Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Burundi
On Friday, May 18, 2026, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and Development Cooperation, His Excellency Ambassador Édouard Bizimana, held a working meeting with the Representatives of the United Nations system agencies in Burundi.
In his opening remarks, the Minister expressed his gratitude to these agencies for their constant and multifaceted support, recalling that this cooperation is part of a long tradition of support for the country’s development. This meeting followed the audience granted to them by the President of the Republic of Burundi on May 8 in Ngozi, where they reaffirmed their commitment to supporting Burundi in its new responsibilities.
Burundi, now at the chairmanship of the African Union, enjoys increased visibility on the continental stage. To this end, during this meeting, Minister Bizimana and the Representatives of the UN agencies discussed the urgent activities to be implemented to make Burundi’s AU presidency a success. Furthermore, the participants expressed their willingness to support Burundi in this strategic role.
Indeed, these Representatives greatly appreciated the activities proposed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Presidency of the Republic of Burundi, especially those related to the organization of forums and round tables to accelerate the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and to put in place urgent measures to address the challenges arising from the consequences of conflicts in the Persian Gulf countries and refugee flows in Africa.This presidency represents an opportunity for Burundi to strengthen its regional leadership and promote initiatives for peace, cooperation, and sustainable development. To this end, Burundi proposes the organization of an extraordinary African Union Summit to establish an urgent African response to security, humanitarian, health, and other crises.
This meeting paves the way for even closer cooperation between Burundi and the UN agencies. It also marks an important step in consolidating diplomatic relations and implementing the Sustainable Development Goals.