RWANDA

Republic of Rwanda

Major City:
Kigali

Other Cities:
Butare, Cyangugu, Gisenyi, Ruhengeri

EDITOR'S NOTE

This chapter was adapted from the Department of State Post Report 1999 for Rwanda. Supplemental material has been added to increase coverage of minor cities, facts have been updated, and some material has been condensed. Readers are encouraged to visit the Department of State's web site at http://travel.state.gov/ for the most recent information available on travel to this country.

INTRODUCTION

Rwanda, known as the "land of a thousand hills," is situated in east central Africa. Physically, it is a country of mountains, hills, lakes, and rivers. Slightly smaller than the state of Maryland, Rwanda is the most densely populated country on the continent.

The capital, Kigali, is a small city located in the heart of the country. Despite its proximity to the Equator, the altitude (approximately 4,800 feet) of Kigali provides a temperate climate throughout the year.

MAJOR CITY

Kigali

With independence in 1962, Kigali became the capital of Rwanda. Kigali is a small city perched on a series of hills and ridges at an altitude of almost 4,800 feet. Rather than having a defined city center, Kigali is a mixture of low buildings, European-style housing and mud-brick African dwellings. Kigali offers tree-lined streets and plentiful gardens. Main streets are paved.

Utilities

Water shortages lasting several days can occur at any time.

If you will be bringing electronic equipment such as a stereo, television or computer, plan on bringing a heavy duty servo-stabilizer or voltage regulator that will accommodate all of the items and UPS equipment if needed. In addition, you should bring surge protectors for each piece of electronic gear. If possible, bring appliances that are made for 220 volts. Short power out-ages occur fairly often. Residences are equipped with European style wall sockets of various sizes. Bring plug adapters-they are in short supply in Kigali.

Food

Locally grown fruits and vegetables are good. Many vegetables available in the U.S. are also available in Kigali, with the exception of yellow corn, lima beans, and a short season of broccoli. Mangos, pineapple, papaya, passion fruit, guava, bananas, and seasonal citrus fruits are all on the market. South African apples are found from time to time in some import stores, but are very expensive.

A German butcher has established a reliable shop offering beef, pork, chicken, fish and deli and breakfast meats. Most cuts tend to require tenderizing.

Most Americans use either imported UHT milk or powdered milk. UHT cream from Belgium is available. Imported cheeses can be found, if you don't mind paying the price! A local cheese is tasty and good for sandwiches, pizza or casseroles. A number of grocery stores offer a wide variety of imported items, but generally at great cost. Supplies fluctuate, with some products being off the shelves for months at a time.

Clothing

For men, khaki pants and sport shirts suffice in the office. Most women wear dresses or suits to the office. Cocktail clothes do not need to be overly fancy. Depending on your personal interests, leisure time clothing should include a warm jacket, running shoes, hiking boots, rain gear, bathing suit. Shorts are worn at home, during athletic activities in town, and at safari camps. Generally speaking, dress for both men and women is conservative.

Larger sizes of shoes are difficult to find in Kigali, and variety of styles and types of shoes is limited. It is advised to purchase shoes before arrival.

It is always a good idea to include a winter coat in your shipment in case you must travel to the U.S. in the winter.

Supplies and Services

With a number of import shops available in Kigali, most household supplies and toiletries are available. Be prepared to pay much more than you would pay in Washington. If you have favorite brands of particular items, bring them with you, as many American products are absent from the shelves.

Tailoring and dressmaking services can be found; however, fabric selection is limited and/or expensive. Shoe repair is possible but the results are marginal. Washable clothing is the best bet as local dry cleaners are only adequate.

Servicing of radio, television and other electronic equipment is somewhat reliable. Unisex beauty salons operate in the major hotels.

Domestic Help

In Kigali, servants generally do not live in. A housekeeper does most of the household chores, including ironing.

Be prepared to train your servants in food preparation and personal hygiene. They should receive annual medical examinations. Some employers provide locally made uniforms. Employers should register servants with Rwandan social security and make the required payments. Severance pay is two weeks' salary.

Religious Activities

Catholic, Anglican, and other denominations have one or two services on Sundays.

Sports

Kigali has a challenging 9-hole golf course complete with club facilities. Membership is US $500 a year. Bring equipment, including balls, tees, gloves, etc. Weekend instruction is available.

