Relief in Rwanda
Senior 2 · Geography and Environment
Relief in Rwanda
Lesson 3 of 3
20 min
Why is tea grown on the high ridge above Lake Kivu but not in Nyagatare? Why do tourists fly in to Musanze, and why do cattle dominate the east? The answer to each is partly relief. Relief controls temperature, rainfall, soils and how easy it is to build roads, so it shapes what people do with the land. This lesson links each relief region to its land use, and weighs the advantages and disadvantages of Rwanda's relief.
| Region | Main land uses | Why the relief favours them |
|---|---|---|
| Kivu shores and Bugarama plain | Fishing; lake transport; beach tourism at Rubavu and Karongi; methane gas for electricity; rice in the Bugarama plain; cement making at Bugarama | A large, deep rift lake; a flat, warm alluvial plain; limestone in the plain |
| Congo–Nile Ridge | Tea estates; protected forests (Nyungwe National Park, Gishwati-Mukura); tourism; mining in places | High, cool and wet, with acidic soils that suit tea; slopes too steep for most crops are kept as forest |
| Volcanic region and northern highlands | Irish potatoes, pyrethrum, beans, vegetables; dairy; gorilla tourism in Volcanoes National Park; hydropower | Fertile volcanic soils and a cool climate; forested volcanoes are the gorillas' habitat; lava-dammed lakes and steep falls feed power stations |
| Central Plateau | Dense settlement; mixed farming of bananas, beans, cassava and sorghum; coffee; rice and vegetables in drained valley marshes; Kigali's industry and services | Moderate height and rainfall; hills for homes and crops, flat valley floors for rice |
| Eastern plateaus and lowlands | Cattle keeping and dairy; maize, beans and bananas; irrigation schemes; Akagera National Park; lake fishing | Gentle slopes and wide spaces suit grazing and machines; lower rainfall suits pasture; savanna supports large wildlife |
A company wants land for a large, mechanised maize farm. Should it choose Nyabihu (volcanic highlands) or Nyagatare (eastern lowlands)? Justify your choice.
Judgement: Nyagatare, because mechanised farming depends above all on large, gentle fields, and the erosion risk in Nyabihu would be severe. Nyabihu's fertile soils are better used for high-value crops such as potatoes on small, terraced plots.
Tip
Exam technique. Every land-use answer needs the word because: "Tea is grown on the Congo–Nile Ridge because it is cool and wet with acidic soils." Naming the crop without the reason earns half the marks.
Solution: it has fertile volcanic soils and a cool climate, which potatoes need.
Solution: its slopes are very steep, so clearing them for annual crops would cause severe erosion; tea and forest protect the soil.
Solution: roads must wind around hills (longer and costlier); landslides block roads; many bridges and retaining walls are needed; railways are hard to build.
Solution: gentle slopes and wider spaces with lower rainfall suit grassland and grazing.
Summary
Sources and credits
Written by Ganzaa.
