Central Africa Report

The East African Community (EAC) took a lead role in managing the 2015 Burundi crisis, but its efforts were largely unsuccessful due to internal divisions among member states and a lack of binding implementation mechanisms. While the EAC initially attempted preventive diplomacy through a 'Delegation of the Wise', subsequent summits and facilitation efforts by leaders like Yoweri Museveni and Benjamin Mkapa failed to prevent violence or secure an inclusive political dialogue. The report highlights how geopolitical tensions between Rwanda and Tanzania further undermined regional cohesion, ultimately allowing the Burundian government to resist international pressure and proceed with contested elections.

• The East African Community (EAC) attempted to lead the resolution of the Burundi crisis, marking the first time the organisation took leadership in a crisis affecting one of its own member states.
• Internal divisions within the EAC, particularly between Rwanda and Tanzania, weakened the organisation's cohesion and its ability to maintain a unified stance on the Burundi crisis.
• The EAC's preventive diplomacy was hindered by a lack of clear, binding mechanisms to implement the recommendations made during its summits, leaving the process dependent on the goodwill of Burundian authorities.
• The 31 May 2015 EAC Heads of State Summit avoided the central issue of the president's third-term legitimacy, instead focusing on conditions for elections and recommending dialogue under the auspices of the AU, EAC, and UN.
• Facilitation efforts by Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and later Benjamin Mkapa failed to achieve a political breakthrough, as the Burundian government refused to engage in inclusive dialogue or negotiate with opposition figures.
• By late 2016, the situation in Burundi had returned to a state of low-intensity conflict with the potential to escalate into a full-scale civil war, as regional and international initiatives failed to break the political impasse.

APA

Institute for Security Studies (2016). Central Africa Report. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/car8-v2.pdf

Chicago

Institute for Security Studies. Central Africa Report. 2016. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/car8-v2.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Institute for Security Studies |title=Central Africa Report |date=August 2016 |url=https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/car8-v2.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{instituteforsecuritystudies2016central, author = {{Institute for Security Studies}}, title = {{Central Africa Report}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, year = {2016}, month = aug, url = {https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/car8-v2.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }