Burundi is moving its capital from the shores of Lake Tanganyika and deep into the nation’s central highlands.

Authorities announced they would change the political capital from Bujumbura to Gitega, which is located over 100 kilometers (62 miles) to the east. The current capital will remain the nation’s commercial center, while five ministries will be established in Gitega beginning 2019, spokesperson to the president Jean-Claude Karerwa Ndenzako said on Twitter.

The decision came just days after president Pierre Nkurunziza, who had promised to move the capital there in 2007 because of its centrality, held a government retreat in the city. The region is also the birthplace and the spot where nation’s last king Ntare V was killed in 1972.

With a population of about 11 million people, Burundi is one of the poorest nations in the world. Since coming to power in 2005, president Nkurunziza has solidified his grip on power, with voters this year backing a constitutional referendum that could see him rule till 2034. The decision to relocate the capital is likely linked to Bujumbura increasingly being an opposition stronghold, leading to continued clashes between protesters and police.

By moving its capital, the East African nation follows in the footsteps of other African states. Côte d’Ivoire, Tanzania, and Nigeria have all moved their political capitals after developing new ones beginning in the 1980s. Many countries including Senegal, Nigeria, and Ghana are also building new, futuristic, billion-dollar cities to deal with increased urbanization and growing population.</s>News 24 Burundi declared the small central city of Gitega the country's new political capital on Saturday,...</s>(Bloomberg) -- Burundian authorities decided to move the political capital to the city of Gitega in the central province, from Bujumbura, government spokesman Prosper Ntahorwamiye said Monday on Burundi National Television.

Bujumbura will remain the economic capital as many of country’s business activities’ are based there, Ntahorwamiye said.

At least five ministries and their agencies will start working from Gitega in Jan. 2019. State agencies such as the human right commission and land commission will be relocated to Gitega starting from next year, he said. Other government agencies will move in due course and cabinet meetings will be held in Gitega starting next year, Ntahorwamiye said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Desire Nimubona in Bujumbura at dnimubona@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Paul Richardson at pmrichardson@bloomberg.net, Eric Ombok, Pauline Bax</s>NAIROBI: Burundi declared the small central city of Gitega the country’s new political capital on Saturday, in line with a presidential promise made a decade ago.

A government spokesman named Gitega while also stating that the previous capital Bujumbura, on the north-eastern shore of Lake Tanganyika, would in future function solely as the country’s economic centre.

The government "has just adopted an historic bill making Gitega the political capital and making Bujumbura the economic capital," tweeted Jean-Claude Karerwa Ndenzako, spokesman for President Pierre Nkurunziza.

"Cabinet meetings will henceforth be held in Gitega, where five ministries will also be established from the start of 2019," he added, notably the interior, education and agriculture ministries.

Parliament, dominated by the ruling party, must still approve the move.

Nkurunziza promised in 2007 the move would go ahead, citing Gitega’s central position compared to Bujumbura, although the former’s population is barely 30,000 to Bujumbura’s 1.2 million.

The new choice was once the capital of the Burundian monarchy and the opposition accuse Nkurunziza of attempting a symbolic restoration. Bujumbura is today considered an opposition stronghold where the president spends less and less time. One activist who requested anonymity said Gitega was not ready to assume the mantle of capital.

"There are practically no offices to let, few hotels or restaurants -- it’s an irrational decision," he said of the move much derided on social media. "The country is deep in economic crisis and does not have the means to move and instal five ministries in Gitega."</s>The Burundi army on Sunday said it opposed a request by the African Union that it withdraw 1,000 soldiers serving in an African peacekeeping force in Somalia by February 28.

Burundi army spokesman Colonel Floribert Biyereke said in a statement that the military would ask the government to argue for a proportionate number of troops be withdrawn from each AU member country, rather than solely Burundian soldiers.

Burundi is the second biggest contributor to the 21,500-strong peacekeeping force with 5,400 soldiers, behind Uganda with 6,200 but ahead of Djibouti, Kenya and Ethiopia.

The African Union is gradually scaling back its AMISOM force as Somalia's nascent armed forces are trained and deployed to replace them.

