Economy - overview:
Burundi is a landlocked, resource-poor country with an underdeveloped manufacturing sector. The economy is predominantly agricultural which accounts for about 35% of GDP and employs more than 90% of the population. Burundi's primary exports are coffee and tea, which account for 90% of foreign exchange earnings, though exports are a relatively small share of GDP. Burundi's export earning - and its ability to pay for imports - rests primarily on weather conditions and international coffee and tea prices. The Tutsi minority, 14% of the population, dominates the coffee trade. An ethnic-based war that lasted for over a decade resulted in more than 200,000 deaths, forced more than 48,000 refugees into Tanzania, and displaced 140,000 others internally. 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; the delay of funds after a corruption scandal cut off bilateral aid in 2007 reduced government's revenues and its ability to pay salaries. 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.
GDP (purchasing power parity): GDP (official exchange rate): GDP - real growth rate: GDP - per capita (PPP): GDP - composition by sector: Labor force: Labor force - by occupation: Unemployment rate: Population below poverty line: Household income or consumption by percentage share: Distribution of family income - Gini index: Investment (gross fixed): Budget: Inflation rate (consumer prices): Central bank discount rate: Commercial bank prime lending rate: Stock of narrow money: Stock of broad money: Stock of domestic credit: Market value of publicly traded shares: Agriculture - products: Industries: Industrial production growth rate: Electricity - production: Electricity - consumption: Electricity - exports: Electricity - imports: Oil - production: Oil - consumption: Oil - exports: Oil - imports: Oil - proved reserves: Natural gas - production: Natural gas - consumption: Natural gas - exports: Natural gas - imports: Natural gas - proved reserves: Current account balance: Exports: Exports - commodities: Exports - partners: Imports: Imports - commodities: Imports - partners: Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: Debt - external: Exchange rates:
NOTE: The information regarding Burundi on this page is re-published from the 2011 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Burundi Economy 2011 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Burundi Economy 2011 should be addressed to the CIA.
$3.418 billion (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 172
note:
data are in 2010 US dollars
[see also: GDP (purchasing power parity) country ranks ]
$1.469 billion (2009 est.)
[see also: GDP (official exchange rate) country ranks ]
3.9% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 85
[see also: GDP - real growth rate country ranks ]
$300 (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 229
note:
data are in 2010 US dollars
[see also: GDP - per capita country ranks ]
agriculture: 31.6%
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - agriculture country ranks ]
industry:
21.4%
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - industry country ranks ]
services:
47% (2009 est.)
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - services country ranks ]
4.245 million (2007)
country comparison to the world: 85
[see also: Labor force country ranks ]
agriculture: 93.6%
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - agriculture country ranks ]
industry:
2.3%
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - industry country ranks ]
services:
4.1% (2002 est.)
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - services country ranks ]
NA%
[see also: Unemployment rate country ranks ]
68% (2002 est.)
[see also: Population below poverty line country ranks ]
lowest 10%: 4.1%
[see also: Household income or consumption by percentage share - lowest 10% country ranks ]
highest 10%:
28% (2006)
[see also: Household income or consumption by percentage share - highest 10% country ranks ]
42.4 (1998)
country comparison to the world: 52
[see also: Distribution of family income - Gini index country ranks ]
25.1% of GDP (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 42
[see also: Investment (gross fixed) country ranks ]
revenues: $386.3 million
[see also: Budget - revenues country ranks ]
expenditures:
$476.2 million (2009 est.)
[see also: Budget - expenditures country ranks ]
7.2% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 181
[see also: Inflation rate (consumer prices) country ranks ]
10% (31 December 2009)
country comparison to the world: 44
[see also: Central bank discount rate country ranks ]
14.08% (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 36
[see also: Commercial bank prime lending rate country ranks ]
$329.3 million (31 December 2010 est)
[see also: Stock of narrow money country ranks ]
$568.3 million (31 December 2010 est.)
[see also: Stock of broad money country ranks ]
$465.7 million (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 165
[see also: Stock of domestic credit country ranks ]
$NA
[see also: Market value of publicly traded shares country ranks ]
coffee, cotton, tea, corn, sorghum, sweet potatoes, bananas, manioc (tapioca); beef, milk, hides
light consumer goods such as blankets, shoes, soap; assembly of imported components; public works construction; food processing
7% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 40
[see also: Industrial production growth rate country ranks ]
92 million kWh (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 192
[see also: Electricity - production country ranks ]
125.6 million kWh (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 186
[see also: Electricity - consumption country ranks ]
0 kWh (2008 est.)
[see also: Electricity - exports country ranks ]
40 million kWh; note - supplied by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2007 est.)
[see also: Electricity - imports country ranks ]
0 bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 201
[see also: Oil - production country ranks ]
3,000 bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 177
[see also: Oil - consumption country ranks ]
0 bbl/day (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 143
[see also: Oil - exports country ranks ]
2,495 bbl/day (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 173
[see also: Oil - imports country ranks ]
0 bbl (1 January 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 197
[see also: Oil - proved reserves country ranks ]
0 cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 191
[see also: Natural gas - production country ranks ]
0 cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 203
[see also: Natural gas - consumption country ranks ]
0 cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 197
[see also: Natural gas - exports country ranks ]
0 cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 198
[see also: Natural gas - imports country ranks ]
0 cu m (1 January 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 198
[see also: Natural gas - proved reserves country ranks ]
-$136 million (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 80
[see also: Current account balance country ranks ]
$71 million (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 200
[see also: Exports country ranks ]
coffee, tea, sugar, cotton, hides
Germany 21.6%, Switzerland 14.86%, Belgium 9.32%, Sweden 8.94%, Pakistan 5.82% (2009)
$336 million (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 193
[see also: Imports country ranks ]
capital goods, petroleum products, foodstuffs
Saudi Arabia 16.87%, Belgium 11.17%, Uganda 8.62%, Kenya 7.57%, China 5.66%, France 5.35%, Germany 4.46%, India 4.24%, Tanzania 4.21% (2009)
$320 million (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 121
[see also: Reserves of foreign exchange and gold country ranks ]
$1.2 billion (2003)
country comparison to the world: 148
[see also: Debt - external country ranks ]
Burundi francs (BIF) per US dollar - 1,250.75 (2010), 1,230.18 (2009), 1,198 (2008), 1,065 (2007), 1,030 (2006)
This page was last modified 09-Feb-11