Understanding Rwanda in Reference to Its Location
Senior 3 · History and Citizenship
Understanding Rwanda in Reference to Its Location
Lesson 1 of 3
20 min
Every place on Earth can be described in two ways: by its exact position on a grid of lines, and by what lies around it. Study the map.
Analysing the map. Rwanda lies just south of the Equator, roughly between latitudes 1°S and 3°S and longitudes 29°E and 31°E. More precisely, its territory runs from about 1.05°S to 2.84°S and from 28.86°E to 30.90°E. It shares borders with four countries and has no coast: the nearest sea is the Indian Ocean, more than 1,000 km to the east.
Definition
Absolute location: the exact position of a place, given by its latitude and longitude. Example: Kigali is at about 1°57′S, 30°04′E.
Relative location: the position of a place described in relation to other places. Example: Rwanda lies between Lake Kivu and Lake Victoria, south of Uganda.
Latitude: distance north or south of the Equator, in degrees. Longitude: distance east or west of the Prime Meridian at Greenwich, in degrees.
Region: a group of neighbouring countries that share features, such as East Africa or the Great Lakes region.
Identity: the sense of who you are and where you belong, shaped by your family, community, nation and region.
| Feature | Fact | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Hemisphere | Southern and eastern hemispheres, just south of the Equator | Two rainy seasons and two dry seasons; altitude keeps the climate mild |
| Neighbours | Uganda (north), Tanzania (east), Burundi (south), DR Congo (west) | Trade, culture and security are shared with four countries |
| Area | 26,338 km² | One of the smallest countries in mainland Africa |
| Coast | None: Rwanda is landlocked | Sea trade passes through Kenya or Tanzania (Lesson 2) |
| Regions | East Africa, the African Great Lakes region, the heart of the continent | Rwanda belongs to several regional organisations at once (Lesson 3) |
| Time zone | Central Africa Time, two hours ahead of Greenwich (UTC+2) | One hour behind Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania (UTC+3) |
Where you live shapes who you are. A pupil in Rubavu belongs to a family and a village (umudugudu), to a district, to Rwanda, to East Africa, to Africa and to the world, all at once. The diagram shows these circles of belonging.
Worked example: absolute and relative location
Question: Describe the location of Rwanda using (a) absolute location and (b) relative location. (4 marks)
(a) Rwanda lies between about 1°S and 3°S and between about 29°E and 31°E, just south of the Equator. (2 marks)
(b) It is a landlocked country in East Africa, bordered by Uganda to the north, Tanzania to the east, Burundi to the south and the DR Congo to the west, with Lake Kivu on its western border. (2 marks)
Which circle of belonging is most important to you, and why? Is it possible to be a proud Rwandan and a proud East African at the same time?
Tip
Latitude comes first. When giving a position, write latitude before longitude, and always say N or S and E or W: "1°57′S, 30°04′E". A position without the letters is wrong, because 30°E and 30°W are on different continents.
Practice
Sources and credits
This lesson adapts CC BY-SA material and is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
