From homes to tents: Unseen Traumas of Displaced Women in Burundi
Over the last five years, climate change-induced effects have displaced more than 190,000 people in Burundi. Yet, it is women who bear the deepest, most enduring scars. In makeshift camps, they battle not only the loss of homes and loved ones but the invisible wounds of trauma, depression, and social stigma. Limited mental health services and erratic and fragmented climate financing fuel the burden. Both climate change and mental health experts urge the adoption of long-term, sustainable solutions for communities most at risk.
This is the final article in a series exploring the impacts of climate change on the mental health of internally displaced populations in Burundi. While part one examined young people, part two turns to women.
This story was produced under the support of the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism in partnership with the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Global Center for Child and Adolescent Mental Health at the Child Mind Institute.
Warned, yet wounded
“I thought I was safe,” regrets Francine Niwenkunda, a flood victim from Rumonge province, as she reflects on the floods that uprooted her life. According to her, a simple radio announcement, “This year, expect heavy rainfall, ” marked the beginning of a tragic journey to living in the camp.
The IGEBU (Institut Géographique du Burundi), a national institute tasked with geographic research and climate change monitoring information in Burundi, issued the warning.
The Geographical National Institute warned that the 2023–2024 rainy season could bring excessive downpours and historic water levels.
Currently sheltered in the camp of internally displaced persons called Mutambara III, located in the southern Burundi’s Rumonge Province, this internally displaced mother of four is just 77 kilometers from Bujumbura, the country’s economic capital.
As she remembers, she felt reassured at first: “I wasn’t worried because my home was far beyond the legally designated 100-mile boundary from Lake Tanganyika. Thus, I thought I was safe.” But the floodwaters defied expectations and boundaries. “The water traveled miles beyond the danger zone and engulfed my house. I rescued nothing. That’s how I ended up here,” she said with a regret heavy in her voice.
Experts warn that these tragedies reflect systemic vulnerabilities, where climate change meets fragile infrastructure, poor planning, and limited resilience strategies.
Living on the edge of Lake Tanganyika
The water level of Lake Tanganyika has steadily increased over the years. According to Professor Bernard Sindayihebura, the lake’s water level has surged from 775.30 meters in 2018 to 777.4 meters in April 2024, marking a 1.34-meter rise in just six years. Since 2005, the increase has totaled 4.42 meters, nearing a critical threshold. “Only 4 centimeters separate us from the lake’s 1964 level,” Professor Sindayihebura warned. “It is now 2.4 meters beyond its normal level.”
The environmentalist attributes this sharp rise to excessive rainfall, which has surpassed typical seasonal averages. “Precipitation levels have reached 770 millimeters, significantly contributing to the lake’s swelling,” he warned gravely.
He further explained that global warming has disrupted rain patterns, leading to unusual rainfall across Burundi and the wider region that shares Lake Tanganyika. “The excessive precipitation we are witnessing is a result of climate change,” he said. “Rainfall patterns have shifted, and we are now seeing precipitation far beyond what the land can handle.”
The environmentalist also pointed to deforestation as a compounding factor. “Our hillsides have been stripped of vegetation, which means the soil can no longer absorb rainwater effectively,” he noted. “This leads to rapid runoff, severe soil erosion, and sediment buildup in lakes and rivers, significantly increasing floods,” he highlighted.
Fragile infrastructure and policy gaps
The expert regrets that Burundi suffers the most among other countries that share Lake Tanganyika. For him, Burundians have built many houses along the lake shore, jeopardizing their lives.
“While climate change is a regional phenomenon, Burundi remains particularly vulnerable,” the professor noted. “Our people have built extensively along the shoreline, and this unplanned expansion has only worsened the damage caused by rising water levels and persistent storms.”
Another researcher and lecturer at the University of Burundi, specializing in Geographical Sciences, Environment, and Population, Dr. Athanase Nkunzimana, emphasizes that Burundi’s vulnerability to climate change-induced effects results from inadequate disaster management strategies.
“In a country with strong disaster preparedness, even five times the rainfall Burundi experiences wouldn’t cause the same level of destruction,” Dr. Nkunzimana states. “But here, the lack of effective mitigation measures devastates every extreme weather event,” he concluded.
