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Daily Maverick
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Maverick
Ibrahim Traoré: The TikTok superstar and his quest to replace Thomas Sankara's legacy
Burkinabe leader Ibrahim Traoré is acting like a rock star. It's not entirely his fault. He's receiving a lot of help from dozens of social media users, especially TikTokkers, who are desperate to anoint him as the best thing to come out of Burkina Faso since Thomas Sankara. Traore must be enjoying it, because even though he is pretending, he knows he's not Sankara. He is an opportunist, happy to capitalise on the current frustration in his country and the Sahel for his benefit. A recent report by The Africa Report summarised Traoré's fictional character: 'In dozens of viral TikTok edits, Traore leads imaginary armies, topples Western empires and is hailed as the 'new Thomas Sankara'. The captions, bold and uncompromising, include 'Africa's Messiah!' 'The People's Captain!' and 'France Must Fall'.' Traoréphytes even invent videos of Rihanna and R Kelly (imprisoned since 2021) serenading the Burkinabe leader with hit songs! Fairytale If he were an elected president, Traoré would have served three years of his first term. When he overthrew the government of then president Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba in September 2022 due to the rise in Islamic insurgency and announced himself as head of the new Patriotic Movement for Safeguard and Restoration (PMSR), he promised to hand power back to civilians in two years — that was in 2024. He hasn't said a word about any possible new date since, and if you have seen him recently, you would know why. Apart from the adulation he has enjoyed as a social media fairytale, and dressing the part in stylish fatigues and matching neck scarves, berets, and boots, he has also talked the part. He rallied support by giving speeches — not as many or as eloquently as he has been credited with — against Western imperialism and colonialism, vowing to create conditions at home to stem youth migration and tackle insurgency. Traore has portrayed himself as the new face of the African Renaissance. But talk is cheap. Traoré and the other delinquents He has been in good company. The turmoil in West and Central Africa, which began in Chad, Mali, and Guinea, and later spread to Niger, has disrupted security and trade in the subregion, rupturing the 49-year-old Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas). Burkina Faso experienced two coups in a single year. After breaking out of Ecowas, Traoré and his fellow delinquents in the Sahel have pursued a singular mission of cutting off the noses of their Sahelian francophone ties to spite the faces of French business and political interests. To be fair, it's a moment of reckoning for decades of brazen French insensitivity, compounded by President Emmanuel Macron's lack of charity when he described the relationship between France and Francophone West Africa as 'part of a civilising obligation'. Trouble speaking French Which was self-interested nonsense. France has accumulated a notoriously poor record on the continent that it can hardly be proud of. In Niger, for example, Tom Burgis writes in his book The Looting Machine that French state-owned atomic energy group Areva's profit from uranium is twice Niger's GDP. The shameful French footprint is the same in Burkina Faso and throughout the region. Fourteen Francophone countries, including the troubled ones — Burkina Faso, Guinea, Mali, Niger and Chad — hold 50% of their reserves in the French Treasury. This arrangement has been widely criticised, but if the work 'shame' is in the French dictionary, it doesn't exist in Macron's version. It is this background of despair and frustration, especially among the continent's youth, that has fostered fairytale messiahs like Traoré, who have managed to replace French hegemony with a mix of fussy state control and Russian suzerainty, with the Chinese just around the corner. If it's not Sankara… Traoré is not Sankara, a fact that may be lost on Burkina Faso's predominantly young population, as well as millennials and Gen Z across the continent, whose forlorn search for role models tempts them to canonise an impostor. Of course, both are soldiers, similar in age and rank and usurpers of constitutional rule. But that's where the similarity ends. Like the demagogues before him, Traoré and significant sections of the military and political elite from Maurice Yaméogo to Blaise Compaoré have been complicit in the misery of their citizens, feeding them a diet of pseudo-ideological jingoism and West bashing, but offering no genuine alternative. Africa — anglophone, francophone, or lusophone — shares a similar heritage of exploitation; a few of its people, especially the political elite after independence, collaborated with the colonialists to compound the problem. Hard to beat Where Traoré is trading French hegemony for Russian control, for example, Sankara offered something different. In Burkina Faso: A History of Power, Protest and Revolution, Ernest Harsch said of Sankara: 'In a conscious effort at nation building, the revolutionary government also promoted a new national identity… that revolutionary project succeeded in altering the contours of the state and social and political life.' Whereas Sankara attempted to forge a proudly African identity, deepening regional integration among Ecowas countries, Traoré and his cohorts have, by exiting, put at risk the estimated $596.42-billion in trade within the community, excluding informal trade among citizens, which constitutes 30% of the transactions, not to mention the impact on regional collaboration on security. Sankara pursued radical economic self-sufficiency, agrarian reform, and social justice by outlawing female genital mutilation and promoting women's rights. He rejected foreign aid, regardless of its source, even if it came without strings attached, something that Traoré would be happy to overlook if it came from Russia. What matters I get it. With jihadists controlling about 40% of the country's territory (it's the most terrorised country in the world), and with climate shocks compounding its misery, the challenges are as different as the times. That is why what Traoré needs now is not clout chasing or AI propaganda by Russian-backed Wagner, but a sober-minded commitment to turn around the fortunes of his country, one step at a time. For three years, Traoré's stock has risen amid algorithmic populism expressed in languages he neither understands nor speaks, with minimal institutional reforms, if any, and no prospects or commitment to return the country to civilian rule. 'His rhetoric,' The Africa Report said, 'still falls short of real, measurable improvements in security and civic freedoms. There's a gap between his message and the reality on the ground, something that will ultimately test his legitimacy and legacy.'
