This International Mother Language Day, this blog reflects on the findings from a background paper on Burundi’s learning outcome trends authored by Pierre Varly, commissioned to feed into the 2025 Spotlight Report on Africa, which looks at the close ties between low and declining learning outcomes and the complex realities of bilingual instruction and persistent instability in the country.
In 2014, Burundi achieved results significantly above the average of countries that participated in the PASEC survey. Notably, students performed strongly in language in grade 2 and in mathematics in both grade 2 and grade 6. The use of Kirundi, which is the language spoken by over 95% of students, as language of instruction in the early grades is a clear factor that explains the good results in grade 2, as almost all other countries have complex multilingual landscapes.
Moreover, the relative stability and simplicity of curricula and textbooks have also been credited for the good results. In 2019, while most PASEC countries improved their scores, the percentage of grade 6 students achieving the minimum proficiency threshold defined by PASEC (levels 3 and 4) dropped sharply in Burundi, from 57% to 28% in reading and from 87% to 61% in mathematics. Applying the more stringent global definition (level 4), then the percentage of students who achieved minimum proficiency level was 4.5% in reading and 18% in mathematics. This was confirmed in 2021, when Burundi took part in the AMPL survey, which is calibrated to assess the percentage of students achieving the global minimum proficiency level. Just 1% of grade 6 students reached the minimum proficiency level in reading and 14% did in mathematics.
National assessments conducted in 2020 and 2024, although not directly comparable due to differences in the scales used, were consistent with both PASEC and MILO results. Overall, students performed better in mathematics than in reading and their performance tended to decline as they progressed through primary school.
The severe political crisis that began in 2015 brought insecurity and armed attacks that disrupted schooling. The associated economic downturn with its impact on living conditions also affected the education system. In 2019, more than half of all children suffered from malnutrition. The crisis also had far-reaching effects on the financing and organization of the education sector. The share of education in total public spending, which had reached 27% in 2015 fell to 20% in 2017–18. External financing, which represented 5% of education resources in 2016, dwindled to less than 1% from 2017 as a result of the closure of the United Nations office and the suspension of the European Union programme until 2022, which also affected coordinated sector planning and monitoring.
Language transition goes a long way to explain low assessment scores in upper primary grades. Burundi follows an additive bilingual model, where French is introduced alongside Kirundi. The shift from Kirundi to French occurs in grade 4 for mathematics and in grade 5 for other subjects. Although both languages are taught from grade 1, instructional time in French was significantly reduced after 2015, limiting pupils’ mastery of the language of instruction. This certainly explains a large part of their weaker performance in PASEC, since the test is administered in French. Pre-service and in-service teacher training have been also criticized by teachers. While the vast majority of primary school teachers (91%) have received initial training, 55% expressed dissatisfaction with subject content training, and 44% with the methodological training received.
The Spotlight series of reports started in 2021. The first continental report in the series, Born to Learn, set out eight recommendations for the entire series, among them a clear call to give every child the opportunity to first learn to read in a language they understand, and every teacher the preparation and confidence to teach them to do so.
Tools such as the new AU LEARN policy dashboard developed in 2025 help map countries’ approaches to core elements of foundational learning, including the provision of teaching and learning materials in children’s home languages. According to the AU LEARN policy dashboard, of 50 countries, only 22 had developed textbooks in local languages; and of 45 countries with relevant data, only 19 had developed teacher guides in local languages.
Burundi’s experience is a powerful reminder that language policy is a decisive factor in children’s futures. Early instruction in Kirundi has shown what is possible when learners are taught in a familiar language. Yet the abrupt transition to French, compounded by insecurity, economic strain and reduced investment, has undermined those early gains and widened learning gaps as children progress through school. Reversing declining outcomes will require more than curriculum adjustments; it demands sustained peace, renewed financing, stronger teacher preparation and a carefully managed bilingual transition that protects comprehension while expanding opportunity.
Read the 2025 Spotlight Report: Lead for foundational learning
Read the advocacy brief: the right multilingual policies can unlock learning and inclusion.
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