1990); and a shorter pamphlet and article are provided by Reginald Kay, Burundi Since the Genocide (1987); and Allison Boyer, Unity at Last?, Africa Report, 37:3740 (March/April 1992). Ellen K. Eggers, Historical Dictionary of Burundi, 2nd ed. (1997), includes an extensive bibliography and a chronology of Burundi's history. Ellen Kahan Eggers Administration and social conditions Government The constitution that went into effect in March 1992 provided for the establishment of legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government and a multiparty political system. The president, who was chief of state, was elected by popular vote, served a five-year term, and shared power with the prime minister, who chose a cabinet. Members elected to the one-chamber legislature, which comprised 65 (later increased to 81) seats, served five-year terms. The Unit pour le Progrs National (UPRONA), along with four other political parties and five opposition parties, constituted Burundi's political party structure. The judicial system included the Supreme Court, courts of appeal, administrative courts, and tribunals of first instance, trade, and labour. In the wake of the military coup that overthrew a coalition government in July 1996, a transitional constitution was promulgated in June 1998. Under it the prime minister was replaced by two vice presidents, one Hutu and one Tutsi. The number of seats in the National Assembly was increased to 121, and the president's length of term was unspecified, as was a timetable for presidential elections. Burundi is divided into 16 provinces, which are further divided into districts, and then into 112 communes. Power at the local level rests in the hands of centrally appointed authorities, virtually all of whom are Tutsi. Education Approximately one-third of the country is literate, which is one of the world's lowest rates. Primary education begins at age seven and is compulsory for six years; secondary education, divided into programs of four and then three years, is not mandatory. Education is free, and instruction is in Rundi. The distribution of the school-age population shows a striking disproportion in enrollment figures between primary and secondary schools, the former accounting for virtually all of total enrollments. Only a small fraction of primary-school students are admitted to the secondary level, and fewer still are able to gain admission to the University of Burundi at Bujumbura, the country's only university. Ethnic discrimination in schools remains a politically explosive issue. The overrepresentation of Tutsi at the secondary and university levels translates into the absence of significant avenues of upward mobility for the Hutu majority, which means that Tutsi enjoy a virtual monopoly of civil-service positions. Schools have continued to function amid periodic outbreaks of civil unrest. Cultural life The arts Much of Burundi's rich cultural heritage, most notably folk songs and dances, was intended to extol the virtues of kingship; however, since the fall of the monarchy in 1966 (and particularly after a massacre of Hutu in 1972), such cultural expression has waned. The annual sorghum festival (umuganuro) was once the occasion for a magnificent display of traditional dances by court dancers (intore), with the Karyenda (sacred drum), an emblem of the monarchy, intended to give both musical and symbolic resonance to the ceremony. Government efforts to promote interethnic harmony through displays of a shared cultural heritage have been only modestly successful. Arts and crafts, including basketry and beadwork, are prominently displayed in the country's only cultural centre, located in Bujumbura. Recreation The Ministry of Youth, Culture, and Sports promotes both traditional and modern sports in Burundi. Traditional activities such as drumming and dancing are social customs and competitive sports. The Intore Dancers, a group that celebrates national folklore, has won numerous international folk dance competitions, and drummers compete with large, traditional Karyenda drums. Since the 1990s Burundi has tried to use sports to bring together the country's warring factions. Football (soccer) is popular, and Burundi has competed in several African Nations Cup championships. Track is the competitive sport in which Burundi excels. Notable athletes include Dieudonne Kwizera and Vnuste Niyongabo; both competed in the 1996 Olympic Games, with Niyongabo winning the gold medal in the 5,000 metres, the first Olympic medal for Burundi.

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