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

9. Future Perspectives on Burundian Migration
One of the most pressing challenges Burundi faces today is the return of refugees and
IDPs: “How to accommodate their demands for land, emergency aid and jobs in a
context of severe economic scarcity is a crucial challenge facing the government”
(Lemarchand, 2006, p.1). Especially in a country that has been torn by violent conflict
such as Burundi, repatriation and integration processes into the home country might be
problematic due to a lack of socio-economic infrastructure (UNHCR, 2009b). One of the
basic necessities for this process to succeed is a good and transparent political system in
combination with active participation of international donors (Lemarchand, 2006;
UNHCR, 2009b). As long as the root causes of conflict in Burundi are not fully
understood and addressed, however, the vicious cycle of conflict and refugee flows will
continue (Hovil, 2008).
The UNHCR (2009a) states that the current political and humanitarian situation
in Burundi is still unstable. The country is characterized by high poverty levels, increasing
crime levels, rising food prices, and rising prices for other commodities. Despite a peace-
agreement between the Burundian government and the PALIPEHUTU-FNL, there are
still reports of violence and human rights violations in the country. This, in combination
with a rising youth population and simultaneously-growing unemployment levels (World
Bank, 2009b), is a risk factor for future conflict and refugee problems in the country and
the Central African Great Lakes Region as a whole. In addition, due to its high annual
population growth (UN, 2008), land scarcity is an issue on its own, providing a breeding
ground for dispute in an already densely populated country. The demographic changes
mentioned above might also lead to an increasing trend of highly-skilled emigration from
Burundi, the so-called ‘brain drain’. This is a trend characteristic for other African
developing countries facing the same demographic challenges as Burundi such as
Ethiopia.
In the context of regional integration and in line with global initiatives for
management of migration, Burundi will still face major challenges in terms of adequate
policy instruments that fit into international frameworks. This would require institutional
restructuring and reorganization in which relevant units are established with a mandate to
focus on migration and development as well as to implement the necessary programmes
within the country and jointly with development partners. Such institutional and policy
re-orientation would entail adoption of policy coherence measures among relevant
ministries and departments working on migration. Furthermore if Burundi is to
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