Burundi to increase investment in Free Education

The government of Burundi has said it would increase investments in free education for all in primary and secondary schools. The country started offering free education in 2005 and since then the enrolment has increased by 96 percent. The government said last week that it had made education compulsory and was supporting it politically. The project is also supported by Burundi’s development partners including the UN children’s agency, UNICEF. Unfortunately, the initiative is facing many challenges including lack of school buildings, lack of trained teachers, uneven distribution of schools which requires children to walk long distances, and a high percentage of school drop outs, especially girls.