Rwanda Environment - 2024

Environment - current issues

deforestation results from uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel; overgrazing; land degradation; soil erosion; a decline in soil fertility (soil exhaustion); wetland degradation and loss of biodiversity; widespread poaching

Environment - international agreements

party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea

Climate

temperate; two rainy seasons (February to April, November to January); mild in mountains with frost and snow possible

Land use

agricultural land: 74.5% (2018 est.)

arable land: 47% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 10.1% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 17.4% (2018 est.)

forest: 18% (2018 est.)

other: 7.5% (2018 est.)

Urbanization

urban population: 17.9% of total population (2023)

rate of urbanization: 3.07% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Revenue from forest resources

3.75% of GDP (2018 est.)

Revenue from coal

0% of GDP (2018 est.)

Air pollutants

particulate matter emissions: 35.66 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)

carbon dioxide emissions: 1.11 megatons (2016 est.)

methane emissions: 2.92 megatons (2020 est.)

Waste and recycling

municipal solid waste generated annually: 4,384,969 tons (2016 est.)

Major lakes (area sq km)

fresh water lake(s): Lake Kivu (shared with Democratic Republic of Congo) - 2,220 sq km

Major rivers (by length in km)

Nile river source (shared with Tanzania, Uganda, South Sudan, Sudan, and Egypt [m]) - 6,650 km
note – [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth

Major watersheds (area sq km)

Atlantic Ocean drainage: Congo (3,730,881 sq km), (Mediterranean Sea) Nile (3,254,853 sq km)

Total water withdrawal

municipal: 230 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

industrial: 10 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

agricultural: 360 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

Total renewable water resources

13.3 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)