Burundi Countryside
Burundi, with its population of just over eight million, is one of Africa's smaller nations covering an area of 9,903 sq miles and is located on the north-eastern shoreline of Lake Tanganyika. Burundi borders Rwanda to the north, the Democratic Republic of Congo to the west, and Tanzania to the east and south. Burundi lies within the rift valleys and great lakes region of Africa. Its main rivers include the Kanyaru, Malagarasi, Rusize and Ruvubu, and its lakes include the Cohaha, Rwero and of course, Lake Tanganyika itself.
Burundi has four topographical zones; the tropical Rusizi
river
plain (left) which is Burundi's only land mass below 3000 feet, the Congo-Nile Ridge, where there is a mild and temperate
climate, the central plateau and the depressions of the east and
north-east.
Despite having a moderate tropical climate with average temperatures between 23 and 24ºC. farming there is a struggle with most farms being around half a hectare and only really suitable for growing cash crops such coffee, tea, tobacco and cotton. (Cash crops are those which are grown to sell to provide food rather than growing food to eat.)
Much of the countryside has been over grazed and due to the cutting down of trees for fuel together with poor farming methods, soil erosion has become an issue as well as the diminishing habitat loss for wildlife as more and more land is used for building projects to house Burundi's increasing population. Some reports indicate that there will be no more arable land in Burundi by 2020 if current trends continue.
Take a trip down the wooded Mitumba mountains in the Burundi countryside in this short video, then arrive in Bujumbura and take a virtual tour of the capital city here.
TAGS: Burundi Countryside, Burundi Countryside Video, Burundi Countryside Tour, Burundi Countryside Mountains, Burundi Countryside Bujumbura, Virtual Tour Burundi Countryside