Rwanda Geography - 2024

Location

Central Africa, east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, north of Burundi

Geographic coordinates

2 00 S, 30 00 E

Map references

Africa

Area

total: 26,338 sq km

land: 24,668 sq km

water: 1,670 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly smaller than Maryland

Area comparison map:

Land boundaries

total: 930 km

border countries (4): Burundi 315 km; Democratic Republic of the Congo 221 km; Tanzania 222 km; Uganda 172 km

Coastline

0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims

none (landlocked)

Climate

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

Terrain

mostly grassy uplands and hills; relief is mountainous with altitude declining from west to east

Elevation

highest point: Volcan Karisimbi 4,519 m

lowest point: Rusizi River 950 m

mean elevation: 1,598 m

Natural resources

gold, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore), methane, hydropower, arable land

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.)

Irrigated land

96 sq km (2012)

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)

Population distribution

one of Africa's most densely populated countries; large concentrations tend to be in the central regions and along the shore of Lake Kivu in the west as shown in this

Natural hazards

periodic droughts; the volcanic Virunga Mountains are in the northwest along the border with Democratic Republic of the Congo

volcanism: Visoke (3,711 m), located on the border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo, is the country's only historically active volcano

Geography - note

landlocked; most of the country is intensively cultivated and rugged with the population predominantly rural