"Without technology, industrialization can’t happen and without industrialization, there is no development. Those are the statements made by Captain Dieudonné Dukundane, Minister of Infrastructure, Equipment and Social Housing during the explanatory statement in the plenary session of Monday, April 24, 2023, on the bill on the ratification of the cooperation agreement between the Government of the Republic of Tunisia and the Government of the Republic of Burundi in the area of technological and industrial development.

While Burundi intends to equip itself with modern industries, the Government envoy added, it is necessary to establish new sustainable partnerships in the technological and industrial sector in order to contribute more and more to economic growth and industrial competitiveness. Moreover, industrial activities constitute a powerful response to the important needs of today and the future and create many jobs. The objective of the agreement is therefore to strongly contribute to give a new impetus to the relations between Burundi and Tunisia through the realization of exemplary partnerships in the technological and industrial sectors.

Indeed, there was already an economic, technical, scientific and cultural cooperation agreement between Burundi and Tunisia signed on February 3rd 1984, but it has not made much progress in terms of implementation because it was limited to study and training grants that Tunisia gave to the Government of Burundi and to mutual support in groups of countries and regional and international organisations. That new agreement will therefore benefit Burundi by seeking investment opportunities with higher levels of profitability.

For its effective implementation, Article 4 of the agreement provides for the creation of a sector-based committee for industrial and technological development. After being analyzed, the bill was unanimously adopted.