The Cercle Sportif, Kigali's sole private club, boasts of complete facilities for tennis, squash, basketball, volleyball, soccer, swimming, and riding. The Club also provides bar and restaurant service. Anyone can join the club, which offers membership at varying lengths of time and according to the facilities you want to use.

The American Club is upgrading its weight room, and also has a basketball hoop, pool table, and dart boards.

The Hash House Harriers is a popular Saturday event, with trails set for runners and walkers. Every Sunday afternoon, a number of expats play softball.

Touring and Outdoor Activities

Since the war in 1994 a number of popular destinations within Rwanda are now off limits, including visiting the mountain gorillas in the northwest.

The National Museum at Butare and the handicraft shops there are a popular destination, as is Akagera National Park, a good spot to go fishing, camping, bird watching, and with any luck, spot zebra, antelopes and hippos. The border to Uganda is a two-hour drive from Kigali.

The region offers many travel adventures including white-water rafting, photographic safaris, ballooning, mountain climbing, hiking, gorilla watching in Uganda, boat trips on the Nile, a week at the beach in Kenya or Tanzania, and much more.

Entertainment

The American Club is a lively spot attracting a very international membership representing the many NGOs and international organizations that are present in Rwanda. Happy hours, parties, movie nights, international dinners, and other special events are always on the calendar. The Club has a fairly well-stocked video lending library.

Pleasant restaurants, discos for dancing, and the occasional dinner-dance sponsored by a local organization are the alternatives to entertaining at home.

Traditional Rwandan Intore dancers and drummers often perform on Rwandan holidays and other special occasions.

Remember to join a book club or bring an ample supply as English-language books are difficult to find. Video tapes, CDS, and cassette tapes are expensive and the selection is small.

Life in Kigali is informal. Small dinners, private parties and government or diplomatic receptions round out the entertainment possibilities.

OTHER CITIES

Situated close to Burundi on the southern border of Rwanda, BUTARE combines traditional housing areas and a commercial section. Before 1962, Butare was called Astrida. It is the second largest city in the country, with a population of about 40,000. In 1963, the National University of Rwanda was opened in the city. A museum of anthropology also is located here. Approximately 10 percent of the inhabitants are non-Africans. Most are foreign teachers at the National University of Rwanda.

CYANGUGU is situated in southwestern Rwanda, near Burundi. It is about 100 miles west of the capital with a population of roughly 12,000. Major crops include beans, cotton, tea, bananas, cassava, sweet potatoes, and corn. Industries include tea and meat processing.

The pleasant city of GISENYI is situated on Lake Kivu, one of the most beautiful lakes in Africa. The city is in the northernmost corner of the country, about 50 miles west of the capital. Gisenyi boasts of flowering trees; safe, sandy beaches; beautiful scenery; and the national park of the Virunga Volcanoes. The park is the home of a rare species of mountain gorilla. The population of Gisenyi is about 22,000.

Located in northern Rwanda near the borders of Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire), RUHENGERI is situated at the foot of the Birunga volcanic chain. The roughly 33,000 inhabitants of Ruhengeri are primarily engaged in farming. Sorghum, potatoes, bananas, coffee, and tea are grown. Industrial capacity is very small and is centered on flour-milling and the processing of pyrethrum, a natural insecticide. The city has a modern hospital and small airfield.

COUNTRY PROFILE

Geography and Climate

The Republic of Rwanda is located in the mountains of east central Africa and covers 10,169 square miles (4,587 sq. ft. of which is water). Slightly smaller than Maryland, it is circular in shape. The eastern boundary is shared with Tanzania; Uganda, to the north; the west borders the Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire) and Lake Kivu; Burundi, to the south. The western edge of the country along the Congo Nile watershed, rises steeply, formed by a chain of volcanoes called the Virunga Mountains. It is here that the country's highest point, the volcano Karisimbi at an elevation of 14,782 feet, is found. Gisenyi, a town at the northern end of Lake Kivu, enjoys spectacular vistas of the surrounding volcanoes. Rwanda's green valleys produce beans, sorghum, corn, manioc, Irish potatoes, rice, sweet potatoes, soybeans, bananas, coffee and tea.

The low mountains and steep hills of the remainder of the country diminish in height as one travels towards the east and southeast. On the Tanzanian border, low hills, papyrus swamps, and shallow lakes are interspersed with semiarid savanna. Hardy thickets, 8 to 15 feet tall, cactus like candelabrum trees and grassy glades are found here.

Despite Rwanda's location of only two degrees below the equator, the altitude provides a mild, temperate climate for most parts of the country. The average 24-hour temperature in Kigali is 73°F The higher reaches above 14,700 feet might even experience frost and snow.

Two rainy seasons generally occur between February and May and September through December. However, changes in world climate can cause variation to these seasons. The rains can be torrential, although brief, and sometimes are accompanied by strong winds and lightning. Although sunshine appears throughout the rainy seasons, mildew in unventilated rooms can become a problem. Annual rainfall averages 31 inches and is generally heavier in the western and northwestern mountains than in the eastern savannas.

The long dry summer season, May to September, turns the hills around Kigali a reddish ochre, fine dust is everywhere, and the grass dries up. Added to this is the smoke from fires as farmers burn away the dried brush. Dust from vehicles on unpaved roads reduces visibility, sometimes causing accidents.

Population

A July 1997 estimate puts Rwanda's population at 7,737,537, with a population growth rate at 8.24%. Despite the 1994 genocide and civil war between Hutu and Tutsi factions that killed up to 1 million Rwandans and forced more than 2 million to flee to neighboring countries, Rwanda is the most densely populated country in Africa. Rwanda's birth rate is estimated at 38.73 births per 1,000 population; the death rate is estimated at 21.06 deaths per 1,000 population; and the net migration rate is estimated at 64.78 migrants per 1,000 population. According to the United Nations High Commission on Refugees, in 1996 and 1997 nearly 1,300,000 Hutus returned to Rwanda.

Ethnic groups within Rwanda are comprised of. 75% Hutu; 24% Tutsi; 1% Twa (Pygmoid). Traditionally, the Hutu are known as cultivators, the Tutsi as cattle raisers, and the Twa as hunters, but population pressure has reduced the importance of cattle raising and hunting and now over 95% of the population depends on subsistence farming. Despite these differences, Rwanda has no tribes, as that term is usually understood, since all groups speak the same language (Kinyarwanda), inhabit the same areas, freely intermarry, and share one culture.

In contrast to many African countries, life in rural Rwanda is not centered around villages (except in recent resettlement projects), but rather around but compounds called "rugos," scattered throughout the hillsides.

The population is divided religiously as follows: 65% are Roman Catholic; 9% are Protestant; 1% Muslim; and indigenous beliefs and others make up 25%. The infant mortality rate (1997 est.) is 118.8 deaths per 1,000 live births. The life expectancy at birth for the total population is 39.11 years; for males, 38.64 years; for females, 39.6 years (1997 est.). The total fertility rate is 5.93 children born per woman.

Official languages include Kinyarwanda, a universal Bantu vernacular; English and French. Kiswahili is used in commercial centers.

Approximately 8,000 non-Africans live in Rwanda, including Belgians, French, Germans, Italians, Dutch, Swiss, British, Scandinavians, South Asians, and Americans.

History

According to folklore, Tutsi cattle breeders began arriving in the area from somewhere in the north about 500 years ago and gradually subjugated the Hutu inhabitants. The Tutsis established a monarchy headed by a Mwami (king) and a feudal caste of nobles. The Tutsis reduced the Hutus to serfdom through a contract known as "ubuhake," whereby the Hutu farmers obligated their services to the Tutsi lords in return for cattle. Some successful Hutu and Twa were adopted into Tutsi aristocracy. Ultimately, the fortunes of some Tutsi declined until they enjoyed few advantages over the Hutu, and the boundaries of race and class became less distinct.

The first European known to have visited Rwanda was the German, Count van Goetzen, in 1894. He was followed by missionaries, notably the "white fathers." In 1899, the Mwami submitted to a German protectorate without resistance. Belgian troops from then Zaire chased the small number of Germans out of Rwanda in 1915 and took control of the country. After World War I, the League of Nations mandated Rwanda and its southern neighbor, Burundi, to Belgium as the territory known as Ruanda-Urundi. Following World War II, Ruanda-Urundi became a United Nations Trust Territory, with Belgium as the administering authority.

