How did Belgian colonial rule change the locations of many Ituri Forest villages?

Between 1920 and 1940, the Belgian colonial administration fundamentally altered the settlement patterns of the Ituri Forest by coercing the local population to relocate their villages and gardens to the sides of newly constructed roads.1

Prior to this intervention, villages were typically fortified and distributed relatively evenly throughout the forest, reflecting a period when inter-clan conflict often discouraged people from traveling far from their homes. By forcing these communities to move to roadsides, the colonial administration aimed to establish chiefdoms and impose peaceful relations across the region. Most of these villages remain in these roadside locations today.1