“Home is Home”: A Burundian returnee’s journey to rebuilding his life back home after years in exile

When 39-year-old Bizimana Pascal fled violence in his home country Burundi for the second time, and found safety in Tanzania’s Nyarugusu refugee camp, returning home was the last thing on his mind.

Displacement was, sadly, not a new experience for Pascal. He first fled his country Burundi when he was just ten years old, forced to leave behind many close relatives and a place he had once called home. Years later, he returned to Burundi with some of his family, only to take on the same journey back to Tanzania. He settled down in the Nyarugusu refugee camp with his wife and eight children, most of whom were born there.

However, humanitarian assistance he and his family depended on to survive gradually reduced as their needs grew. There were also limited opportunities to find meaningful work in the camp and earn an income that would supplement the aid they received.

“Life in the camp was not easy. I used to work in the field outside the camp to be able to provide for the family or burn charcoal that I sold to earn some money. We received assistance but sometimes it was very difficult to meet even the most basic needs. So, when we heard the crisis in Burundi was over, we decided to go back home and try and start afresh,” said Pascal.

“We heard that the situation had changed in Burundi, and we received messages from the government inviting refugees to return. Then I thought it would be good for me to come back home and prepare the future of my children,” he said.

Home is home

When he arrived in Burundi and after reception processes at the border, Pascal put up at his parents’ house until he could have a house of his own. A few months later, UNHCR, the UN refugee Agency provided him with building materials including iron sheets, poles, windows and wooden doorframes, to put up his own house. Pascal also received cash to supplement the cost of buying bricks to complete the house. Now, he has leased a piece of land where he cultivate vegetables that he sells to provide for his family.

"We still are capable and have skills but we need jobs so we can rely on ourselves and care for our families."

Pascal, former Burundian refugee

Since returning, Pascal and his wife have been engaging in small businesses, saving some of their income in savings associations, mostly to get their children through school.

“The authorities and the community supported us in the way they could and warmly welcomed us. While we faced challenges once we returned, we still managed to build a life. I am very proud to say that I have a child taking medical university studies, which would not have been possible in the camp,” he added.

More support for Burundian refugees returning home

Since 2017, Burundian refugees from across the Eastern and Southern Africa region have been voluntarily returning to Burundi, after years in exile. As of 31 January 2026, over 340,000 Burundians were supported to return home mainly from Tanzania. Yet the vast majority of returnees struggle with access to essential services such as housing, healthcare, education and livelihoods, and often find themselves caught in precarious economic circumstances once back.

“We were professionals before we left our country. Now that we are back, we still are capable and have skills but we need jobs so we can rely on ourselves and care for our families,” Pascal noted.

UNHCR together with nine other UN agencies and in partnership with the Government of Burundi are appealing for $82.3 million to provide much needed support for up to 104,600 Burundians who are returning. With these resources, returnees will receive cash assistance to help them supplement their needs, health and nutrition support as well as protection services for the most vulnerable. UNHCR will further strengthen engagement with development actors and international financial institutions to support returnees’ sustainable reintegration, through service delivery, and local development in return areas in Burundi.

“Voluntary return as a durable solution is a process. Sustained reintegration support and investment in areas of return are crucial for returnees to rebuild their lives in safety and dignity,” said UNHCR’s Representative in Burundi, Brigitte Mukanga-Eno.

For Pascal, returning home is a decision he urges refugees to consider.

“Refugees think that when you return, you die. This is not true. When you are hungry, you work. Little by little things get better and you live like the other members of the community,” he ended.