Reforms instituted by the Belgians in the 1950s encouraged the growth of democratic political institutions but were resisted by Tutsi tradition-alists who saw in them a threat to Tutsi rule. An increasingly restive Hutu population, encouraged by the Belgian military, sparked a revolt in November 1959, resulting in the overthrow of the Tutsi monarchy. Two years later, the Party of the Hutu Emancipation Movement (Parmehutu) won an overwhelming victory in a UN-supervised referendum. During the 1959 revolt and its aftermath, more than 160,000 Tutsis fled to neighboring countries.

The Parmehutu government, formed as a result of the September 1961 election, was granted internal autonomy by Belgium on January 1, 1962. A June 1962 UN General Assembly resolution terminated the Belgian trusteeship and granted full independence to Rwanda (and Burundi) effective July 1, 1962.

Gregoire Kayibanda, leader of the Parmehutu party, became Rwanda's first elected President, leading a government chosen from the membership of the directly elected unicameral National Assembly. Inefficiency and corruption began festering in government ministries in the mid-1960s. On July 5, 1973, the military took power under the leadership of Maj. Gen. Juvenal Habyarimana, who dissolved the National Assembly and the Parmehutu party and abolished all political activity.

In 1975, the President formed the National Revolutionary Movement for Development (MRND), whose goals were to promote peace and unity and national development. Rwandans went to the polls in December 1978, overwhelmingly endorsed a new constitution, and confirmed Habyarimana as President. President Habyarimana was reelected in 1983 and again in 1988, when he was the sole candidate. Responding to public pressure for political reform, President Habyarimana announced in July 1990 his intention to transform Rwanda's one party state into a multi-party democracy.

On October 1, 1990, Rwandan exiles banded together as the Rwanda Patriotic Force (RPF) and invaded Rwanda from their base in Uganda. The rebel force, composed primarily of ethnic Tutsis, blamed the government for failing to democratize and resolve the problem of some 500,000 Tutsi refugees living in Diaspora around the world. The war dragged on for almost two years until a ceasefire accord signed July 12, 1992 in Arusha, Tanzania, fixed a timetable for an end to the fighting and for political talks leading to a peace accord and authorized a neutral military observer group under the auspices of the United Nations. A ceasefire took effect July 31, 1992, and political talks began August 10, 1992.

On April 6,1994, the airplane carrying President Habyarimana and the President of Burundi, was shot down as it prepared to land at Kigali. Both Presidents were killed. As though the shooting down were a signal, military and militia groups began rounding up and killing political moderates regardless of their ethnic background and all Tutsis. The Prime Minister and her ten Belgian bodyguards were among the first victims. It soon became clear that the killing was not limited to Kigali; between April 6 and the beginning of July, a genocide of unprecedented swiftness left up to a million Tutsis killed at the hands of organized bands of militia-Interahamwe-and even ordinary citizens were called on by local officials and government-sponsored radio to kill their neighbors. The dead President's own MRND party was implicated in organizing many aspects of the genocide.

Immediately after the shooting down of the President's plane, the RPF battalion stationed in Kigali under the Arusha Accords came under attack. The battalion fought its way out of Kigali and joined up with RPF units in the North. The RPF resumed its invasion, and civil war raged concurrently with the genocide for two months. In July, French forces landed in Coma, Congo (then Zaire) on a peacekeeping mission. They deployed throughout western Rwanda in an area they called "Zone Turquoise." The impact of their intervention is still hotly debated and forms the basis for a still-strained French Rwandan relationship.

The Rwandan army was quickly defeated by the RPF, and fled across the border to Congo, followed by some two million refugees. The RPF took Kigali on July 4, 1994, and the war ended a few weeks later. The RPF took control of a country ravaged by war and genocide. A million or so had been murdered, another two million or so had fled, another million or so were displaced internally.

The international community responded with one of the largest humanitarian relief efforts ever mounted. The U.S. was one of the largest contributors. The UN peace-keeping operation, UNAMIR, was drawn down during the fighting but brought back up to strength after the RPF victory. UNAMIR remained in Rwanda until March 8,1996.

