[01] Alphonse Kayiranga, Faculty of Environmental Studies, University of Lay Adventists of Kigali (UNILAK), Kigali, Rwanda; State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi, China; Faculty of Cartography and Geoscience, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS), Beijing, China. [02] Alishir Kurban, State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi, China; Faculty of Cartography and Geoscience, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS), Beijing, China. [03] Lamek Nahayo, Faculty of Environmental Studies, University of Lay Adventists of Kigali (UNILAK), Kigali, Rwanda; State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi, China; Faculty of Cartography and Geoscience, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS), Beijing, China. [04] Felix Ndayisaba, Faculty of Environmental Studies, University of Lay Adventists of Kigali (UNILAK), Kigali, Rwanda; Faculty of Remote Sensing and Geoscience, Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth (RADI), Beijing, China.

The Volcanoes Parks forest has been threatened by anthropogenic and natural factors including logging for wood products, mineral resources extraction, urbanization, volcanic eruption and cropland expansion. This study used remote sensing to determine the land cover and land use changes from 1986 to 2015. The analysis was focused on pre-conflict (1986-2000) and post conflict (2000-2015) periods to understand the impact of political instability on forest cover. Classification techniques and change detection methods were applied to detect and quantify the magnitude of change. The results revealed that land conversions varied both spatially and temporally depended on factors that contributed to forest dynamics across the region. The overall analysis highlighted that net annual rate of forest loss was 1.9% for 1986-2000 period while the net annual rate of forest gained from afforestation/reforestation was 1.8%. In the period from 2000-2015, 1.79% of forest was lost each year, which was higher than the rate of forest gained during the same period (1.56%). The general quantitative analysis indicated that 5.76% (0.2% each year) of forest cover was totally cleared in Volcanoes Parks region from 1986 to 2015. Based on the findings of this study, efforts in forest management and conservation are highly suggested to sustain forest resources in the region.

Albertine Rift, Deforestation, Forest Cover, Remote Sensing, Volcanoes Parks

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