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Portal:Burundi/Selected article/1 The Great Lakes refugee crisis is the common name for the situation beginning with the exodus in April 1994 of over two million Rwandans to neighboring countries of the Great Lakes region of Africa in the aftermath of the Rwandan Genocide. Many of the refugees were Hutu ethnics fleeing the predominantly Tutsi Rwandese Patriotic Front (RPF), which invaded to end the Rwandan Genocide. However, the humanitarian relief effort was vastly complicated by the presence among the refugees of many of the Interahamwe and government officials who carried out the genocide, who used the refugee camps as bases to launch attacks against the new government led by Paul Kagame. The camps in Zaire became particularly politicized and militarized. The knowledge that humanitarian aid was being diverted to further the aims of the genocidaires led many humanitarian organizations to withdraw their assistance.

The conflict escalated until the start of the First Congo War in late 1996, when RPF-supported rebels invaded Zaire (soon thereafter, the Democratic Republic of the Congo) and the refugees were repatriated. (Read more...)

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The Burundi Civil War was an armed conflict lasting from 1993 to 2005. The civil war was the result of long standing ethnic divisions between the Hutu and the Tutsi tribes in Burundi. The conflict began following the first multiparty elections in the country since gaining independence from Belgium in 1962 and is seen as formally ending with the swearing in of Pierre Nkurunziza in August 2005. The estimated death toll stands at 300,000 killed. (Read more...)

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Lake Tanganyika is an African Great Lake (3° 20' to 8° 48' South and from 29° 5' to 31° 15' East). It is estimated to be the second or third largest freshwater lake in the world by volume, and the second deepest, after Lake Baikal in Siberia. The lake is divided between four countries – Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Tanzania and Zambia, with the DRC (45%) and Tanzania (41%) possessing the majority of the lake. The water flows into the Congo River system and ultimately into the Atlantic Ocean. (Read more...)

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The East African Community (EAC) is an intergovernmental organisation comprising the five east African countries Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda. While generally, the member nations are largely in favor of the East African Federation, informal polls indicate that most Tanzanians (80% of its population) have an unfavorable view. Tanzania has more land than the other EAC nations combined, and some Tanzanians fear landgrabs by the current residents of the other EAC member nations. Land scarcity is a recurring issue in East Africa, particularly in Kenya, where clashes on the Kenyan side of Mount Elgon in 2007 left more than 150 dead and forced at least 60,000 away from their homes.

The first major step in establishing the East African Federation is the customs union in East Africa signed in March 2004 which commenced on 1 January 2005. Under the terms of the treaty, Kenya, the region's largest exporter, will continue to pay duties on its goods entering the other four countries until 2010, based on a declining scale. A common system of tariffs will apply to goods imported from third-party countries. (Read more...)

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Portal:Burundi/Selected article/5 In the mining industry of Burundi the country is a producer of columbium (niobium) and tantalum ore, tin ore, and tungsten ore, and some deposits of gold which are designated for export. Burundi has resources of copper, cobalt, nickel, feldspar, phosphate rock, quartzite, and rare reserves of uranium, and vanadium. The country is also a producer of limestone, peat, sand and gravel for domestic consumption and as building materials. As of 2005, manufacturing accounted for 8% of the country's gross domestic product.

National gold production increased to 3,905 kg in 2005 from 3,229 kg in 2004 increasing dramatically from just 415 kg in 2001 because of higher gold prices. Gold reportedly accounted for more than 90% of the value of Burundi’s total mineral production in 2005. Machanga Ltd. of Uganda and more recently the Burundi Mining Corporation were responsible for mining much of the country's primary gold reserves which are concentrated in Muyinga Province in the north-east of the country. (Read more...)

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Portal:Burundi/Selected article/6 The Senate of Burundi is the upper chamber of Parliament in Burundi. It consists of no fewer than 37 and no more than 54 members who serve 5-year terms. The current Senate was elected on 24 July 2015 and consists of 43 members.

In each of the country's 18 provinces, two Senators (one Hutu and one Tutsi) are chosen by electoral colleges of communal councilors. Voting takes place using a three round system. In the first two rounds, a candidate must receive a super-majority (two-thirds, or 67% of the vote) to be elected. If no candidate is elected in these rounds, a third round is organized for the two leading candidates, of which the candidate receiving the majority of votes is elected. Three Senators represent the Twa ethnic group and additional members may be co-opted to meet the 30% gender representation quota for women. Former heads of state automatically become Senators. (Read more...)

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A view of Gitega

Gitega (formerly Kitega) is the capital and one of the largest cities in Burundi. Located in the centre of the country, in the Burundian central plateau roughly 62 kilometres (39 mi) east by south of Bujumbura (the former capital and largest city), Gitega was the seat of the Kingdom of Burundi until its abolition in 1966. In late December 2018, Burundian president Pierre Nkurunziza announced that he would follow on a 2007 promise to return Gitega its former political capital status, with Bujumbura remaining as economical capital and centre of commerce. A vote in the Parliament of Burundi made the change official on 16 January 2019, with all branches of government expected to move in over three years. (Read more...)

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Foods at a Burundian meal

Burundi is situated in East Africa and has a territory full of mountains, savannas and agricultural fields, with forests in the surrounding rivers and waters. Agriculture is spread on 80% of the country's surface and it mainly includes coffee, tea, maize, beans and manioc. Burundi cuisine also includes beans, which are the staple of Burundi cooking, exotic fruits (mainly bananas), plantains, sweet potatoes, cassava, peas, maize and cereals, like corn and wheat. (Full article...)

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Portal:Burundi/Selected article/9 Religion in Burundi is diverse, with Christianity being the dominant faith. Catholicism is the largest Christian denomination in the country. (Full article...)

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Portal:Burundi/Selected article/10 The president of Burundi, officially the President of the Republic (French: Président de la République), is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Burundi. The president is also commander-in-chief of the National Defence Force. The office of the presidency was established when Michel Micombero declared Burundi a republic on 28 November 1966. The first constitution to specify the powers and duties of the president was the constitution of 1974 adopted in 1976. The constitution, written by Micombero, affirmed Micombero's position as the first president of Burundi. The powers of the president currently derive from the 2005 constitution implemented as a result of the 2000 Arusha Accords after the Burundian Civil War. The current president since 18 June 2020 is Évariste Ndayishimiye. (Full article...)

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Portal:Burundi/Selected article/11 The Kingdom of Burundi (French: Royaume du Burundi), also known as Kingdom of Urundi (Kirundi: Ubwami bw'Urundi), was a Bantu kingdom in the modern-day Republic of Burundi. The Ganwa monarchs (with the title of mwami) ruled over both Hutus and Tutsis. Created in the 16th century, the kingdom was preserved under German and Belgian colonial rule in the late 19th and early 20th century and was an independent state between 1962 and 1966. (Full article...)