Rwanda

Note d’Analyse – Conflits fonciers liés au climat au Rwanda : Défis, risques et opportunités pour la paix

Le changement climatique et la croissance rapide de la population ont un impact sur la disponibilité des terres agricoles au Rwanda et sur l’augmentation des conflits liés à l’utilisation et à la propriété des terres, en particulier lorsqu’ils sont associés à une insatisfaction à l’égard des politiques gouvernementales. Cependant, les investissements du gouvernement rwandais, le réseau d’organisations de la société civile rwandaise et l’intérêt international croissant pour l’adaptation au changement climatique constituent des opportunités de prévention et d’atténuation de conflits fonciers. Search for Common Ground (Search) a réuni des universitaires et des praticiens de la consolidation de la paix et des décideurs à Kigali en novembre 2021 pour examiner les opportunités d’aborder les enjeux émergents à l’intersection des terres, du climat et des conflits. Les participants se sont tous accordés sur la nécessité de développer des réponses et des mesures d’adaptation inclusives, participatives et durables aux enjeux du changement climatique qui tiennent compte de la dynamique des conflits fonciers au Rwanda.

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Issue Brief – Climate-Driven Land Conflict in Rwanda: Challenges, Risks, and Opportunities for Peace – April 2022

CRN003 – Amplifying the Expertise of African Peacebuilding Practitioners and Scholars.

The changing climate and rapid population growth are impacting the availability of farmland in Rwanda and an increase in conflicts over land use and ownership, especially when coupled with dissatisfaction over government policies. However, investments by the government of Rwanda, Rwanda’s network of civil society organizations, and a growing international focus on climate change adaptation present opportunities to prevent and mitigate conflicts over land. Search for Common Ground convened academics and peacebuilding and policy practitioners in Kigali in November 2021 to examine opportunities to address emerging issues at the intersection of land, climate and conflict.

Participants strongly aligned around the need to develop inclusive, participatory, and sustainable responses and adaptation to climate change issues that consider the dynamics of conflict over land in Rwanda.

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“Ubufatanye Mu Miyoborere”: Advancing CSO-led Participatory Governance in Rwanda & Promoting Fiscal Transparency In Rwanda

Youth make up 40% of the Rwandan population, yet they continue to face major barriers to participation in decision-making, fiscal transparency, and budget processes. To address this barrier, Search developed and implemented two projects over the last three years (2018 – 2020). The first EU-sponsored project titled “Ubufatanye mu Miyoborere: Advancing CSO-led Participatory Governance in Rwanda” aimed to enhance the capacity and confidence of youth- and women-led CSOs to promote more inclusive, responsive, and transparent local-level governance. The second project “Promoting Fiscal Transparency in Rwanda” was funded by the US embassy and aimed to increase the engagement of CSOs and Rwandan citizens in fiscal and budget processes at the local level.

Both projects adopted a CSO-led and participatory approach during the implementation of Interventions, fostering trust, collaborative relationships, and active participation among project participants and local government authorities. The key project activities were the training of youth-led CSOs, youth researchers, and selected community radio stations as well as joint community activities, creating space for collaboration and a healthy relationship between local government authorities, youth-led CSOs, citizens, and community radio stations.

As a result of these two projects, both educated and uneducated youth have been equipped with significant skills and confidence to undertake research and advocacy on governance issues and budget processes in their communities while local government authorities have recognised the value of their active involvement.

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Supporting A Generation of Young Leaders

Through skills training, radio, and research support, we are helping youth organizations to connect with decision-makers and build healthy communities.

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Research on Cross Border Trade Between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda – November 2019

This publication was produced by Search for Common Ground, for review by the European Union Delegation in Rwanda. This study was made possible thanks to the financial support of the European Union delegation in Rwanda, and its content is the responsibility of Search for Common Ground, and does not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.

Cross-border trade (CBT) has been the foundational basis of the “survival economies” of landlocked communities in Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for decades. These economic exchanges are essential in reducing poverty and supporting livelihoods and serve as a means for cross-cultural interactions between the two communities. In addition, CBT plays a significant role in the national economies of the two countries. Search for Common Ground (Search), with the support of the European Union, conducted a research as part of the “Secure Cross Border Social Economic and Commercial Activities in the Great Lakes Region” project, which aims to increase the cross border trade and reduce social tensions between cross border communities in Rwanda and DRC.

The study reveals that most exported good from both countries are agricultural goods. Yet, Rwandan exports significantly surpass the volume of DRC exports. Petty traders on both sides of the border generate similar incomes with most traders earning “less than US $50 per week”. As women constitute the majority of small-scale cross-border traders in both Rwanda and DRC, there are particular gendered issues that affect their equal participation and protection while crossing the border with their goods. Additional barriers to CBT were also reported by a vast majority of traders, stating that they face regular challenges in their work, among which high taxes and corruption. When confronted with such challenges, traders on the Bukavu side overwhelmingly (65%) opted not to consult anyone, while their counterparts on the Rusizi II side mainly referred to the border police (51.3%).

In terms of knowledge of CBT policies and regulations, the majority of Congolese cross-border traders reported having an average level of knowledge of CBT policies and procedures, whereas the majority of the Rwandan traders reported having a poor knowledge of the same. This was particularly evident for taxation requirements, which leaves traders incredibly vulnerable to manipulation and double taxation. To avoid paying taxes, some traders opt to use informal routes. The avoidance of taxes (70.2%) was cited as the number one reason for traders to use informal routes, with transportation of fraudulent products
(20.6%) as the second.

Finally, findings from the research reveal a majority of CBT-related conflicts can be categorized into three types, dependent on the actors involved: (1) tensions between petty CB traders and border officials; (2) tensions among CB traders themselves, and CB traders and customers; and (3) tensions between traders from Rusizi II and from Bukavu across the border. Tensions with border officials on both sides were overwhelmingly mentioned by respondents as not only a common issue but also a deterrent for others to engage in cross-border trade activities.

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Great Lakes Region Media Programming

Search is a recognized pioneer in working with actors at all levels to use media to promote peace and stability in conflict-affected communities in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi and Rwanda.

The crisis that engulfed the Great Lakes Region twenty five years ago led to the greatest human tragedy. The genocide in Rwanda, civil war in Burundi, and ongoing violent conflicts in the DRC have led to the deaths of millions of ordinary people, a humanitarian catastrophe, and one of the world’s largest deployment of UN Peacekeepers. Search has been working with local institutions to build regional consciousness, connections and capacities, with a
particular focus on university-age youth – the next generation of political and journalists.

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Enabling Preventative Responses to Violent Extremism in Rwanda

Violent extremism is the choice to use or support violence to advance a cause based on exclusionary group identities. Rwanda is not immune from the influences of extremist ideologies, whether they be internally grown or coming from neighboring countries. In fact, the national government is currently developing its […]

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