Political Institutions

After its military victory, the RPF organized a coalition government based on the terms of the Arusha accords. On May 5, 1995, the Transitional National Assembly adopted a new constitution which included elements of the constitution of June 18, 1991, as well as provisions of the 1993 Arusha Peace Accord and the November 1994 multi-party protocol of understanding. The MRND Party was outlawed. Political organizing was banned until 1999.

The biggest problem facing the government is rehabilitation of war damage, and reintegration of the one and a half million refugees who fled to Tanzania, Burundi, and Congo, returning from as long ago as 1959. One problem of particular urgency is the prison population, which has swelled to 130,000 since the war.

Rwanda has 12 administrative divisions known locally as prefectures: Butare, Byumba Cyangugu, Gikongoro, Gisenyi, Gitarama, Kibungo, Umutara, Kigali rurale, Kibuye, Kigali, and Ruhengeri.

The legal system is based on German and Belgian civil law systems and customary law. Within the Executive branch of government, the principal government officials are: President Pasteur Bizimungu; Vice President and Minister of Defense Maj. Gen. Paul Kagame; Prime Minister Celestin Rwigema; Minister of Foreign Affairs Anastase Gasana; Ambassador to the United States Theogene Rudasmgwa; and Ambassador to the United Nations Manzi Bakuramutsa.

Arts, Science, and Education

Rwanda is especially noted for its handcrafted baskets. The baskets are made in a wide range of sizes, usually with lids and graphic patterns woven into the sides. They can be quite intricate and magnificent. Private and government-operated handicraft shops can be found in Kigali. In Butare, a city two hours to the south of Kigali, the German development agency, GTZ, coordinates a non-profit artisan coop which offers a wide variety of handi-crafts, including wood carvings, basketry, reed rugs, clothing, drums, and other tourist items. The National Museum of Rwanda, also located in Butare, offers a fascinating display of Rwandan history and culture, and a small gift shop sells many interesting pieces.

Before the 1994 war, many religious missions produced artwork and handicrafts, but little if nothing has been produced since.

Butare is also the home of the National University of Rwanda. The University operates primarily with Canadian, Belgian and French technical assistance. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) provides assistance to the Law School. The Institut de Recherche Scientifique et Agricole du Rwanda (ISAR) maintains an agricultural experiment station at Rubona, above Butare. Additionally, the Institut National de Recherche Scientifique (INRS) maintains an anthropological museum and arboretum at Butare and conducts studies of regional fauna and flora. The Ministry of Natural

Resources maintains a small but interesting geological museum in Kigali. Rwanda's literacy rate within the total population is 60.5% of those aged 15 and over who can read and write. Of this percentage, 69.8% are male and 51.6% are female (based on 1995 estimates).

Commerce and Industry

Rwanda, one of the poorest nations in Africa, continues to suffer bitterly as a result of the ethnic-based civil war and genocide of 1994. The economy suffers from failure to maintain the infrastructure, neglect of important cash crops, and lack of health care facilities. Data since the war suggests that the GDP dropped 50% in 1994 and came back partially, by 25%, in 1995. By 1997, the economy posted a 13% growth rate, but has not attained pre-war levels. Agriculture dominates the economy; coffee and tea provide 80% to 90% of Rwanda's exports. However, deforestation, soil erosion and the limited amount of fertile land reduces the agriculture sector's production potential.

According to 1995 estimates, of a labor force of 3.6 million, 93% work in agriculture, 5% in government and services, and 2% in industry and commerce. The agriculture sector has recovered to about 85% of its pre-war level of production.

The limited tourism potential that existed before the war has not recovered. Rebels continue to fight government forces in the northwest mountains, home to the mountain gorilla. Akagera National Park, once home to a wide variety of wild animals, has been reduced in area by two thirds to accommodate refugees.

Recovery of domestic production will proceed slowly. Light industry includes mining of tin and tungsten ore, cement, processing of agricultural products, small-scale beverage production, soap, furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles, and cigarettes.

Foreign aid, especially from Belgium, Canada, Great Britain the World Bank, the European Union, UNDP, France, Germany, Holland, the United States and Japan, continues to account for most new capital in recent years. The United States is a leading donor to Rwanda and channels approximately $12 million per annum through USAID, with an additional $200 million provided in emergency assistance since 1994.

