Burundi

“ 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. ”

“ Chapter I - Constitutional Principles of the Post-Transition Constitution Article 1 - Fundamental values 1. All Burundians are equal in value and dignity. All citizens are entitled to equal rights and to equal protection of the law. No Burundian shall be excluded from the social, economic or political life of the nation on account of her/his race, language, religion, gender, or ethnic origin.
2. All Burundians are entitled to live in Burundi in security and peace, and must live in harmony with one another while respecting one another’s dignity and tolerating one another’s differences. ”

“ Burundi joined the East African Community, which should boost Burundi's regional trade ties, and received $700 million in debt relief in 2009. Instability spilling over from eastern Congo-Kinshasa and the ban on minerals smuggled across Burundi's border will be the main challenges to economic growth. ”

“ Reaffirming its strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and unity of Burundi, and recalling the importance of the principles of good-neighbourliness, non-interference and cooperation in the relations between States in the region,
Noting that factors of instability remain in Burundi, which continue to constitute a threat to international peace and security in the region,
Acting under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations,
1. Decides to extend the mandate of the United Nations Operation in Burundi (ONUB) until 15 January 2006 ”

“ The institutions have the primary duty to guarantee:
(a) The security of all citizens; (b) The protection of the inalienable rights of the human person, starting with the right to life, and the rights embodied inter alia in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in the international conventions to which Burundi is a party; (c) The protection of all the ethnic communities of the population through specific mechanisms for the prevention of coups d’état, segregation and genocide; (d) Respect for the law and combating of impunity; (e) Good governance ”

“ The function of the political system shall be to unite, reassure and reconcile all Burundians while ensuring that the Government is able to serve the people of Burundi, who are its source of power and authority. ”

“ BURUNDI LAND 28,490 km2 ; about 37% arable (about 66% cultivated) , 23% pasture, 10% scrub and forest, 30% other
Land boundaries: 974 km
PEOPLE Population: 4,438,000 (July 1982) , average annual growth rate 2.7%
Nationality: noun—Burundian (s) ; adjective—Burundi
Ethnic divisions: Africans—85% Hutu (Bantu) , 14% Tutsi (Hamitic) , 1% Twa (Pigmy) ; other Africans include around 70,000 refugees, mostly Rwandans and Zairians ”

“ Since independence, and throughout the different regimes, there have been a number of constant phenomena which have given rise to the conflict that has persisted up to the present time: massive and deliberate killings, widespread violence and exclusion have taken place during this period.
2. Views differ as to the interpretation of these phenomena and their influence on the current political, economic and socio-cultural situation in Burundi, as well as of their impact on the conflict. ”

“ Failure to satisfy the basic needs of the citizens as a result of economic underdevelopment and lack of a sound economic policy that led to disillusionment and an erosion of support for the political system; (f) The distortion of Burundi’s history; (g) The ideology and practice of genocide and exclusion. 6. The aftermath of the colonial system, the inadequacy of the basic reforms of the institutional arrangements inherited from colonization for governance, administration and the maintenance of order and security for all. ”

“ Urges the international partners for the development of Burundi, including the concerned bodies of the United Nations, to continue to provide their support for the reconstruction of the country, particularly through an active participation in the donors conference to be organized in early 2006 ”

“ Now, Therefore, I, George W. Bush, President of the United States of America, acting under authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including but not limited to section 104 of the AGOA and sections 506A and 604 of the 1974 Act, do proclaim that:
(1) Burundi is designated as an eligible sub-Saharan African country and as a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country. ”

“ Rarely are these conflicts efficiently resolved and the most obvious manifestation of this lack of resolution is social discontent and even a breakdown of civil order. The recent problems in Burundi and Rwanda arise from resource conflicts in an area which has one of the highest human population densities in Africa. ”

“ Burundian Ethnic groups: Hutu (Bantu) 85%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 14%, Twa (Pygmy) 1%, Europeans 3,000, South Asians 2,000 Religions: Christian 67% (Roman Catholic 62%, Protestant 5%) , indigenous beliefs 23%, Muslim 10% Languages: Kirundi (official) , French (official) , Swahili (along Lake Tanganyika and in the Bujumbura area) Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 51.6%
male: 58.5%
female: 45.2% (2003 est.) ”

“ The Parties pledge that in the event of belligerent parties spurning or refusing such an invitation and continuing their belligerent activities against the people of Burundi, or any section of them, the violent acts of such parties will be deemed to be constitute an attack on all the Parties comprising this national platform of the Burundian people, as well as on this endeavour to establish an inclusive democratic Burundian state. ”

“ Reaffirms also the continued need to promote peace and national reconciliation and to foster accountability and respect for human rights in Burundi, and urges the Government of Burundi, specialized agencies, other multilateral organizations, civil society and Member States to accelerate their efforts to establish the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, as provided for in the Arusha Agreement ”

“ Only one in two children go to school, and approximately one in 15 adults has HIV/AIDS. Food, medicine, and electricity remain in short supply. Burundi's GDP grew around 4% annually in 2006-09. Political stability and the end of the civil war have improved aid flows and economic activity has increased, but underlying weaknesses - a high poverty rate, poor education rates, a weak legal system, and low administrative capacity - risk undermining planned economic reforms. Burundi will continue to remain heavily dependent on aid from bilateral and multilateral donors ”

“ For purposes of rapid reduction of the command-level imbalances, accelerated training of commissioned and non-commissioned officers from among the combatants of the political parties and movements shall be conducted in Burundi and abroad as soon as the transition period commences. ”

“ Encourages the Government of Burundi to pursue its efforts regarding peace consolidation challenges, in particular democratic governance, security reforms, land tenure, justice and the protection of human rights, with a special focus on women’s and children’s rights ”