Limited Resource

In many of my interviews with public officials, a common concept will eventually come up: In Rwanda, when you speak of land, you speak of agriculture. One cannot discuss land ownership without discussing agriculture. The country’s economy is heavily dominated by its agricultural sector, but with an already high population density and growing population, there isn’t any excess land lying about.

Hence the focus on land reform, and the need to be as productive as possible with every bit of land. Despite this, there are some areas of the country where the land remains unused. In contrast, there are some areas where the land appears to be used to its fullest possible extent.

One notices it almost instantly. As soon as you are outside Kigali, the landscape shifts to farmland. It seems that every inch of land is cultivated.



In several of the areas I've visited, the land is cultivated right up to the road, and houses are given only as much clearing as necessary.

Seeing this really underscores how crucial an effective and appropriate land policy is here.