Widowhood and grief in the Camp
After severe flooding in southern and western Burundi, women have been disproportionately affected, facing the most significant hardships and trauma at both Gisagara and Mutambara III Camps, where they have been displaced.
Gisagara camp is made of makeshift shelters constructed from large plastic tarpaulin sheets, supported by wooden frames. Their rudimentary appearance highlights the difficult living conditions and uncertainties IDPs face. It is nested in a hilly area of the Matyazo commune of Bujumbura.
Women and girls trek daily through the steep terrain surrounding Gisagara camp, descending sharply into valleys and climbing rugged hillsides to fetch water. When the rains pour, the camp becomes a muddy maze, and its pathways are slippery and uneven.
At the entrance of the camp, there is a mini market. Some women sell sugarcane, grilled maize, charcoal, local vegetables, and other essentials. Many of them are heads of households, since their husbands have left them.
In this camp, the pain of displacement runs deepest for women like Suavis Ndiwenumuryango. Her face tells a story of survival and sorrow shaped not just by climate disaster, but by an unbearable personal loss. She regrets that floods claimed her husband, leaving her widowed.
Now widowed, she bears the dual burden of grief and survival. Her husband, who was a fisherman in Lake Tanganyika, lost his life in the aftermath of catastrophic flooding, a tragedy that continues to haunt her.
“Water gushed into our house during the night,” recalled Suavis. “My husband and I rescued our children. Two days later, he returned there on a boat to recover some of our belongings. But he never made it home again.” Tears welled in her eyes, and she continued, “A crocodile attacked and devoured him. That’s how he died, leaving me alone with children to care for, without any source of income.” Her voice broke as she spoke.
Now, living in the tents of the displacement camp, this widow struggles to rest. “I hardly fall asleep,” she confessed. “Even when I do, I start dreaming nightmares and then wake up suddenly during the night and start praying. Life in camp remains unbearably difficult, she admitted.
For her, the loss of her husband has left deep emotional wounds. “Living in these tents without him has truly injured my heart and left me an unbearable burden of taking care of our children,” she lamented. “I feel overwhelmed by a deep, lingering sadness.”
Next to her tent door, Vella Harerimana, another 75-year-old widow, describes the devastating impact of the floods, saying she had never experienced such trauma in her lifetime over the decades she has lived on earth.
“My husband had left me a splendid residence, but I never thought that one day I would find myself in the tents,” she said. “It is stressful. I lost all my livestock and everything. I don’t sleep anymore. Whatever happens during the night, I see it. I am afraid that I will end up being mentally ill,” she reflected.
The true cost of displacement
The International Organization for Migration (IOM)’s Displacement Tracking Matrix reports that, as of December 31, 2024, 196,171 people are displaced and sheltered in various camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs), including Gisagara, Gateri, Mutambara, and other camps across Burundi. This number accounts for 1,016,849 people affected by floods, landslides, strong winds, heavy rainfall, and hail.
Francine and Suavis, both displaced women, are among the 55% of internally displaced people that IOM’s Displacement Tracking Matrix reveals, as 45% are men. The above data highlight the vulnerability of women to extreme weather events.
Abdul Karim Muzinga, leader of the Gisagara Camp, highlights the hardships women face, citing economic struggles and a lack of privacy in personal relationships as key sources of frustration and vulnerability.
“Many women have been left to fend for themselves,” Muzinga stated. “After the floods that destroyed everything, many men decided to leave their wives. They have gone to hustle. Unfortunately, some don’t come back. This burdens their wives, who struggle to feed their children. That’s why when you see them sitting somewhere, they are lost in thoughts of how to find food for their children,” he noted.
The camp’s living conditions add another layer of difficulty. Families share one-room tents that offer little privacy, which Muzinga noted restricts couples from having intimate relationships.
The mental toll on displaced women
According to UN Women, the climate crisis amplifies existing gender inequalities and poses unique threats to their livelihoods, health, and safety. The same UN agency reports that by 2050, climate change could push up to 158 million additional women and girls into poverty, 16 million more than the projected number of men and boys. Even now, 47.8 million more women than men are experiencing food insecurity and hunger.
