CONGRESS OF PARLIAMENT: PRESENTATION OF THE REPORT ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE GOVERNMENT PROGRAM FOR THE 2nd SEMESTER, FISCAL YEAR 2020-2021

On Wednesday, October 20, 2021, the Burundian Parliament met at Kigobe convention centre, in Bujumbura town, to follow the report on the implementation of the Government’s program for the 2^nd semester, fiscal year 2020-2021, presented by the Prime Minister, General Police Commissioner (CPG) Alain Guillaume Bunyoni.

This session was chaired by the Speaker of the National Assembly, Right Honorable Gélase Daniel Ndabirabe in collaboration with the Speaker of the Senate, Right Honorable Emmanuel Sinzohagera and members of the Bureaux of these two parliamentary chambers.

Shortly after the presentation of this report, the parliamentarians, during their interventions, raised various relevant concerns relating in particular to the socio-economic life of the country.

Regarding the question on the recruitment of teachers, CPG Alain Guillaume Bunyoni indicated that the recruitment of teachers is the responsibility of the Communal Directors of Education (CDE) and that the challenge related to the distance of teachers is suddenly taken up.

Reacting to the intervention of a parliamentarian, he welcomed the step taken in the realization of the Government’s program to the tune of 88%. During the past legislature, he recalled, it was suggested to withdraw the recruitment of teachers from the national commission and entrust it to the CDE. According to him, the positive effects are tangible, not only the teachers are proud to contribute their input to the building of their commune but also the deviants are quickly corrected.

In terms of defense and national security, the Prime Minister replied that the method of local recruitment favored the system of regional balance.

Regarding the misappropriation of funds intended for the construction of schools for the benefit of Sangwe cooperatives, the CPG Alain Guillaume Bunyoni brushed aside this free claim. “The budgets allocated to these two activities are totally different,” he added.

Regarding the training at ENA, he explained that this school is no longer sanctioned by the granting of a diploma, and for good reason, the training is intended for civil servants on the job. “The professors had instead hijacked ENA from its mission, which the Government did not tolerate. If a civil servant has the ambition to continue his studies, he does so at his expense outside of working hours or he requests a layoff in due form”, he insisted. .

As for the use of the vaccine against the Covid-19, the Prime Minister said that Burundi supports the position of the WHO. “So far there is no single vaccine. Each country makes it as it pleases. The WHO, which welcomes this initiative from each other in a short period of time, however, declines its responsibility for the harmful consequences that would result from this vaccine. Some countries including China do not welcome a foreigner on their soil who is not vaccinated. However, once inside the country, it is clear that the protective measures are even more demanding. In the neighbor to the north, the vaccine has been instituted, which has not, however, prevented the country from re-imposing the practice of containment”, he explained.

Responding to the concern of the Gasenyi district which is experiencing a glaring shortage of drinking water, the Prime Minister said that this issue has fallen on the attentive ear of the responsible minister.