Beyond Battlefields: Rebuilding Education and Redefining Identity and Conflict through Schooling in Post-War Burundi
Abstract
Inequalities between ethnic and regional groups, known as horizontal inequalities, increase the likelihood of civil war, and inequalities education are especially important. Scholarship and policy contend that redistributing education will contribute to peace, though this assertion remains largely under-explored. Indeed, there is often a disconnect between policies, objective inequalities, and how they are perceived. I thus unpack and explore the assumption that (equal) education builds peace.
I conduct a mixed-methods case study on education access and perceived inequalities in Burundi after its civil war (1993-2005). Burundi’s education system was unequal pre-war, and ethno-regional power has shifted post-war. I draw on a three-part theoretical framework considering: the historical institutional legacies of inequality; changing ethnic and regional group status post-war; and the politicization of identity boundaries. I use a mixed-methods analysis to explore this case. I conduct an analysis of post-war education policies, as well ass interviews with 11 education officials and experts in Burundi. I then explore trends in the mandatory national exams across the country from 2009-2018 to assess changes in inequalities. Finally, I analyze interviews with 114 Burundian youth on how they perceive inequality in education and beyond.
I argue that in Burundi both pre- and post-war institutional structures influence the efficacy of policies to reduce education inequalities, and sometimes work in opposition to each other. I find that despite policies to address education inequalities, ethnic and regional inequalities remain, or are worse, since the end of the war. Further, how Burundian youth interpret changing inequalities depends on the politicization of the identity boundary and changing ethno-regional group status. Burundian youth rarely perceived ethnic inequality in education, though perceived regional inequalities remain, and have become more complex. I caution that without commensurate access to post-school opportunities, addressing education inequalities can only go so far to reduce perceived inequality. Youth still perceive ethnic inequalities in employment prospects. Overall, I find that policies to address education inequalities are necessary but not sufficient to overcome systemic exclusion, both objectively and in their perceptions. Such considerations may help policymakers foster equitable education systems and contribute to peace.
I conduct a mixed-methods case study on education access and perceived inequalities in Burundi after its civil war (1993-2005). Burundi’s education system was unequal pre-war, and ethno-regional power has shifted post-war. I draw on a three-part theoretical framework considering: the historical institutional legacies of inequality; changing ethnic and regional group status post-war; and the politicization of identity boundaries. I use a mixed-methods analysis to explore this case. I conduct an analysis of post-war education policies, as well ass interviews with 11 education officials and experts in Burundi. I then explore trends in the mandatory national exams across the country from 2009-2018 to assess changes in inequalities. Finally, I analyze interviews with 114 Burundian youth on how they perceive inequality in education and beyond.
I argue that in Burundi both pre- and post-war institutional structures influence the efficacy of policies to reduce education inequalities, and sometimes work in opposition to each other. I find that despite policies to address education inequalities, ethnic and regional inequalities remain, or are worse, since the end of the war. Further, how Burundian youth interpret changing inequalities depends on the politicization of the identity boundary and changing ethno-regional group status. Burundian youth rarely perceived ethnic inequality in education, though perceived regional inequalities remain, and have become more complex. I caution that without commensurate access to post-school opportunities, addressing education inequalities can only go so far to reduce perceived inequality. Youth still perceive ethnic inequalities in employment prospects. Overall, I find that policies to address education inequalities are necessary but not sufficient to overcome systemic exclusion, both objectively and in their perceptions. Such considerations may help policymakers foster equitable education systems and contribute to peace.
