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D1.1 Agroecological contexts and needs of rural communities in the Agroecological Living Labs

Burundi and Cameroon have experienced a difficult economic situation in recent years, marked by macroeconomic imbalances. Burundi's economic growth declined considerably in 2021 and Cameroon's in 2022, probably due to the poor performance of several sectors. On the other hand, economic growth in DRC and Rwanda is set to strengthen, with the mining sector remaining the main driver. In the first two countries, agriculture makes a huge contribution to national GDP.
Beside the DRC, the transboundary business within the African Great Lakes nourishes the flow of cash food influences the household’s economics both in rural and urban cities- and certainly influences positivement the international exchange on food market and food systems standing on agroecological practices and patterns. Since DRC is a full country member of the East African Community (EAC), international programs on Economy and agriculture development look promising like RUFORUM which is boosting agricultural entrepreneurship among youths. In fact, the Eastern part of the DRC is closer to regional cities (Kampala, Dar-e-Salam, Kigali, Bujumbura, Lusaka) - therefore population movement mostly traders influencing the trades and markets diversity that covers local and foreign stuffs. Since 2010, small-scale farmers are organized around cooperatives for taping economic markets around coffee, rice, maize, beans, maize, vegetables, and milk production. Unfortunately, the markets competitiveness is higher looking to global markets and food technology. Alongside the national road (RN5) that links the biggest cities of the Eastern DRC (Kalemie, Uvira, Bukavu, Goma, Butembo, Beni, Bunia, there are many existing local markets which economically collect small-scale farmers products for regional international markets.
In Burundi, cash crops are mainly coffee, cotton, tea and palm oil, and account for the bulk of exports. Agriculture also plays a key role in Cameroon's economy, with cocoa emerging as one of the most exported cash crops. Alongside the mining sector, agriculture also remains one of the major pillars contributing to the development of the Congolese economy. For Rwanda, its strong economic growth, boosted by the development of the mining sector, is accompanied by a substantial improvement in living standards. Its economy is increasingly resilient, despite the difficult economic environment experienced in 2022.