The Burundi crisis – brought on by the president’s decision to run for a third term – was a significant test of regional and continental organizations’ ability to effectively intervene in African member states experiencing instability. Emerging as a key obstacle, was issues of coordination and cooperation across organizations, but it is the lack of political will of African states to sanction their peers that is the greatest barrier to tackling the instability that frequently arises when incumbents choose to alter term limits.This report traces the efforts of the African Union (AU) and the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) to support efforts to resolve the crisis in Burundi. It examines the institutional and political constraints that these organisations face when attempting to address instability in their member states. Finally, the report also addresses coordination issues between the AU, the ICGLR and the East African Community (EAC), which has been the lead body on the Burundi crisis.
