Burundi has a tradition of mutual solidarity which is in danger of being lost. It needs to be supported and encouraged: people helped each other, joined together in community development projects and celebrated together in good times as in bad. The crisis in Burundi divided people on ethnic lines and in other ways and a common work project is a good way of creating bonds of friendship and understanding. ABSV is keen to contribute to national reconstruction through solidarity and it has chosen an environmental project because Burundi's fragile environment needs to be preserved.
Objectives of this project:
- contribute to peace building and cultural exchange. - demonstrate the workcamp as a model for involving young people in development and reconciliation work in Burundi.
Specific objectives:
- bring the local people together and help establish better relations between them. - engage in useful work for the benefit of the community. - encourage the Burundian tradition of communal work. - bring volunteers from other countries to share their experiences of volunteer action.
Work:
Volunteers will make bricks to renovate houses destroyed by floods in the Buterere community in Bujumbura.
Study Part:
There will also be a study part on development education.
Location:
Buterere is a relatively poor neighbourhood on the edge of the capital city, Bujumbura, and fairly near to the airport.
« I can say that the best things about the workcamp and this whole experience were the chance of making a real difference to the lives of very needy children. This is an extremely valuable project where volunteers can have a massive impact. Also the possibility of learning a huge amount about a country so different from our own. I learnt ten times as much by carrying out a workcamp than I would ever do backpacking. »
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