User:SteveRwanda/Economy

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[edit] Economy and infrastructure

Main article: Economy of Rwanda

Rwanda's economy suffered heavily during the 1994 genocide, but has since strengthened, with per-capita GDP (PPP) estimated at US$1,600 in 2006,^[1] compared with just US$555 in 1995.^[2] Major export markets include China, Germany and the United States.^[1] The currency is the Rwandan franc and the economy is managed by the central National Bank of Rwanda, although Rwanda recently joined the East African Community and there are plans for a comnmon East African shilling, which could be in place by 2010.^[3]. Unemployment is not a major problem in Rwanda, but incomes are small and about 60% of the population was living below the poverty threshold in 2001.^[1] Since 1997, Cameroon has been following programmes advocated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to reduce poverty, privatise industries, and increase economic growth.^[4] Tourism is a growing sector, as the country's international image increases, with the mountain gorillas is perceived particularly in the coastal area, around Mount Cameroon, and in the north.^[5]

Coffee, such as this bag of Maraba Coffee, is one of Rwanda's major cash crops.

Rwanda is a country of few natural resources, and the economy is based mostly on semi-subsistence agriculture by local farmers using simple tools. The industrial sector is small and uncompetitive.^[6] An estimated 90% of the working population farms, and agriculture comprised an estimated 39.4% of GDP in 2006.^[1] Since the mid 1980s, farm sizes have and food production have been decreasing, due in part to the resettlement of displaced people.^[7][8] Thus despite Rwanda's fertile ecosystem, food production often does not keep pace with population growth, requiring food imports.^[1] Crops grown in the country include coffee, tea, pyrethrum, bananas, beans, sorghum and potatoes. Coffee and tea are the major cash crops for export, with the high altitudes, steep slopes and volcanic soils providing favourable conditions. in the western highlands, and in the north, natural conditions favour crops such as cotton, groundnuts, and rice. Reliance on agricultural exports makes Cameroon vulnerable to shifts in their prices.^[1]

A Fulani herder drives his cattle in northern Cameroon.

Livestock are raised throughout the country. Fishing employs some 5,000 people and provides 20,000 tons of seafood each year.^[9] Bushmeat, long a staple food for rural Cameroonians, is today a delicacy in the country's urban centres. The commercial bushmeat trade has now surpassed deforestation as the main threat to wildlife in Cameroon.^[10]

The southern rainforest has vast timber reserves, estimated to cover 37% of Cameroon's total land area.^[11] However, large areas of the forest are difficult to reach. Logging, largely handled by foreign-owned firms, provides the government US$60 million a year, and laws mandate the safe and sustainable exploitation of timber. Nevertheless, in practice, the industry is one of the least regulated in Cameroon.^[12][13]

A bush taxi attempts to pass a stalled logging vehicle on the road between Abong-Mbang and Lomié, East Province.

Factory-based industry accounted for an estimated 16.1% of GDP in 2006.^[1] More than 75% of Cameroon's industrial strength is located in Douala and Bonabéri.^[14] Cameroon possesses substantial mineral resources, but these are not extensively mined.^[4] Petroleum exploitation has fallen since 1985, but this is still a substantial sector such that dips in prices have a strong effect on the economy.^[15][1] Rapids and waterfalls obstruct the southern rivers, but these sites offer opportunities for hydroelectric development and supply most of Cameroon's energy.^[16] The Sanaga River powers the largest hydroelectric station, located at Edéa.^[17] The rest of Cameroon's energy comes from oil-powered thermal engines. Much of the country remains without reliable power supplies.^[18]

Transport in Cameroon is often difficult. Roads are poorly maintained^[19] and subject to inclement weather, since only 10% of the roadways are tarred.^[1] Roadblocks often serve little other purpose than to allow police and gendarmes to collect bribes from travellers.^[20] Road banditry has long hampered transport along the eastern and western borders, and since 2005, the problem has intensified in the east as the Central African Republic has further destabilised.^[21] Rail service runs from Kumba in the west to Bélabo in the east and north to Ngaoundéré. International airports are located in Douala and Garoua with a smaller facility at Yaoundé. The Wouri River estuary provides a harbour for Douala, the country's principal seaport. In the north, the Bénoué River is seasonally navigable from Garoua across into Nigeria.

Although press freedoms have improved since the early 2000s, the press is corrupt and beholden to special interests and political groups.^[22] Newspapers routinely self-censor to avoid government reprisals.^[23] The major radio and television stations are state-run,^[24] and other communications, such as land-based telephones and telegraphs, are largely under government control.^[25] However, cell phone networks and Internet providers have increased dramatically since the early 2000s^[26] and are largely unregulated.^[27]

[edit] References