| Kayave River | |
| Pushpin Map: | Burundi |
| Subdivision Type1: | Country |
| Subdivision Name1: | Burundi |
| Mouth Location: | Akanyaru River |
The Kayave River (fr|Rivière Kayave) is a river in Burundi, a right tributary of the Akanyaru River.
The Kayave River rises in the northwest of Kayanza Province, not far from the head of the Ruvubu River, fed by streams from the Kibira National Park.It flows east to the border with Ngozi Province, and runs along the border for some distance before turning north and running through Ngozi Province to its mouth on the Akanyaru River.
The Kayave River forms where the Ngute meets the larger Nyakimonyi and flows east, receiving the Nyabikenke, Jembegeti, Kironge from the right (south), the Nyarusasa from the left (north) and the Nkingu from the right.It turns to the north, and receives the Gitabo and Rushahuriro from the right (east), the Nkamwa and Kirimwe from the left (west) and the Rwintaro from the right just before entering the Kanyaru.
The surroundings of Kayave River are a mosaic of agricultural land and natural vegetation.The area is densely populated, with 591 inhabitants per square kilometer.Savannah climate prevails in the area. The average annual temperature in the area is . The warmest month is September, when the average temperature is, and the coldest is April, with .Average annual rainfall is . The wettest month is March, with an average of of precipitation, and the driest is July, with of precipitation.
The Kayave River flows through the Commune of Busiga in Ngozi Province.The marshes, which have fertile clayey soils, are exploited for small-scale agriculture with crops such as cassava, sweet potato, corn, beans, banana, potato and rice.
In March 2021 the bridge over the Kayave River carrying the RN1 highway from Kayanza to the Kanyaru-Haut border crossing was badly damaged.This is one of the main highways between Burundi and Rwanda.As of November 2021 repairs had not started.