(DTIS) Update, Volume 1 – Main report - Enhanced Integrated ...

supply, hospitals), and in large-scale and systematic load-shedding reaching approximately 40-50% of existing demand during peak hours (World Bank 2011d). As recognized in the tourismstrategy, Bujumbura and Gitega are the only two urban areas with a municipal electricity serviceand most rural zones are not directly connected to electrical grids, which makes the use of powergenerators necessary.• Water/sanitation: Despite abundant water resources, the demand for potable water is notsatisfied. The combined impacts of destructions caused by the civil conflict, lack of investmentand the migration of refugees have resulted in a serious drop in the rate of urban water supplycoverage. In rural areas where the DGHER 121 is responsible for service delivery, coverage isaround 40 percent (World Bank 2011d). Sanitation is also an issue: the service responsible forsewerage and wastewater treatment in Bujumbura only covers 38 percent of the city’s needs.Therefore, much of the city’s wastewater ends up in storm drains and creeks and from thereflows untreated into Lake Tanganyika. Other cities and towns do not have a sewerage system orwastewater treatment facilities. Sanitation services in rural areas are also limited and only 23percent of the population use functional facilities (World Bank 2011d).• Telecommunications and internet: despite the rapid development of mobile telephony in the2000s, which improved the availability and reduced the cost of telecommunications forBurundians, the number of fixed-lines remains one of the lowest in the world, even in theBujumbura area where they are concentrated (rural regions are still largely uncovered)(UNCTAD 2010).v. The limited availability/quality of essential services, notably:• Health services: the availability of health facilities in Burundi is relatively good by sub-Saharanand East African standards, and national health indicators have improved in recent years (UNDP2009). Nevertheless, the number and quality of health professionals remains insufficient(Republic of Burundi 2012) and there are important regional disparities: 80% of doctors and50% of nurses are concentrated in the Bujumbura Municipality (World Bank 2009b).• Financial services are largely underdeveloped in Burundi. Concerning tourism specifically, thisis problematic for both potential tourists and investors. For example, credit cards are notaccepted outside a small number of establishments and ATMs are still virtually absent from thecountry, forcing travelers to carry large amounts of cash and bear the risk of doing so.Concerning investors, the provision by banks of long term credits for investment projects isextremely limited (Nkurunziza et al. 2010).5. The way forward for tourism in BurundiThe recently adopted national tourism strategy provides recommendations to strengthen specificdimensions of the tourism sector. These include regulations and standards; communication andmarketing; tourism statistics; and professional training (box 7.3). They are all key areas for tourismgrowth and competitiveness, but they are, to a large extent, more pressing concerns for countries scalingupor sustaining their tourism industry (cf. figure 7.2 above).121 Direction Générale de l’Hydraulique et des Energies Rurales141 / 153