Slow internet : frustration rises among Burundian workers

SOS Médias Burundi

Bujumbura, November 21, 2025 – Poor internet connectivity is crippling productivity in Burundi. Workers and businesses are sounding the alarm over disruptions that have persisted for several weeks, jeopardizing deadlines, report submissions, and the smooth operation of professional activities.

Productivity plummets across all sectors

Across the country, both public and private sector employees are reporting significant difficulties.

Contacted by our newsroom, numerous employees—who preferred to remain anonymous—explained that this situation is preventing them from fulfilling their duties properly.

“It has become impossible to work normally,” lamented one of them, emphasizing that delays are piling up and that the management of digital tasks is severely compromised.

Economic actors forced to slow down their activities

In Bujumbura, Burundi’s commercial capital and home to UN agencies and the central government, a business operator describes the direct impact on national productivity.

“Daily output is falling day by day, across all sectors. Businesses can no longer operate at their usual pace. Transactions are delayed, customer requests are left pending, and this is ultimately taking a heavy toll on the economy,” he explains.

He also laments the silence of Lumitel, one of the country’s main internet service providers. According to several users, complaints about connection quality and the withdrawal of unused credit are multiplying, with no response from the company.

Consumers call for regulatory intervention

Faced with this untenable situation, users are turning to the Telecommunications Regulatory and Control Agency (ARCT).

They are calling on the institution to break its silence and demand that operators rapidly and sustainably improve the quality of their services.

For these consumers, internet access is no longer a luxury, but an essential tool for work, education, and the country’s development.

As of the publication of this article, SOS Médias Burundi had not yet received a response from either a spokesperson for the company mentioned or the regulatory body.