'Life impossible' as Burundians battle crippling basic shortages

A pharmacist assists some customers at a pharmacy in Bujumbura on August 20, 2024. - One of the poorest nations on the planet, Burundi is plagued by a crippling shortage of basic necessities - vital medicines as well as fuel and sugar, electricity and water. The landlocked country in the Great Lakes region of Africa has witnessed several similar shortages since 2015. [AFP]

Gerard walks despondently around his small pharmacy in the centre of Burundi's main city Bujumbura, surveying the many empty shelves.

"Patients are dying due to a lack of access to certain treatments," says the pharmacist, in his 60s.