THE ROLE OF AGRICULTURE IN RURAL DEVELOPMENT: THE CASE OF THE TERRITORY OF THE ARCHDIOCESE OF BUKAVU IN SOUTH-KIVU (DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO)

Though benefiting from a high potential, agriculture in Democratic Republic of Congo only
reaches low performances and yields. In South-Kivu, small scale family farms are frequently scattered due to inheritance systems that give a share to all children. So, land becomes a scarce resource in a densely populated area. The socioeconomic and political elites benefit from this situation and accumulate land resources, while the churches are the heirs of former colonial concessions. Unfortunately, the land belonging to the large landowners is not valorized; it is often hired to small-scale farmers with less than 0.5 ha. These farmers use low quantities of inputs and are oriented towards subsistence agriculture. To valorize the high agricultural potential of this area, the solution is perhaps not a land reform and the distribution of plots to small-scale farmers, but to make agriculture more profitable and a wealth producer for the whole community. To do so, the archdiocese certainly has a role to play. The vision of religious authorities is that the priests should be real entrepreneurs and support all local initiatives which could be profitable for large groups of citizens. During workshops organized in 2021, people in charge of the parishes reported the agricultural activities which are already organized and the new opportunities they identified, proving that a bottom-up peasant movement could enhance rural development. Future agricultural practices should lead to sustainable agriculture, with high yields and better income for the farmers.