Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Burundi
On Monday, December 29, 2025, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration, and Development Cooperation, His Excellency Ambassador Edouard Bizimana, met with Burundian entrepreneurs and representatives of the private sector. The purpose of this meeting was to discuss Burundi’s chairmanship of the African Union, from February 2026 to February 2027.
In his opening remarks, Minister Bizimana announced that during the African Union presidency period, Burundi will organize several events and that there will be huge opportunities, particularly for Burundian entrepreneurs, especially in the fields of hospitality, tourism and services.
Minister Bizimana urged Burundian entrepreneurs to take the necessary steps to position themselves to benefit from the vast market of 1.3 billion consumers that will be opened up to Burundians with the operationalization of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), as customs duties will be simplified. He also asked Burundian economic operators not to excessively increase the prices of goods and services during this period.
He urged Burundian entrepreneurs to value natural resources such as the source of the Nile and Lake Tanganyika, improve the quality of services provided and Burundian products including coffee, tea, avocado oil, fruits and fish caught in Lake Tanganyika such as Ndagala and Mukeke .
The Minister indicated that several activities had been carried out to prepare for Burundi’s presidency of the African Union. Training and a retreat were organized for several officials from various ministries by Enabel, and five officials continued this training at the African Union and European Union levels. They were sent to Addis Ababa to assist the staff of the Embassy of Burundi in Ethiopia in order to continue preparations for Burundi African Union’s presidency.
It should be noted that a multi-sectoral committee from the ministries in charge of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Industry, the Federal Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Burundi (CFCIB) as well as other key players working in the private sector will be put in place very soon to jointly identify the needs and set the objectives that will allow Burundi to successfully carry out and lead the presidency of the African Union.