Time Difference:
UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Airports:
4
Travel Climate:
Despite Rwanda’s location of only two degrees below the equator, the altitude provides a mild, temperate climate for most parts of the country. The average 24-hour temperature in Kigali is 73° F. The higher reaches above 14,700 feet might even experience frost and snow.
Two rainy seasons generally occur from February through May, and from September through December; but variations do occur. The rains can be torrential, although brief, and sometimes are accompanied by strong winds and lightning. Annual rainfall averages 31 inches and is generally heavier in the western and northwestern mountains than in the eastern savanna.
The long dry summer season from May to September turns the hills around Kigali a reddish ochre, fine dust is everywhere, and the grass dries up.
Travel Currency:
Rwandan franc (RWF)
Languages:
Kinyarwanda (official) universal Bantu vernacular, French (official), English (official), Kiswahili (Swahili) used in commercial centers
Ethnic Groups:
Hutu 84%, Tutsi 15%, Twa (Pygmoid) 1%
National Holiday:
Independence Day, 1 July (1962)
Geographic Coordinates:
2 00 S, 30 00 E
Location:
Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo