Durable solutions for internally displaced persons in burundi within reach

Abstract

Burundi has made comprehensive efforts to find durable solutions for those who were forced to flee their homes in the 1990s and 2000s as a result of civil war. In the aftermath of the conflict, which erupted in 1993 and lasted for 12 years, the Government initially focused on the reintegration of more than 500,000 returning refugees. It then developed a socio-economic reintegration strategy and set up a working group to implement durable solutions for the 100,000 internally displaced people who, as of 2005, were still living in settlements the Government established for them during the war. This article covers the latest developments in the strategy, including the elaboration of an action plan on durable solutions based on a comprehensive profiling exercise of the internally displaced population. Drawing on extensive interviews with Burundian Government officials, representatives of United Nations agencies and non-governmental organizations, displaced people themselves, and members of their host communities, it presents the main findings of the profiling exercise and analyses the options pursued thus far. It then makes recommendations to further reintegration, with a focus on land issues and tenure security, which are crucial to achieving durable solutions in Burundi. © Author(s) [2013]. All rights reserved.