UN Women’s findings on gendered climate impacts resonate strongly in Burundi. At Gisagara Camp, Red Cross volunteer Alvella Ndayisenga witnesses these realities firsthand. She admits that the psychological toll of displacement is evident, with cases of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and gender-based violence on the rise among women.
“The difference is overwhelming when they compare their lives in Gatumba to their current reality in the camp. Everything has changed,” she explained. “It is difficult to accept the loss of their possessions and live without them. When we see individuals consumed and lost in thoughts, withdrawn from others, we approach them and engage in conversation. They have endured deep emotional wounds,” the volunteer highlights.
Ndayisenga revealed that the Red Cross records an average of two cases per week of gender-based violence, largely driven by poverty and inadequate housing. “These women have lost their sources of income. They have no jobs. Their living conditions make them vulnerable,” she noted, adding that the precarious nature of the tents, transparent and lacking privacy, further exacerbates the risks. “This environment contributes to gender-based violence. Without proper housing, intimate moments are exposed, and tensions arise,” she said.
Women are the backbone of families.
Dr. Godelive Nimubona, one of the only four Burundi psychiatrists currently working at Kamenge Neuropsychiatric Center (CNPK), emphasizes the severe toll displacement takes on women’s mental well-being.
“In Burundian society, women form the backbone of the family structure,” she explains. “When disasters strike, they are mostly destabilized because they carry the weight of the family on their shoulders, especially their children, whom they struggle to care for as they wish”.
Beyond individual cases, deeper social structures reveal why women carry the heaviest psychological burdens, from entrenched caregiving roles to limited decision-making power in rebuilding their lives.
“These internally displaced women are struggling to accept what happened,” she explains. “Indeed, their families have been severely affected.” They live in precarious conditions, unable to sleep properly, which in turn affects their ability to eat and maintain overall health. “These challenges impact their mental well-being, leading to disorders such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorder,” Nimubona adds.
The psychiatrist illustrates the burden with a stark example: “Imagine a family that contracted a bank loan to build a house, only for it to be flooded. They are now living in a tent, yet still must repay the debt.” Such financial and physical strain, she notes, can exacerbate psychological distress when the bank continues to claim its money.
Her concerns are echoed in recent data from the Ni Abacu project, which underscores the gendered burden of mental illness.
While women remain vulnerable to the impacts of climate change on mental health, the “Ni Abacu” (which translates as “they are ours”) project reports that the most vulnerable age group is between 25 and 35 years old followed by women with 66.7%, young people (14.3%), men, and finally widows, widowers, and divorcees (7.1%).
Between 2021 and 2024, the number of diagnosed cases increased steadily from 300 to nearly 5,000, reaching a total of 10,000 cases over the four years. Among these people, 57.1% are women and 42.9% are men.
Behind these numbers are real faces, women battling loss, stigma, and silence.
Alvella and Abdul Karim, the camp leaders, call for psychological support for internally displaced women, emphasizing that their needs go beyond essential supplies.
“While we receive food, utensils, and school materials for students, psychological support is just as crucial,” says Abdul Karim. “Some people have been deeply traumatized, and they need help to heal.” He called, adding that addressing mental health among internally displaced people is vital for rebuilding lives and ensuring the well-being of these affected families.
Barriers to Mental Health in Burundi
This urgent call for psychological support meets a wall of systemic challenges, scarcity of specialists, stigma, and the prohibitive cost of treatment, all of which choke Burundi’s mental health response. Aside from that, stereotypes and the lack of awareness of mental health fuel the matter.
As per the recent Mental Health survey in Burundi, persistent misconceptions about mental illness remain high, with 7.5% of respondents believing that mental health disorders can be contracted through greetings, conversations, or shared meals. Additionally, 20.5% think those affected should be taken to a place of prayer rather than seeking medical treatment.
On the other hand, discriminatory attitudes have also emerged, with 7.3% of individuals believing that people with mental illness should be isolated, while 4.8% think they should be tied up or confined.
Despite these challenges, access to mental health specialists remains alarmingly low. Only 1.6% of individuals have sought professional consultation, and even among those who intended to, the actual consultation rate is just 3.4%.
