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Burundi

Umuco: The Heartbeat of a New Burundi · July 2024 – June 2027

Know Burundi

Burundi is a small, landlocked country in East Africa, bordered by Rwanda, Tanzania, and Democratic Republic of the Congo.The political capital is Gitega, while Bujumbura remains the main economic center. Burundi gained independence from Belgium in 1962.The country’s population is mainly made up of the Hutu, Tutsi, and Twa ethnic groups. Kirundi and French are official languages, and Swahili is also widely used.Burundi’s economy depends largely on agriculture, with coffee and tea being major exports. Most people rely on subsistence farming for their livelihoods.The country has experienced periods of ethnic conflict and political instability, particularly after independence and during the civil war in the 1990s and early 2000s. Efforts toward peace and national rebuilding have continued over time.Overall, Burundi is known for its agricultural economy, cultural traditions, and history of resilience despite political and economic challenges.

Mission Section
COUNTRY SNAPSHOT
Nation at a Glance
13.2M
Population
Population Card
17.0
MEDIAN AGE
Population Card
65%
MOBILE PENETRATION
Population Card
2.6M
INTERNET USERS
Population Card
~75%
CHRISTIAN
~20%
Indigenous Beliefs
Missional Vision

Reaching Burundi's Unreached

Despite a high Christian population, Burundi faces deep spiritual challenges that traditional missions often fail to address. Decades of political unrest and violence have left an entire generation of youth dealing with profound trauma, skepticism, and a search for meaning. The Church has historically struggled to minister to these emotional wounds — creating a critical loophole in effective discipleship.

The ADD strategy leverages digital platforms to bypass physical and emotional barriers, delivering trauma-informed, culturally contextualised content directly to youth in their isolation — and connecting them to a community of healing and faith.

The ADD strategy meets them where they are — online — using Portuguese and local-language digital content and empowering indigenous youth as digital missionaries.

Priority target groups:

  • Youth in public schools and campuses in Cotonou and Parakou
  • Vodun-influenced and animist rural populations
  • Muslim communities in the north and along the Niger border

"I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some of them." — 1 Corinthians 9:22 NIV

Floating Table Layout
1
Digital Content Creation & Translation (90 Media Pieces in Fulfulde, Moore & French)
2
Evangelism via Micro Media Kits (150 SD-Card Kits via Churches & Safe Hubs)
3
Youth Mobilization & Discipleship (300 Youth Digital Missionaries via WhatsApp & Apps)
4
Women's Engagement (Storytelling Circles & Audio Devotionals via Solar Players)
5
Social Media Campaigns (TikTok & YouTube with Gospel Musicians & Influencers)
6
WhatsApp Outreach (Follow-Up & Audio Clip Sharing)
7
Bluetooth Evangelism (Content Sharing in Limited-Internet Communities)
8
Online Ads (Targeted Google & Social Media Campaigns)
9
Film Projections (Mobile Projection Units in Communities)
10
Radio Evangelism (Remote Area Broadcasts)
11
Mobile Apps (Bible Translations & Devotionals)
12
SMS Evangelism (Bible Verses & Church Invitations)
13
Digital House Churches (Micro-Fellowships led by Trained Leaders)
14
Trauma Care Content (Resources for Displaced & Violence-Affected)
15
Collaborative Networking (16 African Nations Resource Sharing)
Mission Section
DIGITAL STRATEGY
15 Ministry Channels
Mission Section
GOALS AND OUTCOME
July 2024-June 2029
Responsive Table
ObjectiveYear 1Year 2Year 3Total
Gospel Exposures300,000350,000400,0001,050,000
Decisions for Christ20,00025,00025,00070,000
Youth Missionaries Trained606060180
Tablets Deployed100--100+
Digital House Churches Planted10121335
TRANSFORMATIONAL STORIES
Lives Being Changed
“
Thierry Nkurunziza
24 · Former Displaced Youth, Bujumbura · Digital House Church Leader
Thierry lost two cousins in the 2015 political violence and spent three years cycling through anger, numbness, and distrust of institutions — including the church. "They told me to forgive, but they never asked how I was still breathing." A TikTok drama in Kirundi, depicting a young man processing grief through faith, appeared on his phone one evening. He laughed at first. Then he watched it four more times. Through a follow-up WhatsApp group, digital missionary Immaculée connected with him weekly for two months, working through trauma-informed Discovery Bible Studies. In week eight, Thierry gave his life to Christ.
"I thought faith was for people who had not suffered. I was wrong — it is for people who have." Today, Thierry leads a Kirundi-language digital house church on WhatsApp with 17 members, most of them former sceptics like himself.
GET INVOLVED
Join The Mission
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