African colors of Ethiopia; similar to the
flag of Guinea, which has a plain yellow band

Economy

Economy - overview: Rwanda is a poor African nation suffering bitterly
from ethnic-based civil war. The agricultural sector dominates the
economy; coffee and tea normally make up 80%-90% of exports. The
amount of fertile land is limited, however, and deforestation and soil
erosion continue to reduce the production potential. Manufacturing
focuses mainly on the processing of agricultural products. A
structural adjustment program with the World Bank began in October
1990. Ethnic-based insurgency since 1990 has devastated wide areas,
especially in the north, and displaced hundreds of thousands of
people. A peace accord in mid-1993 temporarily ended most of the
fighting, but resumption of large-scale civil warfare in April 1994 in
the capital city Kigali and elsewhere took 500,000 lives in that year
alone and severely damaged already poor economic prospects. Sketchy
data suggest that GDP dropped 50% in 1994 and came back partially, by
25%, in 1995. Plentiful rains helped agriculture in 1996, and outside
aid continued to support this desperately poor economy. The economy
continues to suffer massively from failure to maintain the
infrastructure, looting, neglect of important cash crops, and lack of
health care facilities. Because of the accumulated damage to capital
plant and the decline in public discipline, recovery of domestic
production will proceed slowly.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $3.8 billion (1995 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: NA%

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $400 (1995 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture : 52%
industry: 13%
services: 35% (1994 est.)

Inflation rate - consumer price index: 22% (1995 est.)

Labor force:
total: 3.6 million
by occupation: agriculture 93%, government and services 5%, industry
and commerce 2%

Unemployment rate: NA%

Budget:
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA

Industries: mining of cassiterite (tin ore) and wolframite (tungsten
ore), tin, cement, processing of agricultural products, small-scale
beverage production, soap, furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles,
cigarettes

Industrial production growth rate: NA%

Electricity - capacity: 60,000 kW

Electricity - production: 190 million kWh

Electricity - consumption per capita: 23 kWh (1993 est.)

Agriculture - products: coffee, tea, pyrethrum (i