Nkombo Island

Nkombo Island (also known as Gombo Island, is a Rwandan island in Lake Kivu and forms with Ishywa Island a sector of Rusizi District, situated in the southern part of the lake within the Western Province. A channel, less than 250 metres at its narrowest point, separates it from the eastern, Rwandan shore of the lake. The island is approximately in length with a maximum width of .

The Democratic Republic of the Congo–Rwanda border passes to the north, separating it from Imbinja island, and to the west and south.

Subdivisions

Nkombo sector is divided into five cells: Bigoga, Bugarura, Rwenje, Kamagimbo and Ishywa. The Ishywa cell is on a separate island in the northeast of Nkombo Island. A small island is also part of Bigoga cell at the southern tip of Nkombo Island.

Demographics

Nkombo Island is one of eight permanently inhabited Rwandan islands in Lake Kivu. According to the 2022 Rwanda Population and Housing Census, Nkombo sector, which includes the inhabited Ishywa Island, had a population of 18,637 inhabitants. In 2012, the population was 16,712. The inhabitants of Nkombo Island speak Mashi (also called Amashi), a language distinct from Kinyarwanda that is more closely related to languages spoken in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.