Burundi - a background

Burundi – short background

With the increasing interest in Burundi and its remarkable peace process, many have asked me to provide a short background. Just a few days ago, a ceasefire agreement was signed with the last rebel group, the FNL and its leader Agaton Rwasa. It is a great step forward in the consolidation of this country's struggle for democracy, reconciliation and peace.

Burundi is number 171 out of the 175 countries on UNDP's Human Development Index. The GNP per capita is US $145. There is one doctor per 100,000 citizens and not even one psychiatrist in the whole country; 40,000 die annually because of AIDS. The Annual UN Consolidated Appeal for Humanitarian Aid is in the order of US$ 150 million and, regrettably, met by the donor community to less than 50 per cent on a regular basis. By any standard, this is a very small sum in the international community, about $ 17 US per capita.

Due to e.g. overpopulation (8 mill inhabitants by 2008) and adverse climate conditions, hunger is now widespread in several provinces; the donor community has reacted very slowly, particularly after the Tsunami catastrophe. If development and security are seen as legitimate human needs and applied as criteria for foreign assistance, Burundi qualifies beyond doubt. Indeed, if not assisted now, there is a risk that the violence may return.

Burundi is moving from a thirty-years old ethnic conflict towards peace. This violent period has taken some 300.000 lives, wounded many and destroyed uncountable bodies, souls and human trust.

A peace agreement was signed in Arusha-Tanzania in August 2000 between 17 political parties and armed movements. It began to be implemented in November 2001 with the establishment of transitional institutions and the alternation power between Pierre Buyoya and his vice-president Domitien Ndayizeye. Two other cease-fire agreements were signed in August and December 2002. Important progress was achieved in September 2003 with the Pretoria protocol regarding the sharing of political and military power between the government and rebel movements. In April 2005, the last rebel movement, the FNL, agreed to a cease-fire but it did not hold. There is some hope that this last group will accept to sit down at the negotiation table in 2008 under the mediation of South Africa. (Actually, on May 26, 2008, a new ceasefire agreement was signed).



The achievements of the peace process hitherto

The peace achievements are truly remarkable, clearly beyond the most hopeful expectation of connoisseurs a few years ago. Ninety per cent of the people went to vote on a new constitution including a power-sharing and quota arrangement, and 90 per cent said ‘yes.’
A comprehensive DDR process has been completed, thousands of fighters – including child soldiers – have been disarmed and a new ethnically mixed army of about one-third of the soldiers. The national curfew has been lifted; after years of insecurity, it is again possible to travel to all provinces.
Elections on five levels from the local ‘collines’ to the President have been conducted, orderly and peacefully. Very many new MPs are new faces, meaning a lot of corrupted politicians have left the stage. The new democratically elected President Pierre Nkurunziza is a former guerrilla fighter who has publicly apologized for his crimes, is a devote Christian, a man who travels the country and talks with citizens everywhere and provides moral leadership to many.
As many as 36 per cent of the new ministers are women, including the Foreign Minister with whom TFF works directly, and the president repeatedly emphasizes the importance of women taking part in all spheres of society.
A comprehensive and visionary government program for 2005-2010 has been produced in a few months, it gives priority to security, peace and development and their integration. An anti-corruption program has been installed and expensive government cars are being sold; as an important role model, the president hands back per diems to the treasury when returning from abroad.
Free education for all at primary school level has been given priority, as has free maternal health care, even though there is no budget yet for it.
The longterm UN mission, ONUB, has been so successful as peacekeeper that it could be withdrawn during spring 2006 and was replaced by the smaller BINUB. The new UN Peacebuilding Commission has chosen Burundi as one of is two target countries.
Freedom of the press is for all practical purposes a fact, although there are still some momentary clamp-downs.
A national commission for truth and reconciliation has been established.

Of the greatest significance, perhaps, is that whatever hatred there has been between the majority Hutu population and the minority Tutsi and Twa population, it is now gone. The above-mentioned achievements have implicitly promoted co-existence as has the indigenous reconciliation and mediation tradition of Abashingantahe councils throughout the country.

While a few years ago one could not publicly mention the words “hutu” and “tutsi” TFF’s team has experienced how perfectly possible it is now to talk openly about it, conduct public debates about the history and genocide and it has worked with the various groups without any experience of ethnic animosity among them.



There are still many problems and risks – and they are also challenges for the international community

The remarkable achievements will come to nothing unless solidified inside and with various types of attention and assistance from the outside. Failure to offer Burundi much-needed assistance will, it is judged by TFF and others involved, increase the risk that the country to fall out in mass violence again.

Here are some major challenges: Ongoing poverty; violence not the least against women, perhaps a risk that the overwhelming majority of the government party could produce a feeling of being all-powerful and ignoring the de facto very small opposition; the 2008 blockade of the parliament’s normal work is one sign.
There is the land issue, refugees and IDPs returning only to find that their plots and houses have been taken over by others; and this is related to rapidly increasing population figures. There are huge income differentials. There is hunger and misery in about one-third of the provinces. Also, the risk of coup d’etats by dissatisfied, demobilized soldiers should not be underestimated as it is of utmost importance that demobilized militaries is provided with a substantial experience that civilian life is better for them and their families than was the – often money- and privilege-making – war years.

It is a highly complex, deeply human-existential process with no success guaranteed. But one thing is sure: with various types of support from neutral professional actors abroad, the chances for violence-prevention and sustainable peace does indeed increase.

TFF has been engaged, on and off, with the peace process since 1999. More about Burundi here:


TFF’s Burundi Portal


Three TFF Videos with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Antoinette Batumubwira

On media and the good story


On the role of women


On peace and foreign policy


Other videos from Burundi on TFF Video Channel


What is TFF doing in Burundi?


JO # 1206