The Human Development Index ranks 188 countries around the globe in a composite statistic of life expectancy, education, and income per capita. High-ranking countries enjoy higher lifespan and education as well as lower inflation and fertility rates. At the bottom of the list are countries in the most extreme states of poverty; the last 17 are all located in Africa, with Burundi ranking 184th.
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Often referred to as the “Heart of Africa,” Burundi is one of the few countries to be a direct territorial continuation of a pre-colonial state. The small landlocked nation in the heart of East Africa bordering Rwanda, Tanzania, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo strongly opposed any European influence. The Germans were determined, and in 1899 they staged a royal coup with the king’s son-in-law, only to lose the nation in 1916 to Belgium (who eventually ceded their holdings through an agreement with the United Nations).
In 1962, Burundi was re-established as a sovereign state, one heavily plagued by the conflict between the Hutu and Tutsi ethnic groups that arose under colonization. The conflicts were as extreme as it could get, including political assassinations, two ethnic genocides, and a 22-year civil war.
Today, after a decade of relative peace, evidence of the old conflict once again manifests. According to the UN, since April 2015, at least 439 people have died and 240,000 have become refugees. For those who remain, 80% of the population lives in poverty. The bicycle has become an integral part of the nation’s economy, allowing for citizens to maintain the most basic elements of a working economy.
In late 2013, German photographer Stephan Würth embarked on a road trip across Burundi, using his iPhone to document a lesser known side of this part of the world. Drawn to the “bike taxi-men” that can be seen weaving in and out of the bustling city streets and vibrant open air markets of the country’s capital, Bujumbura, their bikes loaded with everything from human passengers and bundles of sweet bananas to bedroom sets and bricks, Würth’s photographs reveal the integral role the bicycle—or ikinga—plays in Burundi today.
All photos: ©Stephan Würth, courtesy of Damiani.
Miss Rosen is a New York-based writer, curator, and brand strategist. There is nothing she adores so much as photography and books. A small part of her wishes she had a proper library, like in the game of Clue. Then she could blaze and write soliloquies to her in and out of print loves.
