May 30 (Reuters) - The exiled leader of Burundi's last rebel group returned to the capital Bujumbura on Friday to begin implementing a stalled deal seen as the last obstacle to peace in the tiny central African country. Agathon Rwasa, leader of the Forces for National Liberation (FNL), arrived at Bujumbura airport in what Burundians and diplomats hope will clear the way for the government to work toward turning a moribund economy around. Here are some key facts about Burundi: GEOGRAPHY: The Republic of Burundi which has a population of around 8 million, is a country in the Great Lakes region of Africa on the shores of Lake Tanganyika. ETHNIC GROUPS: Hutu are 86 percent, Tutsi 13 percent, Twa pygmies 1 percent. RELIGION: Christianity 67 percent, traditional African religions 32 percent, Islam 1 percent. ECONOMY: According to the United Nations, 58.4 percent of the population lives on less than $1 a day. Coffee and tea are its major exports. GDP: $901 million (2007) Annual GDP growth: 3.5 percent (2007) Inflation 7 percent (2007). IMF projects 6 percent in 2008. * WHAT HAS HAPPENED: -- A former Belgian colony, Burundi won independence in 1962. A series of military rulers from the Tutsi minority dominated the country's political and economic spheres until elections in 1993. -- Oct 1993 - Tutsi soldiers assassinate democratically elected Melchior Ndadaye, the first president to come from the majority Hutu tribe. Hutus massacre Tutsis, and the army begins reprisal attacks that set off a civil war that kills at least 300,000 over the next decade. -- July 1996 - Major Pierre Buyoya, a Tutsi military officer, seizes power in his second successful coup. -- 2000 - Most of Burundi's factions sign deal in Tanzania heralding a three-year transition to power-sharing between Hutus and Tutsis. The deal is not signed by the main Hutu rebel groups, Forces for the Defence of Democracy (FDD) and Forces for National Liberation (FNL). -- Nov 2001 - Transitional government headed by Buyoya as president, and Hutu Domitien Ndayizeye as his deputy, is sworn in. The two to switch jobs in 18 months. -- April 2003 - Ndayizeye becomes president. In November the FDD agrees to join the government but the FNL denounces the deal and continues to attack civilians and military personnel. -- May 2005 - Ndayizeye and FNL's Rwasa sign truce after their first face-to-face talks, in Tanzania. It is broken within days. -- Aug. 2005 - Lawmakers elect a new president, Pierre Nkurunziza for a five-year term. He is a former guerrilla leader of the ethnically Hutu FDD faction that won democratic elections for parliament. Sept. 7, 2006 - FNL and government sign a full ceasefire after talks in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, but it stalls over implementation and erratic fighting breaks out. May 30, 2008 - Rwasa returns to Burundi from Tanzania to start implementing the 2006 ceasefire. Sources: Reuters; International Monetary Fund: http://www.imf.org/ (For full Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues, visit: http://africa.reuters.com/ ) (Writing by Bryson Hull in Nairobi; Editing by Mary Gabriel)
Children look at the wreckage of a derailed freight train along the Kenya-Uganda railway line in Nairobi's Kibera slums, May 6, 2008. Kenya is east Africa's biggest economy and the gateway ...
