[1] Burundi is unusual among African states in having a single indigenous language shared by its entire population.

[2] In recent years, the Burundian government has promoted the use of the Kirundi language as a way to unify the country's different ethnic groups.

As a legacy of Belgian colonial rule, French has an important role in government, business, and the educated classes but only between 3 and 10 percent of the population speak the language fluently.

[2] Burundian vernacular French also frequently incorporates loanwords from Kirundi, Lingala and other languages.

English was adopted as part of moves towards regional integration with the East African Community after 2007 but has little effective presence in the country.