Migration in Burundi: History, Current Trends and Future - MGSoG ...

live in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
countries, which accounts for 38.6% of the entire highly-skilled workforce in Burundi
(Spaan and Moppes, 2006). Others put the figures at 12,482 (Hugo, 2006). The
discrepancies in these figures are due to lack of accurate data on the ground in Burundi
but also the absence of precise official estimates in countries of residence, which fail to
note the number of highly-skilled undocumented migrants. The prolongation of conflict
in some parts of Burundi and continued mistrust between the various groups further
fuels the flight of essential human capital despite that relative calm that has returned to
the country.
In the academic field, poor working conditions have contributed significantly to
the brain drain of academic staff 37 . In addition to the impact of outward migration,
internal displacement is also a major migratory dimension and pattern that disrupts the
conditions necessary for the development of qualified manpower. The massive
dislocation of Burundian families from villages to urban areas, region to region, and into
the border regions has also disrupted local knowledge bases for essential human capital
for subsistence production. It can be concluded that brain drain in Burundi will have
negative growth effects (Rapoport, 2002), due to the migration rate of its highly educated
as a result of conflict. It will also impact reconstruction efforts due to the absence of
essential human capital in a small country like Burundi. This is a scenario captured by
Docquier (2006), who observed that brain drain impacts a wide range of features such as
human capital formation, the role of remittances, the impact of return migration, the
effects of diaspora externalities, and governance and corruption. These are aspects that
confront Burundi at a period of transition, when the absence of suitable institutional
frameworks and appropriate migration and development policies for attracting the
diaspora could hinder the realization of brain-gain efforts (Schiff, 2005).
6.2 Return migration
The return to relative peace after the Arusha Peace Accord has led to an increasing
number of Burundians in the diaspora returning home temporarily, permanently, or as
tourists to help with the reconstruction. This includes the return and reintegration of
Burundian refugees coming from neighbouring countries and the internally displaced
who are currently being assisted to settle in their previous villages and homes.
37 For detailed account on the state of higher education in Burundi, please consult: Juma Shabani, African
Higher Education: An International Reference Handbook; Damtew Teferra and Philip. G. Altbach, eds.,
Indiana University Press, 2003, pp. 204-214.
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