Urban Growth and Land Use/Land Cover Changes in the Post-Genocide Period, Kigali, Rwanda

Abstract

Kigali is a rapidly growing city, as exemplified by the phenomenal increase of its inhabitants from 358,200 in 1996 to 1,630,657 in 2017. Nevertheless, there is a paucity of detailed analytical information about the processes and factors driving unprecedented urban growth in the period following the genocide perpetrated against the Tutsi (1994) and its impact on the natural environment. This article, therefore, analyses the growth of the city of Kigali with respect to its post-genocide spatial and demographic dimensions. The methodology involves a quantification of urban growth over the period of the last 30 years using remote-sensing imagery coupled with demographic data drawn from different sources. The analysis of land cover trends shows how significant the pressure of urban expansion has been on the natural environment, with a 14 per cent decrease in open land between 1999 and 2018. Spatially, the average annual growth rate was almost 10.24 per cent during the same period. This growth is associated with the building of a large number of institutions, schools and industries. Moreover, the increase in low-income residents led to the construction of bungalows expanding on large suburbs and the development of new sub-centres in the periphery instead of high-rise apartments.

Traditional circular plan housing for rapidly urbanizing Rwanda

“…During the genocide against the Tutsi in 1994, many of the heritage buildings were places in which crimes took place, and many of the buildings were destroyed either during or after the events of the genocide. Following the beginning of the reconciliation process with the new government, a period of urbanization began [6]. Kigali is a rapidly growing city, as exemplified by the dramatic increase in its population from 358,200 in 1996 to 1,630,657 in 2017 [6].…”

“…Following the beginning of the reconciliation process with the new government, a period of urbanization began [6]. Kigali is a rapidly growing city, as exemplified by the dramatic increase in its population from 358,200 in 1996 to 1,630,657 in 2017 [6]. Outside Kigali, there are other rapidly growing towns as well, known as secondary cities, which were established to increase the urbanization rate of Rwanda [7,8].…”

Advocating for green building minimum compliance system in Rwanda: Using bricks to achieve sustainability

“…After World War I, for decades during the Belgian colonization period, Kigali spatially grew from 40 ha in 1916 to 200 ha in 1958 [1]. There are numerous brick buildings from the colonization period that still remain today, including Maternity Clinic CHUK, Kigali Central Prison, Cloister of the Bernardine Sisters in Kigali; Group Scolaire, Our Lady of Wisdom Cathedral, and the post office in Huye [3,4], to name a few.…”

“…The Government of Rwanda and stakeholders organized additional outreach events to promote the use of sustainable construction materials, especially brick, including "Urban Walk" [3,4]. In addition, awareness and capacity building programs on Green Building Minimum Compliance System were organized for government officials, Rwanda Institute of Architects, Institution of Engineers Rwanda, and other professionals, where the usage of bricks and various green building strategies has been stressed [37,38].…”

Modelling Expansion and Densification in Peri-urban Areas: The Case of Goba Ward, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

“…Moreover, there is an increasing concern that peri-urban expansion brings more challenges, particularly on the environment, such as the destruction and decline of ecosystem services, loss of green cover and open spaces, and increased pressure on natural resources such as water and land (Nduwayezu et al, 2021;Basse, 2014). Shao (2021) added that, peri-urban expansion has led to negative impacts such as diminished agricultural productivity due to loss of land, lack of hygiene and sanitation infrastructure, industrial effluence, air pollution, greenhouse emission, noise pollution, inadequate provision of basic services and infrastructure, and accumulated solid waste.…”