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Urbanization
Gitega City, Burundi
Gitega, formerly known as Kitega, is a town located in
central Burundi. The town lies 65 km east of the capital,
Bujumbura, and is the capital of Gitega Province. The
population of Gitega town was 50,000 in 2012. For
centuries Gitega was the seat of the Burundian
Mwami
(king) and the capital of the kingdom of Burundi.
Even though 89 per cent of Burundi’s population
remains rural, urban areas are growing rapidly. The
urban population increased from 200,000 in 1980 to
922,000 in 2010 (World Bank, 2015). Consequently,
the country’s major cities – such as Gitega – are
expanding at a remarkable rate, encroaching onto
adjacent farmland.
Gitega