Africa Security Brief No. 29 - Lessons from Burundi’s Security Sector Reform Process

Highlights

• Progress made by Burundi’s Security Sector Development (SSD) program in advancing democratic security sector governance is noteworthy given that there have been relatively few successful security sector reform cases from which to draw.

• Political will for security sector reform was expanded over time by supporting tangible priorities of the Burundian security sector that established the trust enabling broader engagement on governance issues.

• The relative success of the SSD program—and particularly its governance pillar—depended heavily on its ability to address politically sensitive issues.

• SSD’s 8-year timeframe provided the time to adapt the program to evolving circumstances, facilitate increasing Burundian ownership of the reform process, and realize the incremental gains from which substantive change was possible.