Rainwater harvesting

Water resources are a Global challenge, Peoples always like to have only access to the
municipal water supply. similarly, Rwanda is one among others that has the greatest population
density with 483people/square kilometers, Kigali, as the capital city has 76% of the population,
lived in urban areas.
Rwanda has a high potential for Rainwater Harvesting (RWH) with an annual average rainfall of
1200 mm with monthly consistency throughout the year (ranging 800mm in Eastern Province to
about 2000mm in high altitude). Even if we have enough rainfall country has a low annual per
capita water demand of (670m3/capita/year) therefore insufficient rainwater harvesting prone to
soil erosions and flash floods during the rain period (Authority, 2019).

Rwanda has two main rainy seasons, a short rainy season (mid-September to mid-December)
locally known as ‘Umuhindo’ which is characterized by high precipitation in November, and a
long rainy season (March to May) locally known as ‘Itumba’, which is characterized by higher
precipitation in April compared to that in November.

Rainwater is harvested by collecting rain from rooftops of schools, industries, hotels, Markets,
residential buildings, neighborhoods. Other waters are drained from ditches centralized into
groundwater tanks and being used for irrigation and washing activities, this has contributed to
the urban environment, reducing the danger to the flood, increasing opportunities for recreation
and leisure activities with minimum possible damage to infrastructures. Not only rainwater
being collected and harvested but also helps in recharging of aquifers and help in rising of
ground water sources.