Trans-Border Trade, Minerals, and Civil War Impacts on Land Use and Land Cover Change in GOMA, Eastern Congo: An Integrated Geospatial Technologies and Political Economy Approach

This study analyzes land cover and land use change in the territory of Goma, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo by leveraging the geospatial technologies capabilities (Remote sensing, GIS, and Cartography) and the analysis of existing literature on the political economy of war. The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) derived from Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper plus images were used to detect changes between 1987 and 2010. Results suggest that changes in the landscape of Goma are attributable to institutional factors such as the trans-border trade networks, the refugee influx of about 1.5 to 2 million due to ethnic conflicts in Rwanda, the Congolese civil wars, and the operations of international nongovernmental organizations and humanitarian agencies. An increase in non-vegetation areas is evident in the territory of Goma. Overall, economic opportunities, humanitarian and NGOs operations and mineral trade create more wealth in the region. This is evidenced by massive investments in real estate and unusual population growth. The study expands the applicability of both geospatial techniques and political economy by shedding new lights on the interplay among war, minerals, and land cover and land use change. Keywords: Geospatial technologies; Remote sensing; GIS; Civil war; Minerals; Political economy