Rural Settlement in Rwanda: An assessment of land management and livelihoods.

Residential land in Rwanda is scarce due to hilly terrain, a high population and a focus on agricultural growth to address food security concerns. The situation worsened following the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, which led to extensive destruction of houses and infrastructure, leading to thousands of Rwandans becoming homeless. To address these concerns, the government embarked upon a resettlement programme to regroup people into planned residential areas, ‘imidugudu’, the aim of which is to provide improved quality of life for the population through the provision of basic needs. This study seeks to understand some of the issues faced by imidugudu residents. The study finds that local authorities and residents generally view the programme positively, but that residents have a strong sense of reliance on the government and other stakeholders to supply what is needed to improve livelihoods, rather than to take ownership for improving their own situations. In this regard, there is a need to encourage developing resilience and a more independent outlook among imidugudu residents.