Gitega Province

Gitega Province
Province
View of Mushasha suburb in Gitega
Map showing location of Gitega Province in Burundi
Coordinates: 3°28′10″S 29°57′25″E / 3.46944°S 29.95694°E / -3.46944; 29.95694Coordinates: 3°28′10″S 29°57′25″E / 3.46944°S 29.95694°E / -3.46944; 29.95694
Country	Burundi
Capital	Gitega
Area
• Total	1,978.96 km2 (764.08 sq mi)
Population (2008 census)
• Total	725,223
• Density	370/km2 (950/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+01)
Communes	11

Gitega is one of the 17 provinces of Burundi. Its capital is Gitega. It has a population of 725,223 as of 2008 and an area of 1,979 square kilometres (764 sq mi).

After Burundi attained full independence on 1 July 1962, there was a military coup d'état in which the king was overthrown and monarchy disbanded in 1966. When King Ntare V tried to reinstate his kingdom, he was assassinated in 1972 at the Royal Palace of Gitega.

On 26 April 1996, army attacks at Buhoro killed some 230 civilians. On 21 October, some 70 Tutsi students were burnt alive at Kibimba. In March 2007, President Pierre Nkurunziza announced that Burundi had plans to transfer the capital from Bujumbura to Gitega. According to him, the central location of the city makes it "an ideal place to better serve the majority of the population".

Gitega Province is located in central Burundi. It has an area of 1,979 square kilometres (764 sq mi) and has a population density of 366.5 individuals per square kilometre. Gitega is a central highland province along with Kayanza and Muramvya.

Gitega Province is divided administratively into 11 communes:

Gitega Province is one of the seventeen provinces of Burundi and Gitega is its capital city. The province has a population of 725,223 and the Gitega Commune the largest population of 155,005; the least populous commune is Ryansoro with a population of 35,835. Gitega city had a population of 20,700 in 1990. As of June 2000, 21,350 people were located in internally displaced persons (IDP) camps, housed in 16 settlements within the province.

The climatic condition in Giteag the capital of the province is moderate with an average annual high of 18 degrees c 18 °C (64 °F) and a low of 12 °C (54 °F). The average annual rainfall is 720 millimetres (28 in).

Burundi is diversifying from the main economic activities of agriculture and livestock farming. One such micro project is in the fisheries sector in Gitega. In 1999, the Dushirehamwe fish farm association was established in the province with 23 men and women. In 2002, they received a grant from Africare. After the success of the first fish farm under the grant, the association successfully launched a second project with its own funds in 2003. Africare has also supported measures to strengthen civil society organizations. While the principal hospital in the province is Gitega Hospital in Gitega City, the only state-run rehabilitation center for landmine victims is located in the province. The principal airport is Gitega Airport (IATA: GID, ICAO: HBBE) which has an elevation of 1,750 metres (5,740 ft) with a runway of 1,000 metres (3,300 ft).