VISIT OF HIS EXCELLENCY EVARISTE NDAYISHIMIYE TO BRUSSELS

The President of the Republic of Burundi, His Excellency Evariste NDAYISHIMIYE, accompanied by His Spouse, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Development Cooperation, and twenty other executives of the Presidency Office and of the said Ministry, paid a working visit to Brussels from 16 to 20 february 2022 to participate in the work of the 6th Summit of the Heads of State and Government of the Member States of the African Union (AU) on the one hand and of the European Union (EU) on the other hand.

The ceremonies of the solemn opening of the work of this European Union-African Union summit, placed under the theme “Africa and Europe, two Continents with a common Vision by 2030”, took place in the presence of the President of the European Council , Charles Michel, the President of the European Commission, Ursula Von Leyen, the President-in-Office of the European Union, Emmanuel Macro, the President of the African Union and several Leaders of the Member States of the EU and the ‘ AU.

This Summit was organized around seven thematic round tables articulated on the financing of Growth, Health systems and Vaccine Production, Agriculture and Sustainable Development, Education, Culture and Vocational training, Migration and Mobility, private Sector Support, Economic Integration, Peace, Security and good Governance and, in order to , climate change and energy transition, connectivity and digital and transport infrastructure. On the sidelines of this Summit, the Burundian Head of State was able to meet several Officials of the European Union.

In the afternoon of thursday, february 17, 2022, the Burundian Head of State had a one-on-one meeting with the President of the European Council, Mr. Charles Michel, on the strengthening of political and diplomatic relations between the Burundi and the EU and other subjects of common interest. On friday, february 18, 2022, His Excellency Mr. Evariste NDAYISHIMIYE had a meeting with the European Commissioner in charge of international partnerships, Mrs. Jutta URPILAINEN. On this occasion, the Commissioner promised, on behalf of the EU, an envelope of 214 million euros to support Burundi in its development process.

The Agenda of the Burundian Head of State for saturday, february 19, 2022, also included a meeting with the Burundian Diaspora living in Belgium and its surroundings. A huge crowd of members of the Burundian Diaspora from various sectors attended this meeting in a friendly and warm atmosphere, listening and sharing their concerns. It was moralization par excellence. In his speech, His Excellency the President of the Republic called on Burundians for more fraternity, trust and invited them to support development projects in the Country.

Remember that on the sidelines of the meeting with the Diaspora, His Excellency Evariste NDAYISHIMIYE, President of the Republic of Burundi, met with the Secretary General of the Organization of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) , Ambassador Georges Rebelo Pinto Chikoti. Their exchanges have been dominated by south-south cooperation.