In pictures: Burundi 'peace village'

The last Burundian refugees remaining in Tanzania following Burundi's long civil war between Hutus and Tutsis are due to return home this year. Some are beginning to live side by side in "peace villages".

Charlotte Nikwigiize is an ethnic Hutu, born in a Tanzanian refugee camp in 1975. She arrived in Burundi for the first time in July and now lives in the Gitara peace village near the Tanzanian border.

Families at Gitara are given a two-room hut made from plastic sheeting. Many are now making their houses more permanent, so that Gitara will begin to look more like a normal village.

Up to 20 peace villages are planned in Burundi. Elie Nizigyinana is a Tutsi living alongside Charlotte Nikwigiize. "We have to put our past differences behind us," he says, "to build a new Burundi".

Water, land, agricultural inputs, health and education services are provided to the peace villages and the surrounding areas. They are supported by the European Commission Humanitarian Aid department.

Every family is due to receive land, although Charlotte Nikwigiize is still waiting for hers. "I need to start planting, so I can feed my family. Only then will I feel as though I've returned home," she says.

Charlotte Nikwigiize's children are meeting their new neighbours and looking forward to starting school. Charlotte hopes they can make friends with Tutsi children and help Burundi recover.

As the new inhabitants get used to their surroundings they are hoping the peace village will be more than just symbolic. Pictures and text courtesy of Daniel Dickinson/ECHO.

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