Lack of awareness delays healing
Alexis Hatungimana, a psychotherapist and Program Manager at Trauma Healing and Reconciliation Services (THARS), as well as the National Coordinator of the “Ni Abacu” project, especially the community component, warns that a lack of mental health awareness hinders proper diagnosis and treatment in Burundi.
“In Burundi, mental health often remains in the shadows. Without widespread awareness, individuals delay seeking professional help, opting instead for traditional or spiritual alternatives that often misdiagnose trauma.”
He also addressed the disparity in mental health diagnoses between men and women, cautioning against interpreting the higher number of diagnoses among women as a sign of weakness. “This does not mean that women are weak and men are strong,” he explained. “Rather, women are more extroverted, while Burundian men adhere deeply to cultural expectations that dictate resilience, requiring them to hide their pain no matter what,” he noted.
However, he adds that in cases of disasters or other climate change-induced effects, women remain vulnerable due to their strong attachment to children, families, and livestock. He also emphasizes the vulnerability of women and confirms the government’s willingness to delve deeper into understanding why women are disproportionately affected.
Stigma at the frontline
Aside from that, Dr. Marie Neige Kaneza, a psychiatrist specializing in mental health and its intersections with HIV/AIDS in Burundi, warns that stigma remains a significant driver of relapse, particularly for women. The Director of Care at the Kamenge Neuropsychiatric Center (CNPK) says that deeply entrenched societal attitudes lead to repeated relapses.
“For many women, the social stigma tied to mental illness eclipses even the suffering of the condition itself,” she explains. “Women are more vulnerable. After treatment and ergotherapy services, we send them back home, but the community often refuses to reintegrate them,” reveals the mental health professional.
According to Dr. Kaneza, many women return to find their lives irrevocably altered. “Some arrive home to discover their husbands have married other women. Others are denied the right to care for their children as before,” she says. “In some cases, a husband withdraws completely, refusing intimacy, limiting his wife’s autonomy, or excluding her from major family decisions, such as selling properties. These forms of rejection leave women deeply isolated, pushing them back into relapse”, regrets Kaneza.
Medication beyond reach
Compounding these challenges is the scarcity of psychotropic medications, placing life-saving treatments beyond reach for most. “These medications are lifelong treatments,” she explains. “For many struggling financially, affording them is nearly impossible”, Dr. Godelive Nimubona warns.
The psychiatrist attributes the shortage to Burundi’s ongoing economic difficulties, particularly the lack of foreign currency, which has disrupted imports across multiple sectors, including essential goods like fuel and medicine.
“The economic crisis has affected all areas, and mental health care is no exception,” she states. “Without access to vital medications, patients are left vulnerable, and their conditions often worsen. Unfortunately, some end up in relapse,” she noted.
Mental health is not a luxury but a foundation for sustainable development.
Despite growing challenges in Burundi’s mental health sector, psychotherapist Alexis Hatungimana remains optimistic about the expansion of the “Ni Abacu” project to additional provinces.
“We hope this program will reach more communities and provide much-needed support,” Hatungimana stated.
However, he warns that worsening living conditions, including fuel shortages, extreme weather disasters, and rising costs, could exacerbate mental health struggles nationwide.
“When you consider the recurring floods, landslides that leave families homeless, and the trauma they endure, the weight is immense,” he said. “Spending sleepless nights in long fuel queues for something you once bought in minutes, watching prices soar while wages remain stagnant, daily struggles only add to the mental health crisis,” he adds.
For this psychotherapist, the vision of Burundi becoming an emerging and developed country by 2040 and 2060 is at risk. “A country cannot thrive when its people are mentally unwell and unable to participate fully in the workforce,” he stated. “Mental health is not a luxury, it’s a foundation for sustainable development”, clarifies the specialist.
Mental health left behind
While Burundi possesses national programs addressing HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases, the expert regrets a critical absence of a comprehensive, data-driven mental health strategy.
“It is regrettable that the country does not have national public data on mental health. This fuels the ignorance and stigma around mental health. We need a national and data-based framework for mental health,” he urged.
Dr. Kaneza emphasizes the urgent need to address the psychological impact of climate change before the situation worsens. “These events occur suddenly and trigger acute stress. However, with immediate psychological support, the risk of developing severe mental health issues can be mitigated,” she stated.
