Population Declines and Land Use Management in Rwanda
Population Declines and Land Use Management in Rwanda

Summary/Abstract: Rwanda, like several other sub­ ‑Saharan African (SSA) countries, experienced a populationboom following the Tutsi genocide of 1994. However, the growing population exacerbatedthe impact of human activities, such as deforestation, on the environment. The purpose ofthis study is to examine the impact of population decline on land use management, focussingparticularly on the issues faced by the inhabitants of Rwanda’s Jali and Kigali mountains.Population decline was recognised as the main contributing factor to land use management,so the government policy of relocating people from the Jali and Kigali mountains, as wellas the literature, identified many issues, such as settlement in high­ ‑risk locations, areas ofdegradation and general environmental issues, which have been analysed in this paper. Dueto lack of sufficient research on the topic, this study uses quantitative questionnaires involving1,000 households. Moreover, a mixed methods (qualitative and quantitative) approach hasbeen employed for a better understanding of phonemes and to help governments developbetter environmental policies in the future. It also provides some suggestions for futureresearch on the issues and proposes recommendations for interventions.

• Details
• Contents