Ruhehe is a large village and colline of the Commune of Bugabira , in the Kirundo Province of Burundi.
22-545: Ruhehe is roughly in the center of Bugabira Commune in the road leading north from Bugabira in Kirundo Commune to Kiyonza in the north of Bugabira Commune. It is northeast of Lake Gacamirindi . By 2010 a severe drought in northern Burundi had lasted for three years. On the Ruhehe colline there was a market called the "Cabaret d'eau" that sold water at $ 2 for 20 litres (4.4 imp gal; 5.3 US gal), five times
44-566: A 63 kilometres (39 mi) stretch of the river, with the swamp reaching 6 to 10 kilometres (3.7 to 6.2 mi) up the valleys of tributaries. The upstream part of the river basin has average annual rainfall of about 1,200 millimetres (47 in). Average annual rainfall in the wetlands is about 800 millimetres (31 in). The climate of Rwanda is determined by the Intertropical Convergence Zone , which creates two rainy seasons. One lasts from mid-September to mid-December and
66-446: A grass in the rice genus. Nearer to the shore is a combination of Typha australis , Miscanthidium violaceum , Cladium jamaicense with some papyrus . Cyperus denudatus , Cyperus latifolius and Echinochloa pyramidalis are also found in some parts. Other parts have pure stands of papyrus. The swamp forest near the river is dominated by Bridelia micrantha , Ficus verruculosa , Myrica kandtiana and Phoenix reclinata . Further from
88-471: A major headwater, rises at an elevation of 2,450 metres (8,040 ft) in Burundi. The river has sources at about 2,300 metres (7,500 ft) elevation in the south of Rwanda. Many of the valleys of the higher tributaries are choked by papyrus, which contains seasonal swamp forests. The upstream portion of the river has a catchment area of about 2,650 square kilometres (1,020 sq mi). The lower course of
110-636: A population of 89,259, mostly employed in agriculture. Cash crops are over 70% wheat and about 20% teff , with crops such as finger millet , peanut and sweet potato making up the rest. Farm livestock include about 60% goats, 25% cattle, under 10% hens and small percentages of horses, pigs and donkeys. In 2019 a study of 1286 children in Kabore, Bugabira and Gisuna with average age of 4.8 years measured International Development and Early Learning Assessment (IDELA) scores. Total scores were 30%, with motor scores highest and emergent literacy scores lowest. In 2012
132-529: A project to develop schools in Ruhehe and other locations noted that a rainwater collection system would be needed at the Ruhehe school because it is unusual to have a public drinking water supply in the region, and even if available the network would not supply water. The site of the school is 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) from the capital of Bugabira commune, and is owned by the commune. It would include six classrooms, an administrative block, two blocks of drainable latrines and rainwater sanitation works. In April 2021
154-650: A very narrow belt around this pond, separating the crops and the water. Lake Gitamo empties into a marshy corridor that leads from Lake Rwihinda and Lake Narungazi to the Akanyaru River . It is south of Lake Gacamirindi , which also drains to the Akanyaru River. Ruhehe is to the north-northwest. Lake Gitamo covers 21 hectares (52 acres). Bugabira commune is divided into the collines of Kiri, Kiyonza, Gaturanda, Rubuga, Kigina, Nyakarama, Nyamabuye, Nyabikenke, Rugasa, Gitwe and Kigoma. The 2008 census reported
176-449: Is bordered by Rwanda to the northwest and northeast, by the Commune of Ntega to the southeast and by the Commune of Kirundo to the southwest. It has an area of 235 square kilometres (91 sq mi). It had a population of 628,256 as of the 2008 census. Elevations in the commune range are from 1,000 to 1,500 metres (3,300 to 4,900 ft) above sea level. Ferralitic lithosols in
198-428: Is irregular and has been diminishing, causing shallow water sources to dry up and agricultural production output to fall. Bugabira is surrounded by Lake Gacamirinda , Kanyaru River and Lake Cohoha . However, there is poor access to drinking water. Other lakes include Lake Narungazi and Lake Gitamo . Lake Gacamirindi covers an area of 250 hectares (620 acres), and is set between hills with fairly steep slopes. It
220-493: Is surrounded by the densely populated collines of Kiri and Nyakarama. In the past the lake merged into a marshy area beside the Akanyaru River . Now banana and sorghum are cultivated both upstream and downstream of the lake. Lake Gacamirindi would normally be fed by the waters of the Akanyaru river, but as of 2011 was separated from this river by farmland and had become a small pond of a few hectares. Typha domingensis forms
242-438: Is the vulnerable papyrus yellow warbler . The sitatunga , an antelope, is found in the swamps. The valley is not protected, and much of the land that is only flooded seasonally is cultivated at other times of the year. The local people also engage in fishing in the river and swamps. The wetlands are increasingly being used for agriculture. In the dry season the local people cut and burn the marsh vegetation, steadily destroying