Transportation

Automobiles

Japanese sedans and American and Japanese four-wheel-drive vehicles are driven by most Americans. Sedans are suitable for most roads in Kigali as well as major highways, but a 4x4 is essential on unpaved roads found throughout the country. Both right and left hand drive vehicles are found, while all traffic requires driving on the same side as in the U.S.

Service at garages varies from poor to acceptable; however, spare parts are very expensive and can take months to secure.

Finding a local mechanic to service an American vehicle can be a challenge. The dry season requires that air and oil filters be changed frequently. All drivers must carry third-party insurance, purchased locally. Insurance for fire, theft, and transportation should be purchased in the U.S.

U.S. drivers licenses can be used in Rwanda.

Local

Many roads between major towns are unpaved, but paved roads extend from Kigali to the Uganda border via Byumba in the north; from Kigali to Rusumu on the Tanzanian border in the southeast; between Kigali and Gisenyi and Ruhengeri in the northwest, and between Kigali and the Burundi border via Butare in the south. Traffic moves on the right in Rwanda, Burundi and Congo; on the left in Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya. Buses and bush taxis (vans or open pickup trucks) service all parts of the country, but are slow, overcrowded, and dangerous.

Regional

Within Rwanda there are 12,000 km of highways; as of 1997, some 1,000 km. are paved.

There is no rail system in Rwanda, so goods are either flown or trucked in. Sabena Airlines has direct service from Brussels to Kigali two times a week. Connections via Kampala or Nairobi increase the number of options for flying to and from Europe. Additionally, flights are available from Kigali to Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Burundi, and South Africa.

Communications

Telephone

Most American households in Kigali have telephones. Calls are individually charged based on duration and distance.

Long-distance service within Central and East Africa is fair in quality and charges. Satellite service to Europe and the United States is reliable but expensive. Internet service is also available and expensive.

Radio and TV

Local broadcast radio stations number one AM and two FM and several shortwave. Bringing a shortwave radio allows you to pick up programming from around the world.

There is one local television station which broadcasts in English, French and Kinyarwanda. The American Club offers a video tape (NTSCVHS) rental service.

Newspapers, Magazines, and Technical Journals

There is a local French-language newspaper available, and The New Times, a Rwandan paper published in English.

American news magazines are available locally, but not many paperbacks are available in English. The USIS library has a small collection of English-language books and The American Club maintains a lending library of several hundred paperbacks. French hardbound and paperbacks can be found at Caritas, a shop in central Kigali.

Health and Medicine

Medical Facilities

Very limited medical services are available in Kigali. Serious medical or dental conditions will require evacuation.

Local pharmacies stock mostly European drugs, vitamins and over-the counter medication, including antihistamines, cold pills, and throat lozenges. Some antibiotics are sold without a prescription.

Eyeglasses cannot be made in Kigali, so bring an extra pair.

Dental care is below U.S. standards. All preventive dental work should be done before departing for Kigali. Dental emergencies require evacuation to Nairobi or London.

Community Health

Public sanitation is reasonably good. Drains in most European-type houses are adequate; main streets are cleaned periodically, and trash and garbage are collected though irregularly.

Insects abound and learning to live with them is the best strategy. Geckos, a useful, silent, insect-eating lizard, are found in every home, usually inhabiting the upper reaches of house walls. Poisonous snakes are not a major health hazard. Rabies is prevalent; it is advised that you receive immunization against rabies.

Rwanda's temperate climate is generally healthful, but dust and pollen aggravate throat or respiratory ailments during the dry season. Allergies may be exacerbated due to mold and dampness during the rainy season.

Preventive Measures

Most hazards to your health encountered during your tour in Rwanda can be avoided by being vigilant and by taking a few necessary precautions. Malaria, AIDS, dysentery, bilharzia, and hepatitis can be either avoided completely or your risk greatly reduced by using the appropriate method of prophylaxis. Food preparation, well-cooked meat, water purification, inoculations, repellents, mosquito nets, and appropriate behavior all reduce the risk to your health.

