Farming Systems in Africa: The Great Lakes Highlands of Zaire, Rwanda, and Burundi

This agroclimatic zone--equatorial, yet temperate and well-watered--has a population of 12 million people and covers an area of 93,000 km2 in three countries: Burundi, Rwanda, and Zaire. At 130/km2, population density is high for Africa. The population is almost entirely rural; agriculture and livestock raising are virtually the only economic activities. As a consequence, farms are small. Farming is, for Africa, quite intensive. This population density and this intensivity of land use are recent developments resulting from rapid population growth. They are coupled with extreme economic isolation. This study, based largely on field interviews but also on a review of the zone's exceptionally poor data sources, makes a first attempt to describe farming systems in the region, which is broken into 11 models for this purpose. Evolution of farming practices and adaptation to changing conditions are analyzed. Then the study reviews and assesses a large number of farm-level system changes, most of them proposed by governments and development projects, but some which the mission observed farmers undertaking on their own initiative. The study's assessments lead to recommendations on soil conservation and enrichment measures.