Natural resources:
gold, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore), methane,
hydropower, arable land
Land use:
arable land: 40.54%
permanent crops: 12.16%
other: 47.3% (2001)
Irrigated land:
40 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards:
periodic droughts; the volcanic Virunga mountains are in the
northwest along the border with Democratic Republic of the Congo
Environment - current issues:
deforestation results from uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel;
overgrazing; soil exhaustion; soil erosion; widespread poaching
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes,
Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
Geography - note:
landlocked; most of the country is savanna grassland with the
population predominantly rural
People Rwanda
Population:
8,440,820
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the
effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower
life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower
population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of
population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July
2005 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 41.9% (male 1,777,178/female 1,762,252)
15-64 years: 55.5% (male 2,328,686/female 2,356,572)
65 years and over: 2.6% (male 87,155/female 128,977) (2005 est.)