In addition to those mentioned above, diseases endemic to Rwanda include tuberculosis, cholera, and leprosy. Also prevalent are venereal, alimentary tract, parasitic, respiratory, and childhood infectious diseases. Outbreaks of meningitis occur in the rural areas and several cases of "sleeping sickness" are reported each year. Cantaride, known in East Africa as "Nairobi Eye," is a common seasonal skin infection caused by a thin green and orange striped insect. First and second degree burns can occur from contact with the bug.

Recommended inoculations include yellow fever, Hepatitis A & B, typhoid, MMR, tetanus, anti-rabies, and polio. Anti-malaria prophylaxis should be taken.

NOTES FOR TRAVELERS

Passage, Customs and Duties

A passport and evidence of yellow fever immunization are required. Visas are not required for American citizens entering Rwanda for less than 90 days. U.S. citizens planning on working in Rwanda should apply for a work permit at the Department of Immigration as soon as possible after arrival in Rwanda. Detailed entry information may be obtained from the Embassy of the Republic of Rwanda, 1714 New Hampshire Avenue, N.W., Washington D.C. 20009, telephone 202-232-2882, fax 202-232-4544, Internet site: http://www.rwandaemb.org/ rwanda/. Overseas, inquiries may be made at the nearest Rwandan embassy or consulate.

Travelers who wish to travel to the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) with visas and/or entry/exit stamps from Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda or Zimbabwe may experience difficulties at the DRC airport or other ports of entry. Some travelers with those visas or exit/entry stamps have been detained for questioning in the DRC.

Direct flights from Europe to Kigali arrive from Brussels, or via Entebbe or Nairobi. Travelers from the U.S. may take an overnight rest stop.

Make reservations well in advance and reconfirm them; check-in early since flights are frequently over booked.

The airport embarkation fee is $20 per person.

Airfreight from the U.S. can arrive within 3 weeks, but delays are common. Surface shipments are normally routed through Antwerp, Belgium and airlifted from there to Kigali. Transit time from the U.S. to Antwerp is 8 to 12 weeks, but may be longer.

Private vehicles driven to Rwanda must be declared at the border; importation formalities are arranged later in Kigali.

U.S. citizens who plan to travel to Rwanda are urged to register with the U.S. Embassy and to obtain updated information on travel and security in Rwanda. The U.S. Embassy is located at Boulevard de La Revolution; the mailing address is B.P. 28, Kigali, Rwanda, telephone 250-05601/05602/05603, fax 250-502128; e-mail address is amembkigali@hotmail.com. The Embassy's Internet web site is http://www.usembkigali.net

Pets

Pets are not quarantined, but dogs must have proof of rabies vaccinations and a veterinarian's certificate showing origin and health. The above is not required for cats, but is recommended. At present, veterinary service is good; however, many pet supplies are not available, so bring a supply of flea and tick repellent, heart-worm medicine, and pet food.

Firearms and Ammunition

Weapons imported into Rwanda must be registered and approved before they enter the country or turned over to Customs once they are brought into the country (thus requiring a separate packing crate) until they are registered and approved.

Currency, Banking, and Weights and Measures

The Rwandan franc (FRW) is tied to the SDR and fluctuates as the SDR fluctuates. As of June, 1998, FRW 307=US__BODY__.

The two commercial banks are the Banque Commerciale du Rwanda and the Banque de Kigali. At these banks, Americans can have a personal checking account in Rwandan francs and buy U.S. dollar traveler's checks

The metric system is used throughout the country.

Disaster Preparedness

In 2002, Rwanda experienced the eruption of Mount Nyiragongo which lies across the border in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Tremors were felt throughout Rwanda, including in the capital, Kigali. Seismic activity is unpredictable and infrequent, but American citizens should be aware of the possibility of earthquakes. General information about natural disaster preparedness is available via the Internet from the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) at http://www.fema.gov/.

LOCAL HOLIDAYS

Jan. 1 …New Year's Day

April 7 …National Mourning Day

Mar/Apr. … Easter^*

Mar/Apr. … Easter Monday^*

May 1…Labor Day

July 1 …National Day

July 4 …Independence Day

July 5 …Peace & Unity Day

Aug. 15…Assumption Day

Sept. 25 …Kamarampaka Day

Oct. 26 …Armed Forces Day

Nov. 1 …All Saints' Day

Dec. 25 …Christmas Day

…Ramadan^*

…Id al-Fitr^*

^*variable