Since the onset of the rainy season in September last year, at least 29 individuals have lost their lives, and tens of thousands have been displaced in Burundi, according to the United Nations.
Burundi, identified by the UN as one of the 20 countries most susceptible to climate change, has been enduring relentless rainfall for months, exacerbated by the El Nino weather pattern.
Across East Africa, recent weeks have witnessed torrential downpours wreaking havoc, particularly in Kenya and Tanzania, resulting in several hundred casualties.
Bujumbura, the principal city of Burundi situated on the northeastern shores of Lake Tanganyika, has witnessed inundation in several neighborhoods, along with destruction of roads and bridges.
“The El Nino phenomenon has triggered torrential rains, flooding, and landslides,” stated the UN’s humanitarian response agency OCHA in a Wednesday update.
As of April 26, over 237,000 individuals have been impacted, with 42,000 displaced, more than half of whom are women, with 29 reported fatalities and 175 injuries.
OCHA additionally cautioned that the levels of Lake Tanganyika, Africa’s second-largest lake, are on a continuing rise.
In response to the “devastating effects” of the unyielding rains, the Burundian government and the United Nations initiated an appeal for financial assistance last month.
President Evariste Ndayishimiye’s administration has faced criticism over the situation, particularly from civil society groups and the opposition, urging the declaration of a state of emergency or natural disaster.
El Nino, a naturally occurring climate phenomenon, is commonly associated with global heat increases, resulting in droughts in some regions and heavy rainfall in others.
