Burkina Faso Under Pressure to Deliver On Security Promises

The junta in Ouagadougou justified the January 24, 2022 coup, saying that former president Roch Marc Christian Kaboré's government was unable to provide security in Burkina Faso. By making security its primary objective, the regime raised people's hopes of a rapid return to peace and stability.

Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) figures show that 610 attacks, mainly involving violent extremist groups, between January 25 and April 8, 2022 saw 567 people killed. Compared to the corresponding period in 2021, attacks have quadrupled and deaths have tripled. Insecurity was on the rise before the coup, and extremists have taken advantage of the break in the chain of command.

With violence persisting, the initial euphoria of the coup has subsided, making way for criticism of the new authorities' inability to restore security. Transitional president Lieutenant-Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba blamed the lack of progress on the need to set up transitional institutions, which will provide a political framework for a more effective fight against violent extremism.