About Rwanda
People and Culture
Nothing defines Rwandan culture better than the warm hospitality of its people, the thrill of the traditional Intore dancers and singers, and the ordinary people’s strong work ethnic and industriousness. No wonder that some have described Rwanda as the land of a million smiles.
Rwandan artists and craftsmen produce distinctive, high quality cravings, drawings, baskets and other decorations. These objects, to be found along the streets of Kigali or markets around the country, are the basis of a growing industry in cultural products. Rwandan crafts are already being marketed in Europe and the United States.
Language
The country has three official languages, namely Kinyarwanda, French and English. Swahili and other dialects from the region are also spoken, especially in major commercial centres.
Most Rwandans are multilingual or at least bilingual. There is also a small number of Rwandans fluent in Chinese who returned home after studying in the People’s Republic of China.
Population
9.3 million
Religion
Rwanda’s population is predominantly Christian, with
- 56.5% Roman Catholics
- 26% Protestants
- 11.1% Adventist
- 4.6% Muslim
- 0.1% Indigenous beliefs and
- 1.7% belonging to no religious denomination (2001 est.)
Education
With two-thirds of the population aged under 25 years, Rwanda is investing heavily in developing its human resource base. Education accounts for the largest portion of government spending. In the last fifteen years the number of primary schools has increased three fold while the number of universities has grown from one to twelve. Vocational training is receiving priority attention with new vocational training courses being established using expertise from Singapore.
Traditions of Rwanda
The earliest known inhabitants of Rwanda were pygmoid hunter-gatherers, ancestral to the modern Twa people who today comprise only 0.25% of the national population. Some 2,000 years ago, agricultural and pastoralist migrants from the west settled in the area. Oral traditions recall that prior to the 15th century a ruler named Gihanga forged a centralised Rwandan state with similar roots to the Buganda and Bunyoro Empires in neighbouring Uganda. Comprised of a cattle-owning nobility and agriculturist serfdom majority – the precursors respectively of the modern-day Tutsi and Hutu – this powerful state was able to repel all early attempts at European penetration.
Rwanda became a German colony following the 1885 Berlin Conference, although it would be full decade before a permanent German presence was established there. In 1918, Rwanda was mandated to Belgium, which implemented a system of indirect rule that exploited and intensified the existing divisions between Tutsi and Hutu.
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