She also called on media professionals, in collaboration with experts, to guide the community in properly reintegrating individuals in remission or living in recovery. “Many in recovery face unnecessary restrictions; they are overprotected and prevented from resuming their normal activities, including attending school. This, too, is a form of stigmatization. The media must help us convey this message to the community,” she asserted.
Beyond the call to media professionals to raise awareness about various forms of stigmatization within the community, Roger Ndikumana, General Director of Civil Protection and Disaster Management, underscored the escalating impact of climate change during the World Civil Protection Day celebration on March 7, 2025.
Speaking on his department’s response strategies, Ndikumana emphasized ongoing efforts to enhance disaster management planning. “We have worked closely with specialists to identify high-risk areas, which are now integrated into a multi-hazard mapping system to improve preparedness and decision-making,” he stated.
Ndikumana highlights that, beyond disaster management, the Government of Burundi has outlined a strategic approach to combating climate change. “Through its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC), Burundi is implementing adaptation and mitigation measures in alignment with the commitments made by other signatories of the Paris Agreement,” he stated.
Burundi’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) outline key climate action goals. The unconditional objectives include increasing greenhouse gas sinks by reforesting 4 hectares annually from 2016 to 2030, constructing three hydroelectric plants to raise the electrification rate to 35%, and achieving a power generation capacity of 45.4 MW by 2030.
On the other hand, the conditional objectives, dependent on funding, involve reforesting 8,000 hectares annually for 15 years, replacing all carbonization ovens and traditional domestic stoves by 2030, and gradually substituting mineral fertilizers with organic manure within the same timeframe.
Beyond mitigation and adaptation measures, the Conference of the Parties (COP28) held at Expo City Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, operationalized the loss and damage fund to provide crucial assistance to developing nations that face heightened vulnerability due to the adverse effects of climate change.
The loss and damage fund plays a vital role in supporting victims of climate change-related disasters. However, Augustin Ngenzirabona, General Director of the Institut Géographique du Burundi (IGEBU) and Burundi’s national focal point for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), laments over inconsistent financing. He highlights that funding commitments are often unreliable, with some countries failing to fulfill their pledges.
According to the UNFCCC, as of March 26, 2025, a total of USD 768.40 million has been pledged to the Fund for responding to Loss and Damage, while only USD 469.42 million has been signed. Through the Green Climate Fund, Burundi has so far earned 44.2million
While climate financing is inconsistent, internally displaced individuals are struggling with the rising cost of food, noting that the monthly allowance of 235,000 Burundi Francs ( USD 78.96) per family is insufficient given that food inflation has soared to 40% in March 2025, according to the recent data published by the Central Bank of Burundi. This has added pressure to their already strained resources.
A call for restoration and dignity
Francine Niwenkunda, who still resides in Mutambara III camp in Rumonge province, emphasized the need for economic empowerment. “Instead of giving us monthly food allowances, they should provide capital so we can return to our normal activities. I was a merchant at Rumonge market,” she said. “Staying home with your children, staring into their eyes while wondering how to feed them, becomes an emotional battleground. The stress is overwhelming, so much so that I lose control, retreating into a day of silent isolation, unwilling to speak to anyone .”
Similarly, Ndiwenumuryango and Harerimana, who were recently resettled to Gateri camp after heavy rains, thunderstorms, and lightning threatened them at Gisagara camp, echoed the need for durable solutions. “Floods destroyed our homes in Gatumba, and now we are here,” they explained. “The government and other humanitarian organizations should give us farming land and durable lodges because we are not responsible for climate change-induced effects or natural disasters.”, they called.
These internally displaced women are enduring an invisible crisis. Their trauma is ongoing, shaped by loss, isolation, and the daily struggle to survive. Mental health support remains scarce, and stigma runs deep. Without bold investment in psychological care, sustainable mitigation and adaptation strategies, along with an equitable share of loss and damage funds, temporary relief will only prolong the suffering. What these women need is not just shelter, but a path to restoration and the dignity they deserve.
This story was produced under the support of the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism in partnership with the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Global Center for Child and Adolescent Mental Health at the Child Mind Institute.