Traoré marks four years in power, following Sankara’s legacy

Captain Ibrahim Traoré has now led Burkina Faso for four years, the same length of time Thomas Sankara was in power. Both came to power as young, red-beret-wearing army captains, promising national sovereignty, Pan-Africanism and greater economic independence.

Sankara, who seized power in 1983, launched what he called a “democratic and popular revolution,” promoting education, women’s empowerment, self-reliance and local production.

He was assassinated in 1987. Nearly four decades later, Traoré says he is carrying Sankara’s torch forward but under very different conditions.

His government has nationalised gold mines, promoted local industries and launched Faso Mebo, a major infrastructure programme aimed at building roads and developing cities using local resources.

But the biggest difference is security. Burkina Faso remains under pressure from jihadist groups, with large parts of the country affected by violence and some towns facing blockades.

Traoré has also taken a harder line politically. Journalists, magistrates and civil society figures have been forcibly recruited and sent to the front lines, while political opposition has been restricted.

On the international stage, Traoré has moved away from former colonial power France, strengthened ties with Russia and joined Mali and Niger in a new regional confederation.