Project area

Project area

Basin population/Food security/basin land area
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The Kagera river basin covers an area of 59,700 km2, distributed between Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania. It flows into Lake Victoria, the largest fresh water body in Africa. The natural resources of the Kagera river basin support the livelihoods of some 16.5 million people, the majority rural and depending directly on farming, herding and fishing activities. These natural resources face increasing pressure as a result of population growth, intensification of agriculture and livestock activities and unsustainable land management practices.

The basin’s land, freshwater and its associated biodiversity are threatened by declining productivity of cropland, rangeland and forests. The situation is exacerbated as most of the people are very poor and they are unable to invest in improved resources management. Refugee movements in recent decades have further increased pressures on resources in the basin, raising actual and potential conflicts between interest groups and across countries. The highly variable biophysical conditions and varied land use-livelihood systems developed by different socio-economic and cultural groups has led to the conservation and development of characteristic highly adapted species and high within-species diversity in the Kagera basin.

The agro-ecosystems and biodiversity heritage are increasingly threatened by the overexploitation of resources and resulting degradation which are influenced by the transboundary nature of the basin. There has been neglect of the importance of agro-biodiversity and the ecological functions to which it contributes. Existing local knowledge does not encompass how to cope under such changed circumstances, nor in response to insidious, unprecedented environmental changes.

Country district of the Kagera watershed

Map of the Kagera basin and TAMP project areas
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Burundi:

Provinces of Muramvya, Mwaro, Karuzi, Gitega et Kirundo.

Rwanda:

Districts of Nyagatare, Kayonza, Kirehe, Bugesera (Eastern Province), Kamonyi (Southern Province), Rulindo (Northern Province).

Tanzania:

Districts of Bukoba, Karagwe, Ngara, and Missenye (Kagera Region).

Uganda:

Districts of Kabale, Ntungamo, Isingiro and Rakai (and possibly parts of Mbarara and Kiruhura now outside the basin).