At the end of another round of talks on May 24, 2016, Benjamin Mkapa said the next dialogue session will take place in the third week of June.

The May 20-24, 2016 round of Burundi peace talks ended in Arusha, Tanzania without a major breakthrough but the mediator Benjamin Mkapa brokering the talks announced future consultations that will determine the way forward.

Mr Mkapa justifying the consultations that must take place before the next round of talks said, no deal could be struck without giving all parties the chance to present their views. He therefore announced that, "In the next two weeks, I will continue and complete the consultations with those who did not come during this session, but whom I feel might have positive contributions to make to the process."

Reference here is to the key opposition umbrella group CNARED who did not participate in the four-day peace negotiations with the explanation that they were not invited. Reports say some members of the CNARED were invited individually, the organisation as a whole was kept off the list, Reliefweb publication disclosed. It further said, the main opposition group therefore called on its members to boycott the meetings.

Benjamin Mkapa also announced that he would also reach out to African Union designated main mediator in the Burundian crisis, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, “to determine the way forward.” He stated that it would only be after the consultation session that he would expect to convene another dialogue session in the third week of June 2016.

The May peace talks faced difficulties as the Burundian government reportedly refused to sit down on the negotiation table with key opponents whom it accused of involvement in a failed coup attempt in May 2015 and months of deadly political violence in the country. Reports however say that, in Arusha, Mpaka applauded the "high degree of civility, patriotism" among participants, and their "great desire to own the dialogue".