BURUNDI: 10 Interesting Facts You Didn't Know
Credit: www.onhisowntrip.com
Burundi is a landlocked country found in the African Great Lakes region of East Africa. The country has a population of 12 million people and its capital is Bujumbura. Burundi is bordered by three countries and these include; Rwanda-North, Tanzania-East and Democratic Republic of The Congo-West. There's a lot that can be said about this beautiful East African country and in this blog, we share the 10 interesting facts about Burundi that you probably didn't know;
1. Beer is a Darling. Beer is an important part of the social culture in Burundi and this is one of the things that complement social interactions amongst Burundians. There's a traditional beer made out of bananas that is hugely consumed across the entire country. This beer is drunk using straws from a central pot and this and this is one of those best moments that the nationals get to enjoy when they're gathering.
2. Cows are part of the culture. In the Burundian (Kirundi) culture, cows are one of the assets that are treasured most. On the death of a cow in Burundi, the meat is eaten and the horns are planted in the ground near the owner's house of this particular cow and they believe this brings good luck to the family.
3. Olympic Gold. Burundi won its first Olympic Gold medal in 1996 becoming the poorest nation to ever win an Olympic Gold medal. Many thanks to long-distance track and field runner Venuste Niyongabo who the 5000m race beating people from many other wealthy nations to bring home the first Olympic Gold medal
4. First Elections. Another fact that you probably might want to know about this beautiful East African nation is the fact that the first elections in the country took place on Sept. 8, 1961. These were parliamentary elections that were meant to install the first government of the country and this happened as Burundi was preparing for its independence in 1962
5. Rural Nation. The majority of citizens or population in Burundi live in rural villages. The statistics show that 80% of Burundians live in the rural areas which are highly under developed. Going by these statistics, we must say a lot still has to be done in the country to basically improve the livelihoods of the citizens of Burundi
6. Official Languages. Kirundi, French and English are the official languages of the country. Burundi is one of those few homogeneous countries on the African continent with at least each and every citizen of the country understanding the Kirundi language. You might also be asking yourself why French is one of the official languages, but this was adopted from the Belgian colonial master of the country and also recently English was also added among the official languages because is also a member state to the East African Community (EAC)
7. Hilly Country. Another fact that you might want to know is that Burundi is a hilly and mountainous place. Because of this hilly terrain. If you visit the country and you're using the road transport, it might take you a bit longer to move from one point to another. This is simply because you have to go around these hills and mountains and also you need to consider the fact that the country doesn't have the best roads in the world
8. Second-Deepest lake. Burundi is home to the second-Deepest freshwater lake in the world and that's Lake Tanganyika. This lake is also shared by other countries that border Burundi and these include; Tanzania, DR. Congo and Zambia. The lake is a major source of livelihood to the people that fish in it and also other economic activities that go on around this lake
9. Brave Nation. You might also want to know the fact that in recent history, Burundi became the first African country in 2020 during the COVID-19 Pandemic to hold national presidential elections. This was a very brave move for the country as many people considered Burundi as one of those countries that wasn't prepared enough in terms of health facilities
10. Workouts are illegal. Now, this last fact might surprise you. Among the laws that govern the country, there's a total ban on group joggings or workouts. This was instituted in 2014 by the then president, the late Pierre Nkurunziza. He cited that these group joggings could result into subversive activities such as anti-government protests so this is the main reason these group joggings or workouts were abolished in the country
Well, those are the 10 Facts about Burundi a country found in the East African region on the African continent. You can let us know down in the comments section on which amongst these 10 facts surprised you most.
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