Country name : Republic of Rwanda

Government Type: Republic

Independence: July 1, 1962 (from Belgium)

Capital: Kigali

Main Towns: Kibungo-Butare-Byumba

Geographic Location: Rwanda is a Landlocked Country in central Africa, bordering Uganda from north, Burundi from south, Tanzania from east and Democratic Republic of Congo from west.

Geographic Area: 26,338 km2.

Population: 10,186,063 (July 2007 est.)

Ethnic groups: Hutu (Bantu-majority)-Tutsi (Hamitic)-Twa (Pygmy).

Languages: Kinyarwanda (official)-French (official)-English (official). 

Historical glimpse: On Oct. 26, 1960 a new national government in Rwanda was reshuffled, after Rwanda’s monarch was replaced with constitutional republic by Sept. 1961. In the following year in July 1962, Rwanda became independent and on top came president Gregoire Kayibanda as the first president of the republic. The current president is Poul Kagme, since (April 22, 2000).

Economy: About 90% of Rwanda’s population are engaged in agriculture.

GDP: $ 8.576 billion (2007est.)

GDP (real growth rate): 6 % (2007 est.)

Agricultural Products: Coffee-tea-bananas-beans-livestock.

Industries: Cement-agricultural product-soap-furniture-textile.

Currency: Rwandan franc.

Reg. Org Membership: ACP-AU-COMESA-EAC.