Africa of the big lakes

The Africa of the big lakes indicates four countries:

the Burundi
the Democratic republic of Congo (ex-Zaire)
the Uganda
the Rwanda

It is a designation more political than geographical.

Geography

See the big lakes of Africa .

This area is also sometimes confused with the central Africa, although, according to the users of the expression, that does not relate to the same countries exactly. Uganda is regarded as belonging to the East Africa, and even sometimes also Rwanda and Burundi which are at the border of the two areas.

The Kenya, bordering Lake Victoria, and the Tanzania, bordering the Lake Tanganyika, are not considered, wrongly or rightly, like belonging to the political whole of the big lakes, just as the countries located around the Lac Malawi (but belong to the “Région of the Big lakes”).

Geologically, the zone is parcelled out, at the speed of a few centimetres per annum. Africa will then be cut in several continental plates.

History

See also Populations of Africa of the big lakes and the articles concerning each country.

If Burundi and Rwanda were colonized by the Germany then the Belgium, Uganda was it by the Great Britain and the DRC by the king of the Belgians Léopold II, then by Belgium.

After independences in the Sixties, the principal events of this regional history:

with the Burundi: massacres of 1972, the election then the assassination of Nickel silver Ndadaye in 1993, alternation peaceful Hutu/Tutsi of Pierre Buyoya and Domitien Ndayizeye, resulting from peace agreements after 2000 and the election of Pierre Nkurunziza in August 2005
in DRC: the assassination of Patrice Lumumba, dictatorship of Mobutu Sese Seko and succession of the Kabila, the First war of Congo, then the Second war of Congo
in Uganda: the advent of Yoweri Museveni after the dictatorships of Milton Obote and Idi Amin Hobby-horse
with the Rwanda: the exile of the Tutsi, the republics Hutu of Gregoire Kayibanda and Juvénal Habyarimana, the Genocide in Rwanda and governorship of Paul Kagame

Policy

Today, this area is very marked by the Génocide in Rwanda which completed to destabilize it after the slow fall of the mobutism in Zaire. The payment of the question of the Interahamwe which gangrené the area a long time seems to have found a beginning of payment in 2005.

Geographical and geological giant, the Democratic republic of Congo has much evil to find a dynamics political which can involve the area. Many development projects remain in the paperboards for lack of regional agreement, in particular with regard to the energy production. The influence of Uganda and Rwanda in the East of Congo east one of the factors of the difficulties of this country, that of the Western countries and their multinationals while being another. The potential of the lake Kivu, commun run in Congo and Rwanda could be exploited only when the two countries find an area of agreement. The diplomacy, very active, will allow can be to lead to a solution.

The Burundi tries to find a unit among the mosaic of political groups marked by the colonial ethnism, integrated and registered in its constitution.

The Rwanda tries to escape same the colonial ethnism that in Burundi and banished it its constitution. It or not has an unquestionable dynamics, supported by the E. - U., but burdened by its opponents, old genocidary, who outside maintain a virulent communication campaign against the mode Paul Kagame, with the active sympathy of the France. Rwanda has as a political objective to become a center of services for this area.

The Uganda did not solve all its problems of unit. In the north of the country of the rebels are always active. He exerts a strong economic influence on Rwanda.

The anglophone influences (Ugandan and part of the Rwandan leaders) and French-speaking people (Burundian, Congolese and Rwandan) are exerted there. The France and the the United States of America are the two principal countries which exert this influence today. Rwanda is in the middle of the dividing line of this influence.

Two countries are currently subjected to a presence of forces of UNO: Burundi with Onub and the Democratic republic of Congo with Monuc.

See too

Populations of Africa of the big lakes
Big lakes (Africa)
Massacres and serious violations of the human rights as a Democratic republic of Congo between 1994 and 2003

External bonds

To include/understand the crisis of Africa of the big lakes - file RFI (version filed by Internet Files)
Actualité of Africa of the big lakes
Observatoire of central Africa

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