Map

Background

Burundi is a landlocked country in the Great Lakes region of Eastern Africa, sharing borders with Rwanda,Tanzania, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Following the assassination of the country’s first democratically elected president, after serving only 100 days in office, conflict spread across the country between Hutu and Tutsi factions. Itwas extended over dozens of years and lead to about 200,000 casualties and the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Burundians.
In 2003, a power-sharing agreement between the Tutsi-lead government and Hutu rebels was brokered, which led to a transition process that saw the establishment of a new constitution and an elected majority Hutu government in 2005. The government of Burundi continues to face many political and economic challenges.

Economy

As a landlocked and resource-poor country, Burundi faced many challenges with its underdeveloped manufacturing sector. Its economy is mainly agricultural and accounts for over 30% of the country’s GDP, and employs more than 90% of the population. Burundi’s primary exports are coffee and tea.
Food, medicine, and electricity remain in short supply. Burundi remainsgreatly dependent on aid from bilateral and multilateral donors, as foreign aid signifies 42% of Burundi’s national revenue.

Health

The health care in Burundi in comparison to most other countries, is rated as poor. A large percentage of the population is undernourished, and in 2004, it was estimated that were 3 physicians per 100,000 persons.
There have been outbreaks of meningitis, and the spread of Trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness), is aproblem in the Ruvuvu River Valley. Malaria and schistosomiasis (bilharziasis) are known to be common diseases along the Ruzizi River. It is estimated that around 58% of the population had access to safe water.

Major infectious diseases:
Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
Vectorborne disease: malaria
Water contact disease:schistosomiasis

Malaria Status

Nearly 85% of the population on the national territory, mainly on the Pacific coast, the Amazon forests and eastern savannas, are affected by malaria. There are an estimated 250,000 cases per year and 3 mortalities for every 100,000 persons infected. In 66% of the cases, the main agent is Plasmodium vivax, except on the Pacific coast, where Plasmodium falciparum causes 75% of the cases.