Your trusted English source for breaking news and in-depth reporting from Burkina Faso and the wider Sahel region.
On the occasion of Independence Day, the address to the nation by the president of the Transition, Army General Assimi Goïta, struck a triumphant tone. Between promises of economic growth, …
Mali’s independence speech: does Assimi Goïta’s narrative hold up against the facts? Read More
Burkina Faso’s military government says it has developed nearly 300 Nanga armoured vehicles on home soil. But a central question remains unanswered: where do these vehicles actually come from? For …
Nanga armoured vehicles: can Burkina Faso prove its ‘made in Burkina’ claim? Read More
When jihadist fighters from the Group for Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), an Al-Qaeda affiliate, stormed the Sévaré airbase and the Konna military camp, they delivered a blunt reminder: …
Can Mali’s security model hold after the Sévaré airbase raid? Read More
In October 2026, Benin will take a decisive step back onto the international oil stage with the export of an initial 250,000-barrel cargo of crude. Drawn from the strategic revival …
Is Benin ready to turn its first Sèmè crude cargo into lasting prosperity? Read More
In Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, the promise of a decisive security reconquest is colliding with a reality that is becoming harder to hide. A steady drumbeat of jihadist assaults, …
Is the AES’s security gamble in the Sahel already lost after Dioura? Read More
The literary world of Benin and Africa is marking a rare milestone. Born on 20 September 1926 in Ouidah, the writer, journalist and literary critic Olympe Bhêly-Quenum has reached his …
At 100, can Olympe Bhêly-Quenum’s pen still shape Africa’s literary future? Read More
The fallout from Liam Rosenior’s mid-season departure to Chelsea refuses to die down, and this past weekend it took centre stage on a Ligue 1 review panel. The debate focused …
Will Strasbourg ever trust their owners again after Rosenior’s exit? Read More
In a world where gunfire has become a daily soundtrack and no nation is immune to the long reach of terror, one question hangs over Cameroon: can the country afford …
Can Cameroon truly afford to ignore Atonfack Guemo’s call for permanent vigilance? Read More
Mali’s national budget is creaking under the combined weight of international sanctions and a slowing economy. Yet one line item keeps swelling: the cost of Russian paramilitary forces, first under …
Can Bamako still afford its Russian security tab of 514 billion FCFA? Read More
The scene would almost be comical if its consequences were not so tragic. On 20 September 2026, along a dusty track between Diabali and Niono, the carefully controlled narrative of …
Mali’s Russian gamble at a crossroads: what does the Molodo rout really mean for Bamako? Read More
When United Russia, the party tied to President Vladimir Putin, walked away with 355 of the 450 seats in the Douma, the headline numbers looked overwhelming. The central electoral commission …
Russia’s Douma vote: can a 355-seat landslide be trusted when the anti-war camp was barred? Read More
When Ukrainian long-range drones and missiles slammed into the Moscow region overnight, they did more than set a major oil facility ablaze. They forced a question that the Kremlin has …
Can Russia shield its own backyard? the Moscow refinery strike and the question the Kremlin can’t answer Read More