I never thought that in my lifetime I would witness an African leader capable of uniting not only Africans on the continent but those in the diaspora. I never thought I would witness an African leader who could defy the West and survive numerous assassination attempts. The Pan-African in me is screaming with joy!! This is all due to Captain Ibrahim Traore, the young President of Burkina Faso, who is changing the narrative.
As history shows, any African leader who defied the West and prioritised developing their own country and uplifting their people often paid with their lives. An example of this is Patrice Lumumba of Congo. Another example is Thomas Sankara of Burkina Faso, who achieved a remarkable amount despite his limited time in office. He increased the literacy rate from 13% to 73%, promoted self-reliance and rejected foreign aid, and focused on building schools, health centres, water reservoirs, infrastructure projects, and many other accomplishments. Like the West typically does (in this case, France), they used a black person close to Sankara to assassinate him, his own childhood best friend, Blaise Compaoré.
Many people see Ibrahim Traore as Thomas Sankara reincarnated. During his short time as president, Traore kicked out the French, paid off Burkina Faso's debts, increased the GDP from $18.8 billion to $22.1 billion, made education free, invested in agriculture, and is currently constructing roads and factories, building a new airport, plus more. Like Sankara, he is pushing for self-sufficiency. Many of us have never seen a leader like Traore; the support for him is worldwide. On 30 April 2025, there were worldwide protests—from London to New York, Jamaica, and across Africa—as people came out to show their solidarity with Traore after American General Langley accused Traore of using his country's gold for his protection. We also know from history that this is another tactic of the West, creating false narratives of leaders. In this age of social media, I don't think this will work.
Even if Ibrahim did use his country's gold for protection, it is justified. His actions have made him a target, and there have been 19 assassination attempts on his life. One of his close bodyguards was paid $5 million to kill him, but the bodyguard took the money and then informed Traore (talk about integrity!). I believe France is scared. Traore's actions could set a precedent for other African nations to follow. Their grip on Africa is weakening, Niger and Mali already kicked them out. France has been receiving $500 billion annually in colonial taxes from Francophone African countries, and the way things are going, this is not going to last. Former President of France, Jacques Chirac, even said that France would become a third-world country without Africa.
What I believe has helped is Burkina Faso's alliance with Russia. I have seen some discourse online about people who are sceptical about this relationship, due to the history of foreigners exploiting Africa, which is understandable. To be honest, Russia does not have a history of exploiting Africa, and every country needs allies. Look at BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa & others). Russia's intelligence was able to help foil multiple assassination attempts against Traore, so I'm not against it.
I believe there is a shift in consciousness in Africa; the people have had enough. How much suffering and exploitation can a continent continue to endure? There are only so many times you can poke the bear before it reacts. The average age of an African is 19 years old, the population is rapidly increasing, most Africans have access to the internet and can see what is happening in the world. Traore is a beacon of hope across the continent and the world. All of these factors are great conditions for radical change. I believe we are currently and finally starting to witness the rise of Africa.
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