Rwanda — map and facts

About Rwanda

Rwanda is a small, densely populated landlocked country in East-Central Africa, often called the "Land of a Thousand Hills" for its dramatic terrain. Kigali is the capital and largest city. With a population of approximately 14 million people in an area of only 26,338 square kilometres, Rwanda is the most densely populated country on the African mainland. It is a presidential republic; President Paul Kagame has led the country since 2000 and his Rwandan Patriotic Front has dominated politics since the end of the 1994 genocide. Rwanda has achieved remarkable economic growth and governance reforms in the post-genocide era, earning recognition for its clean cities, low corruption, and high female parliamentary representation — women hold more than 60 percent of seats in the Chamber of Deputies, the highest proportion in the world. Kinyarwanda, French, and English are official languages, alongside Swahili. Agriculture, tourism centred on mountain gorilla trekking, and a growing technology sector underpin the economy. Coffee and tea are major export commodities.

Geography and Landscape

Rwanda lies on the Albertine Rift, the western branch of the East African Rift system, and its landscape is defined by steep hills and deep valleys. The Virunga Mountains stretch along the north-western border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda; the dormant volcano Karisimbi reaches 4,507 metres, the highest point in Rwanda. Lake Kivu lies along the western border, shared with the DRC, and is one of Africa's Great Lakes. The Kagera River drains eastward into Lake Victoria, while the Congo-Nile divide runs across the country from north to south, separating river systems draining towards the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. The climate is temperate for equatorial Africa, moderated by altitude; Kigali sits at around 1,500 metres above sea level and enjoys average temperatures between 15 and 27°C. Rwanda has two rainy seasons: the long rains from March to May and the short rains from October to December. Nyungwe Forest in the south-west is one of the oldest montane rainforests in Africa.

History

The region that is now Rwanda was home to the Twa, Hutu, and Tutsi peoples for centuries before European contact, organised under the powerful Nyiginya monarchy by at least the 15th century. German East Africa incorporated Rwanda from 1885, and after the First World War Belgium administered it under a League of Nations mandate and later a UN trusteeship. Belgian colonial policy hardened ethnic distinctions between Hutu and Tutsi, introducing identity cards that would have fatal consequences. At independence on 1 July 1962, the Hutu-dominated government took power after a revolution that began in 1959. Ethnic violence repeatedly erupted in subsequent decades, and hundreds of thousands of Tutsi fled into exile. The Rwandan Patriotic Front, formed by Tutsi exiles in Uganda, invaded in 1990. The catastrophic genocide of April–July 1994 killed an estimated 500,000 to 800,000 Tutsi and moderate Hutu. The RPF ended the genocide militarily and established a government of national unity. Since 2000, Rwanda has rebuilt remarkably, investing in reconciliation, infrastructure, and economic diversification.