• COMESA
• EAC
• ECCAS

• Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG) Overall Governance Score: 41.4 / 100
• Rank: 43rd out of 54 countries

The current population of Burundi is 14,374,796 (June 2025 estimate based on United Nations data via Worldometer).

The size of Burundi's informal economy is estimated at 35.3% of GDP (approximately USD 4 billion at GDP PPP levels).

It is estimated that approximately 95% of Burundians work in the informal economy. This includes mainly small-scale agriculture, as well as services, industry, and trade. In the absence of formal employment opportunities, many young people work in the informal sector.

Burundi’s legal system is a mixed system combining elements of Belgian civil law and customary law.

• The Constitution is the supreme law.
• Legislation, including presidential decrees, has binding authority.
• International treaties must be ratified and incorporated into domestic law.
• Customary law plays a significant role, particularly in personal matters at local level.

Burundi has been a member of the International Labour Organization (ILO) since 1963.

The country has ratified several ILO conventions, including:

• Conventions relating to fundamental rights at work
• The right to organise and collective bargaining
• Conventions addressing the worst forms of child labour

Burundi has developed a Decent Work Country Programme (DWCP) 2020–2023, aligned with national development plans and aimed at mobilising resources for ILO-supported activities.

Burundi’s workers’ rights framework consists of constitutional protections, labour legislation, and ratified international and regional human rights instruments.

Burundi has ratified key international and regional treaties, including:

• ICCPR
• ICESCR
• African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR)

These instruments recognise rights such as:

• The right to fair wages
• Safe and healthy working conditions
• Freedom of association

Despite the existence of legal protections, enforcement challenges remain. Reports frequently highlight:

• Restrictions on freedom of association
• Incidents of forced labour
• Low wages and poor working conditions
• Limited access to justice

Burundi’s social protection system is currently undergoing revision with a focus on:

• Expanding coverage
• Improving coordination
• Addressing poverty and vulnerability
• Integrating contributory and non-contributory programmes

A key initiative is the establishment of a Unified Social Registry to improve targeting and resource allocation.

The ILO’s Global Flagship Programme on Building Social Protection Floors for All supports Burundi in extending social protection to informal workers by addressing:

• Legal barriers
• Administrative barriers
• Financial constraints

The programme aims to develop sustainable social protection systems in line with ILO standards and the Sustainable Development Goals.

Burundi has taken steps to align labour law with international standards and extend protection to informal workers.

The 2020 Labour Code forms part of broader reform efforts. Although a large proportion of workers remain in informal employment, especially in agriculture and related sectors, the government is working toward integration into formal systems and improved access to social protection.

The Social Protection Code of 2020 provides for:

• Financing of non-contributory social protection schemes
• Establishment of a dedicated social protection fund

The DWCP prioritises:

• Extension of social security coverage
• Inclusion of workers in informal and rural economies

The following sectors are identified for analysis:

Domestic workers in Burundi are regulated primarily through the Labour Code (Act No. 1/11 of 24 November 2020 revising Legislative Decree No. 1/037 of 7 July 1993).

Key provisions include:

• Application of the Labour Code to informal and domestic work

Relations between domestic workers, informal sector workers and their employers are governed by the Labour Code within the limits of specific legislation applicable to them.

  (Art. 2(2) read with Art. 3(2) of the Labour Code).

• Specific legislation governing domestic workers

The employment and working conditions of domestic servants who have an employment relationship with the householder are to be determined by a special law.

  (Art. 3(2) of the Labour Code).

• Bilateral agreement on migrant domestic workers

Burundi adopted Act No. 1/18 of 18 May 2022, ratifying the agreement between the Government of the Republic of Burundi and the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia concerning the recruitment of domestic workers.

This agreement regulates the recruitment and protection of Burundian domestic workers employed abroad.

Back to Burundi – High-Level Country Mapping

• Street Vendors
• Waste Reclaiming
• Home Working
• Gig Work and the Platform Economy (“self-employed” sector)
• Farm Work
• Mining Sector and Artisanal Mining
• Taxi and Transport Sector (including gig/platform overlap)
• Cross-Border Informal Trade