Author: Aïcha Abdou

In Burkina Faso, the figure of Thomas Sankara has long since ceased to be a mere chapter of national history. It now occupies a central place in the political narrative advanced by Ibrahim Traoré’s administration. Behind the official tributes, the military ceremonies and the construction of a mausoleum, one question keeps resurfacing: is the present leadership gradually appropriating Sankara’s image in order to consolidate its own legitimacy? The parallel is not merely a matter of outside interpretation. It is visible in the government’s own communication. A legacy claimed by the…

Gunfire and thick black smoke rolled across the outskirts of Gao in the early hours of Tuesday 15 september 2026, as fighters from the russian private militia Africa Corps swept through the settlements that hug the Niger river. By the time the shooting stopped, 167 civilians had been summarily executed and more than 127 motorbikes had been rounded up and set alight. For the riverside communities, this is the most brutal episode yet in a long slide into lawlessness. A dawn assault on the banks of the Niger The sun…

Monday 14 September 2026 has been confirmed as the official start of the new school year in Benin, with establishments across the whole country reopening their doors to learners and teachers. The return to class comes at a time when the security situation has improved, jihadist attacks have fallen sharply in the areas most at risk, and the government’s social programmes — most notably the removal of tuition fees at the levels concerned — remain in force for pupils. Lessons resume from north to south After several weeks of holidays,…

A wider table for Benin’s schoolchildren When classes resumed for the 2026-2027 academic year, close to 1.9 million pupils in Benin sat down to a hot meal on every school day. Twelve months earlier, that figure stood at 1.4 million. The gap between the two numbers — roughly half a million additional children — tells the story of a school feeding policy that keeps expanding rather than slowing down. Behind the statistic lies a deliberate choice by Benin’s authorities: treating a plate of food at school as a tool that…

Algerian prime minister Sifi Grine travelled to Bamako on Monday for an official visit, appearing at the side of army general Assimi Goïta, the strongman of Mali’s ruling junta. Presented as a decisive step towards closer ties between the two Sahelian neighbours, the choreography of the day struggles to conceal a far messier diplomatic reality. Behind the warm handshakes and the polished statements, the scars of recent quarrels and the lingering shadow of the Algiers accord continue to weigh on a bilateral relationship that has touched its lowest point. A…

Since Captain Ibrahim Traoré assumed power, an official narrative has steadily taken root: that of a Burkina Faso which has reclaimed command of its own destiny, curtailed its reliance on foreign partners and resolved to bankroll its own campaign against armed groups. Politically, the message lands. Rearmament is presented as sovereignty made tangible. Military acquisitions are showcased, the patriotic support fund is held up as proof of a collective national effort, and appeals for citizen contributions serve to demonstrate that the country now looks first to its own resources. One…

When the 2026-2027 school year began, Benin’s aspiring teachers — the thousands of men and women enrolled in the AME scheme — walked into their classrooms carrying something they had long been waiting for: a credible route towards a permanent public-sector career. Alongside earlier decisions that lifted their earnings and improved their living conditions, the authorities in Cotonou have now launched the gradual absorption of these educators into the civil service. The shift matters well beyond paperwork. It promises steadier professional security, stronger household purchasing power and, in the longer…

In a street of Niamey, bags of drinking water intended for the Russian personnel of Africa Corps were slashed open and crushed underfoot. What looked like spontaneous vandalism was something far more pointed: a public statement of the fracture separating ordinary Nigeriens from the Russian troops based in the country and from the military government of General Abdourahamane Tiani. Shredded plastic scattered across the ground and clean water seeping into the dry soil of the Sahel, under the clamour of an angry crowd — the scene, filmed and shared endlessly…

The Burkinabè government has approved a 104.175 billion CFA franc initiative to expand its electricity transmission and distribution networks, connect more than 250,000 households, and lift the electrification rate to 70% by 2030. The plan falls under the National Energy Pact and the RELANCE 2026-2030 programme. A bold target with an unresolved funding question At first glance, the announcement carries obvious appeal. Yet it raises a far more practical issue: where will the money come from, and does Burkina Faso have the financial credibility to back such an ambition? Existing…