Burundi: People & Society#
| Population | 11,099,298 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, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2016 est.) |
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| Nationality | noun: Burundian(s) adjective: Burundian |
| Ethnic groups | Hutu (Bantu) 85%, Tutsi (Hamitic) 14%, Twa (Pygmy) 1%, Europeans 3,000, South Asians 2,000 |
| Languages | Kirundi 29.7% (official), Kirundi and other language 9.1%, French (official) and French and other language 0.3%, Swahili and Swahili and other language 0.2% (along Lake Tanganyika and in the Bujumbura area), English and English and other language 0.06%, more than 2 languages 3.7%, unspecified 56.9% (2008 est.) |
| Religions | Catholic 62.1%, Protestant 23.9% (includes Adventist 2.3% and other Protestant 21.6%), Muslim 2.5%, other 3.6%, unspecified 7.9% (2008 est.) |
| Demographic profile | Burundi is a densely populated country with a high population growth rate, factors that combined with land scarcity and poverty place a large share of its population at risk of food insecurity. About 90% of the population relies on subsistence agriculture. Subdivision of land to sons, and redistribution to returning refugees, results in smaller, overworked, and less productive plots. Food shortages, poverty, and a lack of clean water contribute to a 60% chronic malnutrition rate among children. A lack of reproductive health services has prevented a significant reduction in Burundi’s maternal mortality and fertility rates, which are both among the world’s highest. With two-thirds of its population under the age of 25 and a birth rate of about 6 children per woman, Burundi’s population will continue to expand rapidly for decades to come, putting additional strain on a poor country. Historically, migration flows into and out of Burundi have consisted overwhelmingly of refugees from violent conflicts. In the last decade, more than a half million Burundian refugees returned home from neighboring countries, mainly Tanzania. Reintegrating the returnees has been problematic due to their prolonged time in exile, land scarcity, poor infrastructure, poverty, and unemployment. Repatriates and existing residents (including internally displaced persons) compete for limited land and other resources. To further complicate matters, international aid organizations reduced their assistance because they no longer classified Burundi as a post-conflict country. Conditions have deteriorated since renewed violence erupted in April 2015, causing another outpouring of refugees. In addition to refugee out-migration, Burundi has hosted thousands of refugees from neighboring countries, mostly from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and lesser numbers from Rwanda. |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 45.61% (male 2,545,895/female 2,516,480) 15-24 years: 19.17% (male 1,061,538/female 1,066,581) 25-54 years: 28.71% (male 1,589,506/female 1,597,081) 55-64 years: 3.94% (male 205,538/female 231,317) 65 years and over: 2.57% (male 121,935/female 163,427) (2016 est.) |
| Dependency ratios | total dependency ratio: 89.7% youth dependency ratio: 85% elderly dependency ratio: 4.7% potential support ratio: 21.3% (2015 est.) |
| Median age | total: 17 years male: 16.8 years female: 17.2 years (2016 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 3.26% (2016 est.) |
| Birth rate | 41.7 births/1,000 population (2016 est.) |
| Death rate | 9 deaths/1,000 population (2016 est.) |
| Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2016 est.) |
| Urbanization | urban population: 12.1% of total population (2015) rate of urbanization: 5.66% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.) |
| Major urban areas - population | BUJUMBURA (capital) 751,000 (2015) |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female 0-14 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-24 years: 1 male(s)/female 25-54 years: 1 male(s)/female 55-64 years: 0.89 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.74 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2016 est.) |
| Mother's mean age at first birth | 21.3 note: median age at first birth among women 25-29 (2010 est.) |
| Maternal mortality rate | 712 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 60.4 deaths/1,000 live births male: 66.9 deaths/1,000 live births female: 53.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2016 est.) |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 60.5 years male: 58.8 years female: 62.3 years (2016 est.) |
| Total fertility rate | 6.04 children born/woman (2016 est.) |
| Contraceptive prevalence rate | 21.9% (2010/11) |
| Health expenditures | 7.5% of GDP (2014) |
| Hospital bed density | 1.9 beds/1,000 population (2011) |
| Drinking water source | improved: urban: 91.1% of population rural: 73.8% of population total: 75.9% of population unimproved: urban: 8.9% of population rural: 26.2% of population total: 24.1% of population (2015 est.) |
| Sanitation facility access | improved: urban: 43.8% of population rural: 48.6% of population total: 48% of population unimproved: urban: 56.2% of population rural: 51.4% of population total: 52% of population (2015 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate | 1.04% (2015 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS | 77,400 (2015 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths | 3,000 (2015 est.) |
| Major infectious diseases | degree of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne diseases: malaria and dengue fever water contact disease: schistosomiasis animal contact disease: rabies (2016) |
| Obesity - adult prevalence rate | 2.1% (2014) |
| Children under the age of 5 years underweight | 29.1% (2011) |
| Education expenditures | 5.4% of GDP (2013) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 85.6% male: 88.2% female: 83.1% (2015 est.) |
| School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education) | total: 11 years male: 11 years female: 10 years (2013) |
| Child labor - children ages 5-14 | total number: 433,187 percentage: 19% (2005 est.) |