Burundi

The main languages spoken in Burundi are:
Kirundi - the sole official language spoken by nearly the entire population natively.
French and English are also official languages, used in government and formal education.
Swahili is also spoken, particularly in commercial contexts.
Kirundi, French, and English are all official languages of Burundi.

Geography

Location: Central Africa, landlocked, east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the northeastern shore of Lake Tanganyika

Map references: Africa

Area:
total: 27,834 sq km

Land boundaries:
border countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Tanzania

Geography - note: one of Africa's most densely populated countries; concentrations tend to be in the north and along the northern shore of Lake Tanganyika, with most people living on farms near fertile volcanic soil

People

Population: 12.3-14.4 million (2025 est., varies by source)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 42.3%
15-64 years: 54.4%
65 years and over: 3.4% (2024 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: total population 63.7 years (2023)

Infant mortality rate: 31.5 deaths/1,000 live births (World Bank, 2025)

Nationality:
noun/adjective: Burundian(s)

Ethnic groups: Hutu, Tutsi, Twa, Banyarwanda

Religions: Christian 93.9% (Roman Catholic 58.6%, Protestant 35.3%), Muslim 3.4%, other 1.3% (2016-17 est.)

Languages: Kirundi only 29.7% (official), Kirundi and French 8.4%, French only 0.3% (official), English only 0.1% (official), Swahili 0.2%; spoken Kirundi is nearly universal

Literacy: total population 71.4% (male 78.2%, female 66.2%) (2020 est.)

Government

Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Burundi
conventional short form: Burundi
former: Urundi

Data code: BY

Government type: presidential republic

National capital: Gitega (political capital); Bujumbura (commercial capital) - in January 2019 parliament voted to make Gitega the political capital while Bujumbura remains the economic capital

Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government: President Evariste NDAYISHIMIYE (since 2020)

Economy

Economy - overview: highly agrarian, low-income Sub-Saharan economy; among the poorest countries in the world; declining foreign assistance and increasing fiscal insolvency; dense and still-growing population

GDP (purchasing power parity): $15.162 billion (2026 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 1.9% (2025)

GDP - per capita: $1,017 PPP (2026 est.)

Inflation rate: 200% (2024 est.)

Unemployment rate: 0.9-1% (2024-2025)

Population below poverty line: 53% (2010)

Industries: light consumer goods (sugar, shoes, soap, beer), cement, assembly of imported components, public works construction, food processing

Currency: Burundian franc (BIF)