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#1732937304418264-590: The Global Water Partnership Eastern Africa gathered data related to drought in Rubuga, Kigina, and Gaturanda in Bugabira commune. In 2021 and again in 2022 dozens of collines in the Bugabira, Busoni , Kirundo and Ntega communes of Kirundo experienced a shortage of rain during the period when the bean, corn and sorghum crops were flowering and ripening, affecting over 200,000 people. Many men left
286-707: The Imbonerakure, youth branch of the National Council for the Defense of Democracy – Forces for the Defense of Democracy (CNDD-FDD), came together to repair the road leading from Bugabira to Ruhehe under the Community Development Work (TDC) program. Bugabira Commune The commune of Bugabira is a commune of Kirundo Province in northern Burundi . The capital is Bugabira . There are health centers at Muyange and Ruhehe . The Commune of Bugabira
308-433: The affected areas in search of work, leaving the elderly, disabled, women and children behind. A March 2021 report on the environmental and social impact of a project to develop schools in Ruhehe and other locations noted that a rainwater collection system would be needed at Ruhehe because it is unusual to have a public drinking water supply in the region, and even if available the network would not supply water. The site of
330-480: The area are acidic, partly weathered and general low in fertility. The lower valleys have organosols with higher fertility. The Köppen climate classification is Aw: Tropical savanna, wet. Mean annual temperature is 20.5 °C (68.9 °F). There is sparse forest cover. Between 2001 and 2023 Bugabira commune lost 29 hectares (72 acres) of tree cover, 1.7% of the tree cover that was present in 2000. Rainfall of 800 to 1,200 millimetres (31 to 47 in) per year
352-597: The border with Rwanda , to ask the people not to stir up problems over refugees. [2] Akanyaru River The Akanyaru River is the main tributary of the Nyabarongo River . It rises in the western highlands of Rwanda and Burundi , flows east and then north along the border between those countries before joining the Nyabarongo River. The lower stretches contain important but unprotected wetlands, which are under threat from human activity. The Mugere River ,
374-729: The habitat. In October 2005 Charles Karangwa, the Butare Director for Economic Affairs, said the people should increase their use of the Akanyaru wetland for crops, particularly maize. In February 2011 the Minister of Lands and Environment told the people of the Gisagara District to make better use of the Akanyaru swamp, with more modern farming methods. According to Minister Kamanzi the Nile Basin Initiative Cooperative Framework did not debar use. He said, "There
396-408: The normal price. The water was carried to the market on bicycles. Those who could not afford it had to make do with unsanitary lake water, often not boiled because of the high price of firewood. There is a health center in Ruhehe. Solar panels, with storage and an AC convertor, supply power for lights, medical equipment and refrigeration. A March 2021 report on the environmental and social impact of
418-463: The other from March to May. Climate change may be increasing the severity of both floods and droughts. In the 1997-98 El Nino episode a large number of agricultural plantations in the shallows and swamps of the Nyabarongo and Akanyaru river basins were destroyed. Beside the open channels the main plants are Pistia stratiotes (water cabbage), Leersia hexandra (southern cutgrass) and Oryza barthii ,
440-411: The river common species include Acacia polyacantha and Albizia gummifera . The marshland is an area of great biodiversity, particularly of birdlife. There are records of at least 54 bird species with wetland habitats in the swamp region. These include migrant Malagasy pond heron , pallid harrier and great snipe . Lesser kestrel have been seen. The near-threatened papyrus gonolek is present as
462-455: The river is a belt of permanent wetlands about 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) wide that ends where it reaches the Nyabarongo River. In this 80 kilometres (50 mi) stretch the river drops from an elevation of 1,465 metres (4,806 ft) to 1,400 metres (4,600 ft). The swamp belt is fed from the right by lakes Cyohoha North and Cyohoha South . The Burundi side of the swamp belt has about 14,600 hectares (36,000 acres) of permanent swamp along
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#1732937304418484-642: The school is 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) from the capital of Bugabira commune, and is owned by the commune. It would include six classrooms, an administrative block, two blocks of drainable latrines and rainwater sanitation works. In 2023 Bugabira municipality issued a call for tenders for extension of the Gaturanda health center. [1] . In August 2014 six houses were burned in Bugabira commune, including five in Gaturanda and one in Kigoma. In April 2016 Gaston Sindimwo , Vice-President of Burundi, visited Gaturanda, which lies on
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