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Recurrent climatic hazards such as floods and landslides coupled with limited capacity for emergency preparedness by the Government, internal displacements, and significant influxes of repatriated individuals are hindering Burundi's efforts to achieve sustainable food security, adequate nutrition, and economic growth. Moreover, the country is hosting asylum seekers and refugees escaping violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The refugees predominantly rely on food and nutrition assistance from Humanitarian actors for their sustenance. Increased inflation, rising fuel prices and frequent fuel shortages have led to a continual increase in the cost of essential commodities, exacerbating food insecurity among the most vulnerable populations. Food insecurity keeps deteriorating over time with an estimated 5.4 million people (41.2 percent of the population) classified as food insecure [1].
In 2023, WFP collaborated with the Government of Burundi to tackle the root causes of food insecurity and malnutrition through the implementation of its Country Strategic Plan. WFP's initiatives in food assistance and nutrition, carried out in partnership with various humanitarian and development actors, positively impacted the lives of 1.3 million food-insecure people (51 percent female, 49 percent male). In all programmes, WFP prioritized the most vulnerable groups including people with disability. In 2023, approximately 169,000 people with disability (51 percent female, 49 percent male) received unconditional food and/or cash assistance.
Working towards SDG 2, WFP effectively delivered humanitarian food and nutrition assistance to more than 350,000 people affected by crises and assisted 25,000 returning Burundians. Despite financial and operational challenges, WFP continued to meet the daily food needs of over 56,000 refugees in camps. To stretch limited resources but maintain uninterrupted assistance, WFP implemented 30 percent ration cuts for refugees from April to December 2023.
Under MERANKABANDI social protection programme, most vulnerable households affected by cumulative effects of the climatic and economic crises received emergency food assistance. In addition, under the cash-for-jobs component, part of the Congolese refugees in Burundi were integrated into the national social protection system and extension to all refugees is planned.
The school feeding programme enhanced education outcomes [2] for over 667,000 students, augmented incomes for more than 4,500 smallholder farmers supplying assisted schools and injected USD 3.6 million into the local economy.
Resilience-building activities benefited over 116,000 individuals providing households and communities with productive assets and fostering economic inclusion for 10,000 individuals of whom 71 percent were women. Nutrition interventions reached 78,000 beneficiaries with vital nutrition support. To ensure sustainability, WFP supported the Ministry of Health to devise a roadmap for the Government's ownership of the moderate acute malnutrition (MAM) treatment programme. WFP integrated nutrition throughout its programmes, emphasizing social behavior change communication to maximize impact on nutrition indicators.
In pursuit of SDG 17, WFP provided advisory and technical support, expertise, and resources to the Government, 34 national entities, the private sector, the Burundi Red Cross, and 14 NGOs in various domains. These included emergency preparedness, early warning, forecast-based anticipatory measures, gender equality, supply chain management, social protection, school feeding, nutrition, and sustainable food systems. The support aimed to facilitate timely and effective humanitarian interventions. Furthermore, amidst recurrent fuel shortages, WFP ensured the continuity of operations for 29 humanitarian and development partners by delivering over 178,000 liters of fuel to them.
Burundi is committed to integrating the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into state planning instruments, policies, and projects. However, according to the 2021 United Nations Common Country analysis, Burundi is lagging in achieving 11 of the 17 SDGs, with progress stagnating on SDGs 2 and 17. Challenges such as slow structural transformation to spur development, declining agricultural productivity, inadequate human capital for supporting economic progress, and the economy's susceptibility to economic shocks pose significant obstacles to SDG attainment.
Regarding access to food, an estimated 2.3 million people experienced severe food insecurity during the peak of the April--May lean season in 2023. This represents a substantial increase compared to the 2022 Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), with the number of people in "emergency" food insecurity more than doubling to 100,000 -- the highest in years. WFP assists the Government in addressing food insecurity by providing humanitarian food assistance to the most vulnerable and by implementing household and community resilience-building initiatives. Additionally, WFP supports the Government in strengthening social protection in the country.
Ending malnutrition remains a formidable challenge in Burundi, with the prevalence of chronic malnutrition among children under 5 remaining alarmingly high at 56 percent [3]. WFP contributes to combatting chronic malnutrition by integrating nutrition in all its programmes and by supporting food fortification initiatives.
The stability of food supply systems is threatened by climate shocks, land degradation, poor agricultural practices, and unsustainable resource management. This situation has led to a dependence on food imports, exposing local food markets to external shocks and price fluctuations. In alignment with the food systems pillar of the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF), WFP will continue to collaborate with the Government and supports its commitment to fostering an intensive and modernized agriculture, promoting agricultural markets, and implementing a road map for strengthening food systems in Burundi.
Education and literacy levels remain low in rural areas, especially among women, with 32 percent of women being illiterate compared with 19 percent of men. Despite the Government's abolishment of school fees in 2012 and its allocation of 19.5 percent of its budget to education [4], completion rates are declining for primary (62 percent) and lower secondary (28 percent) schools while they are rising for upper secondary (27.5 percent). The national school meals agenda has progressed in policy formulation, community engagement, and implementation. However, the Government requires additional support in local procurement to enhance smallholders' market access and refine the programme implementation strategies.
Regarding policy coherence, the Government has developed various policies and programmes for poverty reduction. These include the national agricultural investment plan, national employment policies, energy, and industrialization strategies and national social protection. Efforts have also been made in health, nutrition, and education, including school meals. However, ineffective coordination mechanisms and a lack of up-to-date and reliable data hinder policy implementation.