Burundi: Fixed telephone subscriptions

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2023, Burundi's fixed telephone subscriptions fell 3.7% on 2022 (from 14,918 to 14,363).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1993 to 2022), the average change was +1.4% and a typical year strayed about 13.2% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.4 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 56.8% in 1984 and the biggest yearly fall was 42% in 2012. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2014 to 2023 the straight-line trend is downward, about 913.74 a year. A straight line explains 59% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2023, Burundi had the 17th highest value of the 20 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Burundi in the 2023 ranking

• Somalia, Fed. Rep. — 14th of 20: 55,005
• Curaçao — 15th of 20: 45,974
• Djibouti — 16th of 20: 28,673
• Comoros — 18th of 20: 8,823
• Madagascar — 19th of 20: 3,413
• South Sudan — 20th of 20: 0

What this measures

Fixed telephone subscriptions refers to the sum of active number of analogue fixed telephone lines, voice-over-IP (VoIP) subscriptions, fixed wireless local loop (WLL) subscriptions, ISDN voice-channel equivalents and fixed public payphones.

Limitations: Operators have traditionally been the main source of telecommunications data, so information on subscriptions has been widely available for most countries. This gives a general idea of access, but a more precise measure is the penetration rate - the share of households with access to telecommunications. During the past few years more information on information and communication technology use has become available from household and business surveys. Also important are data on actual use of telecommunications services. Ideally, statistics on telecommunications (and other information and communications technologies) should be compiled for all three measures: subscriptions, access, and use.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a sum.

All 55 values

Fixed telephone subscriptions in nearby economies

• Angola — 80,267 (2024)
• Benin — 1,350 (2024)
• Botswana — 83,182 (2024)
• Burkina Faso — 81,718 (2024)
• Cabo Verde — 61,294 (2024)
• Cameroon — 67,507 (2024)
• Central African Republic — 2,088 (2022)
• Chad — 0 (2024)
• Comoros — 8,823 (2023)
• Congo, Dem. Rep. — 0 (2024)
• Congo, Rep. — 17,604 (2022)

More infrastructure data for Burundi

• Fixed telephone subscriptions (per 100 people) — 0.1 (2023)
• Mobile cellular subscriptions — 8.65 million (2023)
• Mobile cellular subscriptions (per 100 people) — 63.16 (2023)
• Individuals using the Internet (% of population) — 8.6% (2024)
• Medium and high-tech exports (% manufactured exports) — 15.68% (2024)
• Scientific and technical journal articles — 36.26 (2023)
• ICT goods imports (% total goods imports) — 1.84% (2023)
• ICT goods exports (% of total goods exports) — 0.05% (2023)
• Patent applications, nonresidents — 1 (2023)
• Fixed broadband subscriptions

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Burundi's fixed telephone subscriptions?

14,363 in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1965?

It is up 925.93% from 1,400 in 1965 (4.1% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 34,972 in 2010 and the lowest 1,400 in 1965.

How does Burundi rank?

17th highest of 20 economies with data for 2023.

Is the latest change in fixed telephone subscriptions unusual for Burundi?

In 2023, Burundi's fixed telephone subscriptions fell 3.7% on 2022 (from 14,918 to 14,363). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1993 to 2022), the average change was +1.4% and a typical year strayed about 13.2% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.4 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator IT.MLT.MAIN, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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