Burundi
The Republic of Burundi is a country just under 28,000 km² in size in the Great Lakes region of Eastern Africa. Its capital is Bujumbura.
Burundi is bordered by:
- Rwanda (to the north)
- Tanzania (to the east and south) and
- Democratic Republic of the Congo (to the west).
Although Burundi is landlocked, most of its southwestern border is adjacent to Lake Tanganyika.
History and Governance
For more than 200 years, Burundi was ruled as a kingdom by the Tutsi.
At the beginning of the 20th century, Germany and Belgium occupied the region, and Burundi and Rwanda became the European colony "Ruanda-Urundi".
Social differences between the Tutsi and Hutu provoked civil war in Burundi throughout the middle of 20th century.
Today, Burundi is a presidential representative democratic republic.
Religion
Of the nearly 8.7 million Burundians:
- 62% are Roman Catholic
- 8-10% are Muslim
- the remainder follow indigenous beliefs or other Christian denominations.