Vision Burundi 2025 was formulated in 2011 as a blueprint for Burundi to achieve economic and social development by 2025.
The eight (8) pillars of Vision Burundi 2025 are good governance, human capital, economic growth, regional integration, demographics, social cohesion, regional planning and urbanisation, and partnership.
Under this policy, infrastructure development is not a specific objective. However, plans for the development of infrastructure in water, energy, transport, ICT and other sectors are intertwined within the 8 pillars of the policy.
- Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)
Objective: In seeking to provide a better quality of life for citizens and protect the human capital, Vision Burundi 2025 aims to increase access to drinking water of the population to 100% and improve hygiene and sanitation.
Outcome: By 2022, about 62% of Burundi’s population had access to basic drinking water services. (The World Bank) Although authoritative data on this subject is not readily available beyond 2022, it can be concluded from Burundi’s less than 10% increase in access to drinking water between 2011-2022 (a period of 11 years) that the country is not likely to achieve 100% access to drinking water for its population by 2025. In addition, local news reports from March 2025 stated that residents of a Western Burundi province rely on river water for drinking due to the absence of drinking water infrastructure. (SOS Médias Burundi)
Unfortunately, access to basic sanitation services in Burundi has slightly declined from almost 46% in 2011 to about 45.6% in 2022. (The World Bank, The UN SDG Index 2024)
Notable Mention: International organisations such as UNICEF and the AfDB have been instrumental in contributing to improved water infrastructure in Burundi. In 2023, the AfDB gave a $13.15 million grant to Burundi to implement the first phase of its Water Sector and Climate Resilience Support Programme.
- Energy
Objective: As part of its aspirations for economic growth, Vision Burundi 2025 aims to ensure that both rural and urban populations have access to reliable, clean sources of energy at competitive prices. The policy also plans to build hydroelectric power stations and invest in renewable energies.
Outcome: There is a grave disparity in access to electricity in Burundi as by 2022, just 1.7% of the rural population had access to electricity compared to the urban population’s 64% access. (Our World in Data) In terms of competitive prices, Burundi is also performing poorly as the Regulatory Indicators for Sustainable Energy (RISE) reports that its consumer affordability score is 31 out of 100. (RISE)
Notable Mention: There are ongoing and completed hydroelectric power projects in Burundi such as the Jiji and Mulembwe hydropower plants and the Kabu 16 hydroelectric power station.
- Transport
Objective: Regarding transport infrastructure, Vision Burundi 2025 focuses on four modes of transportation: road, air, water, and rail.
- For Burundi’s road transport infrastructure, the policy is centred around the maintenance and rehabilitation of existing road networks and the construction of new roads and highways.
- For air transport, Vision Burundi 2025 plans to extend, modernise, and ensure the security of the Bujumbura International Airport. It also plans to build an international airport in the Gitega province.
- For water transportation, Vision Burundi 2025 focuses on maintenance and improvement of port infrastructures and the installation of new ports. Special attention is given to the port of Bujumbura and the port of Rumonge.
- For rail transportation, Vision Burundi 2025 aims to connect Burundi’s railroads with the railroad system of Tanzania, in order to gain access to the Indian Ocean.
Outcome: Rehabilitation and expansion of the international airport in Bujumbura has seen support from the World Bank and China in 2022 and 2024. However, the airport in Gitega remains a domestic airport and has not been upgraded to an international airport. As for water transportation, rehabilitation of the Bujumbura port and construction of the Rumonge port are scheduled to be completed in October 2025 and December 2028 respectively. Regarding its aspirations to connect with Tanzania’s rail system, Burundi has been successful. In January 2025, Tanzania and Burundi signed an agreement to construct a railway line linking Musongati (Burundi) to Uvinza (Tanzania).
Notable Mention: The Burundi Transport Resilient project, funded by the World Bank, aims to rehabilitate Burundi’s road infrastructure for climate resilience by December 2027.
- Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)
Objective: Vision Burundi 2025 acknowledges the development of ICT infrastructure as an important component of economic growth. Therefore, the policy aims to attract private foreign investors with incentives to develop its ICT sector, to engage in regional and international cooperation for telecommunications investment, and to install underwater optical fibres.
Outcome: Since 2011, Burundi has attracted a variety of private foreign investors from Africa and Asia including Lumitel, Econet Leo, Huawei Technologies and others. Also, Burundi has improved its legal environment with various incentives such as tax exemptions for foreign investors in specific sectors including ICT. (Investment Code, 2021)
Notable Mention: As part of its efforts to engage in regional and international cooperation for telecommunication, Burundi ratified the East African Community Protocol on Regional Digital Integration in January 2025.
Overall, the development of infrastructure as envisioned by the Vision Burundi 2025 has not been fulfilled. Although there is progress, this progress has not been holistic with the transport and ICT infrastructure plans boasting good reports while the energy and water sector have poor reports. The unrealistic goal setting and vague infrastructure plans for the energy and water sector may have contributed to the poor realisation of its infrastructure development objectives compared to the transport and ICT sector. Therefore, in subsequent national development policies, it is advisable that the government employ data-driven research to set practical and clear goals with measurable outcomes across all sectors of infrastructure.
On a positive note, the Burundi government’s success in securing funding and attracting partnerships from a variety of international institutions and private investors is commendable. Nonetheless, it is important for the government to prioritise infrastructure development in its national budget as reports have shown that Burundi allocated 1.7% of its national budget to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) between 2022-2023, which was less than the 2.1% of its budget allocated to WASH in the previous year. (UNICEF)