AMISOM was first deployed in 2007 to support Somalia's fragile internationally-backed government and fight Al-Shabaab jihadists blamed for scores of bloody attacks.

The African Union request, made through a diplomatic document called a note verbale, came amid recent tension between Burundi and the AU.

The AU has called on Burundi -- criticised abroad for its record on human rights -- to ease its hardline stance on dissent and talk with its exiled opposition.

A key consequence of an eventual troop drawdown is financial.

Participation in AMISOM is a valuable source of hard currency, and the scaleback is likely to have a big impact on Burundi -- every quarter, the AU pays it around $18 million (15.7 million euros).

That represents a major source of foreign currency for Burundi, which has seen funding from the European Union suspended over human rights issues.

Burundi soldiers also earn much less once they return from serving with AMISOM, and an AU official who asked not to be named said they were poorly equipped, and thus logical candidates for the first phase of departures.</s>BUJUMBURA, - China provides selfless assistance to help with Burundi’s development and its people’s livelihood, the Burundian foreign minister said Saturday.

The establishment of the diplomatic ties 55 years ago launched the sincere cooperation between the two countries, Burundian Foreign Minister Ezechiel Nibigira said at a reception celebrating the 55th anniversary of bilateral ties.

Burundi and China have maintained a good relationship since then, which is reflected in exchanges at various levels such as in mutual support on international occasions and China’s selfless assistance to the Burundian government to help with the development of Burundi and the improvement of Burundian people’s livelihood, said Nibigira.

The central African country highly appreciates China’s long term assistance to Burundi, he added.

The friendly cooperation between the two countries has been continuously expanded and deepened, said Li Changlin, Chinese Ambassador to Burundi, adding that bilateral ties are at the best time in history.

The relationship between China and Burundi takes a leading position in relations between China and African countries, he said.

China doesn’t set any precondition for its cooperation with Burundi and cares about the actual needs of the Burundian people, Li said, adding that China welcomes Burundi to get on board China’s fast train of development.

Commemorative stamps marking the 55th anniversary were launched at the reception, featuring landmarks and cultures of the two countries.

The stamps represent the friendship between China and Burundi and are the ambassadors of culture exchanges, said Bienvenue Irakoze, permanent secretary of Burundian Ministry of Youth, Posts and Information Technologies at the launching ceremony.

About 250 people attended the anniversary reception, where they enjoyed Kirundi song performed by the Confucius Institute at the University of Burundi, Chinese song performed by Burundian civil servants, as well as Burundian drum and dance performance.

China and Burundi established diplomatic ties on Dec. 21, 1963. A series of events have been held to celebrate the anniversary.</s>KIGALI, Rwanda (AP) — At least two Rwandan civilians were killed and eight injured when attackers set fire to three passenger vehicles in the southern Nyamagabe district, which borders Burundi, said a Rwandan army official.

“We have been watching the situation in this area for some time now and have a good idea of who is behind today’s incident. We are in pursuit of the attackers and action will be taken against those responsible,” army spokesman Innocent Munyengango said in a statement.

He said the army is pursuing the attackers who retreated into Nyungwe Forest, a mountain rainforest area that is home to wild chimpanzees.

The attack highlights continuing tensions between Rwanda and neighboring Burundi and Congo.

Just two days earlier, President Paul Kagame said two or three Rwandan army soldiers were killed by rebels who had crossed the border from Congo.

Kagame blamed the earlier Dec. 9 attack in the country’s western Rubavu district on the Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, which has links to perpetrators of the 1994 genocide, and the Rwanda National Congress, founded by a former army chief.

Speaking to reporters on Friday in Kigali, Kagame also addressed tensions with neighboring Burundi, saying his country will never be pulled into “provocations” from Burundi.

Burundi’s President Pierre Nkurunziza earlier this month called for an emergency meeting of the East African Community, accusing Rwanda of “aggression” and of harboring plotters of a failed coup in 2015. In the letter dated December 4, Nkurunziza told Museveni who is also chairman of the East African regional bloc that Rwanda was behind the crisis that hit Burundi in April 2015, which also saw a failed coup against Nkurunziza. Rwanda has denied the allegations.

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Burundi moves its capital from Bujumbura to Gitega.