The Impact of Population Growth on Natural Forests in Rwanda
Abstract
Deforestation is a growing problem in many parts of the tropical world and one of the affected countries is Rwanda. The general objective of this study is to assess the effect of population growth on natural forest resource in Rwanda in general. Thus, this research focused on assessing the impact of population growth on natural forest of Rwanda. It critically examines how the population growth can impact natural forest. To achieve the set objectives, across sectional research design was combined with qualitative and quantitative approach. We collected secondary data from National Statistics Institute of Rwanda (NSIR), Ministry of Environment (MOE), Rwanda Environmental Management Authority (REMA), etc. The study adopted descriptive approaches in processing data. The findings show that above 45.27% of natural forests have been lost from 1984 to 2015 due to the high rate of population growth in Rwanda. As a recommendation, faced with a dense and rapidly increasing population on a fragile land resource, Rwanda must take steps towards transforming the economy and eliminating poverty through a Green Growth program. Family planning must be also adopted in reducing the impact of population growth on natural forestry preservation.
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Introduction
Deforestation is a growing problem in many parts of the tropical world and one of the affected countries is Rwanda. The population of Rwanda is 13,056,337 as of Saturday, October 31, 2020, based on Worldometer elaboration of the latest United Nations data. Rwanda has the most densely populated mainland African Country. In addition, the spread of poverty, the environmental degradation especially deforestation is due to local clearing of forest for their personal needs, such as for fuel and agriculture. Deforestation is indiscriminate cutting or overharvesting of trees for lumber or pulp, or to clear the land for agriculture, ranching, construction, or other human activities.
Forest is the resource that provides many benefits to the society. In addition to providing wood, forests provide a habitat for wild life, site for recreation, wildness, watershed protection and many other benefits. Forests worldwide are absorbing more CO2 from the air but they come up short when it comes to sucking up the vast amounts of CO2 emitted by humans into the atmosphere (Cross, 2019).
The impact of demographic changes on forests and the environment is often discussed in terms of biological carrying capacity, i.e. the maximum number of individuals that a resource can sustain. However, many factors influence carrying capacity, such as economic development, sociopolitical processes, and trade, technology, and consumption preferences (Bijendra, 2009).
Faced with a dense and rapidly increasing population on a fragile land resource, Rwanda had a steady increase in the population growth rate since 1960sdue to changes indifferent socioeconomic conditions in the world. So, where there is rapid population growth, environmental degradation cannot miss. For instance, according to Forest Investment Program for Rwanda, the natural forest cover of Rwanda was 429,728.47 Hain 1984 but has declined to 235,192.27 Ha in 2015. This means that over 45.27%of Natural forests in Rwanda have been lost.
Rapid population growth and the low economic standard of living in Rwanda have brought in their awake numerous consequences to land cover and use changes, change in climate and hydrological status in the country. In Rwanda studies have indicated that as there is agricultural land expansion at the expense of other land uses. Rwandan lands are fragile and forest, water and its biodiversity is climate dependent, which are still under stress due to population pressure and mismanagement of natural resources. The poverty stricken economy of Rwanda needed scientific management of its natural resources and balancing the population to cope up with the climate change and the challenges of the globalization of economy. Thus, there is a need to review the population and environment interrelation at the country level in order to suggest the means to minimize adverse effect of population pressure on environment.
The general objective of this study is to assess the effect of population growth on natural forests resource in Rwanda in general.
Conclusion
According to the Ministry of Environment (MOH), forests currently cover around 30 % (10.3 % natural and 19.7 % plantations) of the dry land area of the national territory. Forests are the major source of domestic cooking energy, with 86.3% of the Rwanda population using bio-fuels indifferent forms, wood and charcoal being the dominant ones (MOH, 2017).
Forests also provide the foundation for Rwanda’stourism opportunities, and also protect watersheds, downstream wetlands and support agriculture. However, due to dense and rapidly increasing population on a fragile land resource, forests have been threatened by deforestation and continuous degradation.
Forests in Rwanda continue to occupy a high-table position as a major resource providing multiple functions to the population’slivelihoods, supporting the equilibrium of the ecosystem and contributing to national socio-economic development.
Thus, sustainable management and use of natural resources and ecosystem services is well recognized as an important ingredient for sustained economic development and improvements inhuman welfare, and therefore is necessary for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Environmental assets, such as soil, water and biodiversity, yield income, offer safety nets for the poor, maintain public health and drive economic growth. Yet environmental sustainability goals are often seen as distinct from, and sometime in conflict with, development goals(KTH, 2016). The direct causes of land degradation are mainly deforestation, overgrazing and overcutting, shifting cultivation and agricultural mismanagement of soil and water resources: such as non-adoption of soil and water conservation practices, improper crop rotation, use of marginal land, insufficient and/or excessive use of fertilizers, mismanagement of irrigation schemes and over pumping of groundwater. The indirect causes of land degradation are mainly population increase, land shortage, short termor insecure land tenure and poverty and economic pressure (FAO, 2015).
The economic contribution of forest are associated with the production, consumption of goods and services, the supply of fuel wood, construction materials and timber come mainly from forest.
The rapid deforestation or the declining of forest accompanied by variety of other environmental problems is caused by agricultural expansion and wood gathering. The major factors contributing to deforestation are poverty, low level of income and population growth.
For this reason households have to depend on clouding for their fuel consumption and this is hampering the farmers from using organic manure as fertilizer for their already degraded farmlands. The wide range of topography has contributed to the presence of enormous biological and cultural diversity.
One of the solutions proposed to arrest forest degradation in certain area is to introduce the practices of participatory forest management by involving the local people. The result of this study reveals that population growth huge impact on forestry development in the ways of expanding agricultural land, using wood as energy sources and satisfying the input requirements in agricultural activity. We also recommend Rwandans to use family planning services in reducing the impact of population growth on the forestry development.
