The official account and its limits
On 27 September 2026, Ibrahim Traoré gave an interview intended to present the results of his four years in power. The discussion largely set out the government’s own interpretation of its record. Military operations, areas described as recaptured, equipment, investments and economic programmes: the authorities possess numerous points on which to base a defence of their time in office.
Yet a national assessment cannot be authored solely by those who govern. It must also be tested against the lived experience of the population.
The displacement record
The foremost question therefore remains one of security: four years after Ibrahim Traoré came to power, how many Burkinabè can genuinely live in their own homes without fear?
Burkina Faso continues to face a displacement crisis of enormous scale. Data from the UN refugee agency recorded 2,062,534 internally displaced persons at the end of 2025 more than two million Burkinabè forced to leave their homes while remaining inside the country. When refugees and asylum seekers are included, the number of forcibly displaced people exceeded 2.1 million.
This crisis extends well beyond Burkina Faso’s borders.
In neighbouring Côte d’Ivoire, the UN refugee agency counted approximately 82,000 Burkinabè refugees as of June 2026, out of a total of 93,200 refugees and asylum seekers hosted in the country.
I visited a camp sheltering Burkinabè refugees in northern Côte d’Ivoire. What I witnessed there left me deeply shaken. The sheer number of people, the displaced families, the children, the faces marked by exile and the accounts of those who had to abandon their homes left me speechless.
Confronted with such a reality, one question becomes unavoidable: with all of this, can Ibrahim Traoré truly tell us that all is well in Burkina Faso?
Behind the figures lie families separated from their land, farmers unable to cultivate, children deprived of a normal education and communities compelled to rebuild their lives elsewhere.
For this reason, an area described as “recaptured” cannot be considered permanently secure simply because the army has re-established a presence there. True recovery begins when residents can return for the long term, work their fields, send their children to school, access healthcare and live without fearing another attack.
A territory retaken on a map is not necessarily a territory that has become habitable again.
Is criticism of the authorities still permitted?
The second question concerns the space left open to dissent.
Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International documented in 2026 restrictions targeting journalists, civil society organisations and critical voices. HRW reported in particular the dissolution of 118 civil society organisations and continues to seek explanations regarding the fate of journalist Serge Oulon.
These accusations must be examined and documented on a case-by-case basis. But the principle remains straightforward: criticising a government does not mean being opposed to one’s country.
National security should not become an automatic response to any contradiction. A journalist seeking accountability, a citizen questioning a decision or an organisation documenting a situation do not automatically become enemies of the nation.
The government is not the country.
The true record belongs to the people
Ibrahim Traoré may highlight his achievements. His supporters may regard the military operations, investments and economic initiatives as significant progress. These elements must be assessed on the basis of verifiable facts.
But the assessment must also account for the displaced, the refugees, the bereaved families, the abandoned villages and those still living in uncertainty.
After four years in power, the essential questions therefore remain the following:
How many Burkinabè can live in their own homes? How many can work their land? How many can send their children to school safely? How many have been forced to seek refuge in neighbouring countries? And above all, how many can freely criticise those who govern them?
A genuine record should not fear such questions.
For when one is faced with tens of thousands of Burkinabè who have had to seek refuge in Côte d’Ivoire and more than two million displaced within the country, it is not enough to present figures, speeches and images of achievements to declare that all is well.
The true record is also measured in the lives of those who have lost everything.
A people is not liberated by being told to remain silent. It is liberated when it can live in safety, speak freely and hold those in power to account.
By Rose Njoya — Political News Reporter
