#Get to Know Burundi :BurundiReferendum
About Burundi
Burundi is an East-Central African country located on the South of the Equator. The vast majority of Burundi’s population is Hutu, traditionally, they are a farming people. Political power has long rested with the Tutsi minority, which historically has controlled the army and most of the economy, particularly the lucrative international export of coffee. Few cultural differences exist between the two ethnic groups; both groups speak Rundi (Kirundi). The differences have been a point to exploitation by one tribe to consolidate power. This still continues today as the incumbent seeks to extend presidential term limits.
Economic Indicators
GDP (purchasing power parity):
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GDP – per capita (PPP):
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GDP – real growth rate: |
$7.849 billion (2016 est.)
$7.831 billion (2015 est.)
$8.066 billion (2014 est.)
note: data are in 2016 dollars country comparison to the world: 163 $3.138 billion (2016 est.)
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$800 (2016 est.)
$800 (2015 est.)
$900 (2014 est.)
note: data are in 2016 dollars country comparison to the world: 227
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-1% (2016 est.)
-4% (2015 est.)
4.5% (2014 est.)
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Why the 2018 Referendum?
Burundians are being asked to vote yes or no to a proposal to extend the president’s term from five years to seven. This would allow Nkurunziza, who has been in power since 2005, to rule for another 14 years when his term expires in 2020. This is raising fears of deeper political repression and ethnic conflict in the Great Lakes nation only a generation after the Rwandan genocide.
Opposition politicians and rights groups have cited numerous examples of repression, from arrests of dissidents, to the breaking up of “no” rallies, to death threats issued by the Imbonerakure, the youth wing of Nkurunziza’s ruling CNDD-FDD.
Profile of President Piere Nkurunziza
[1]Moodys Analystics. Burundi Economic Indicators. Available at: https://www.economy.com/burundi/indicators#ECONOMY. Accessed: 16 May 2018.
[2]BBC News. President Pierre Nkurunziza. Available at: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-13085065. Accessed: 16 May 2018.