Burundi

Bilateral relations with Burundi, which had been a partner country of the Austrian Development Cooperation for many years, are traditionally friendly and focused mainly on development cooperation.

After the coup in 1996, however, all projects were put on halt. Only after the start of the  peace negotiations in 2000, some projects were reactivated.  The Austrian Development Cooperation supported the Arusha peace process not only financially but also through the personal involvement of the former Director General for Development Cooperation in the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Georg Lennkh, who was chairing the Commission on Development and Reconstruction.