Daily News Egypt
13-05-2025
- Business
- Daily News Egypt
Afreximbank President Oramah calls for mindset shift for AfCFTA success
ABIDJAN – Benedict Oramah, President and Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), stated that a change in mentality, particularly among middle and lower management, is crucial for the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement to gain momentum. He made these remarks during a panel discussion moderated by Nicholas Norbrook, Managing Editor of The Africa Report, titled 'Can Africa industrialise through trade – and on its own terms?' at the Africa CEO Forum 2025 in Abidjan. Oramah noted that despite a consensus on the AfCFTA at the leadership level across Africa, 'the middle and lower management don't share the same enthusiasm.' He emphasised that 'this has to change, and education will be important towards this goal.' During the discussion, Oramah also highlighted Afreximbank's growth under his presidency, stating that he managed to raise the bank's total assets and guarantees to $42bn, with $5bn to $12bn of assets being generated annually. Addressing the broader geopolitical landscape, Oramah acknowledged the current global environment, including the imposition of tariffs by figures like US President Trump, presents both opportunities and pitfalls. He suggested that such external pressures could serve as a catalyst that prompts Africa to act. 'It is indeed an opportunity that we begin to see as a catalyst. When one of these situations arises, you see that you are not prepared for it. All of us have to identify the opportunities and the challenges and position ourselves in a way that benefits Africa; basically, we are Africa, and I think Africa is in that situation.' He stressed the need for Africa to leverage its institutions and resources to move away from dependencies on aid and grants. 'To move beyond dependencies on aid and grants. And this is what our convention is, and I believe in it,' Oramah said. When questioned about the risk of African policymakers abandoning free trade ambitions due to trends like deindustrialisation in developed nations, Oramah argued against focusing on national economies in isolation. He pointed out the historical tactic of 'Divide and conquer,' resulting in 55 fragmented African markets. 'Fragmented, some of which we inherited,' he remarked, underscoring the need for integrated markets and resources. He suggested that a focuson national interests often leads to protectionist measures that ultimately hinder broader continental growth, noting that competition from outside Africa often stifles local industries. Regarding the implementation of the AfCFTA and whether the enthusiasm for such coordinated efforts persists, Oramah conceded, 'There is a little bit of hesitation, and we were observing. If you are going to address the situation, I said it's a kind of disconnect.' He attributed this, in part, to educational backgrounds, suggesting it's a 'natural' tendency for officials to prioritise their own country. 'So, to address that situation, I think the one that affects government is when you [focus on] your country, and that is the only thing that makes sense.' He emphasised the need to teach 'about the value of continental integration, not just what you have to do for your own nation.' On fostering collaboration between the public and private sectors, Oramah indicated that it requires effort to align their objectives, especially when public systems may perceive the private sector primarily as a source of tax revenue. Reflecting on his tenure and the bank's future, Oramah highlighted the diversification of Afreximbank's activities and the establishment of a constitutional framework to ensure its continued success. 'The bank was mandated to set up a constitutional framework. I am going to visit it to start. So it has all of that coming, and these are now beginning to diversify the [bank's activities],' he explained. He expressed a desire for his legacy to be defined by the strength of the institution and its people rather than personal achievements. 'I see it like this: somebody who builds a legacy, I don't want to see the legacy as what I did. It has got to be about the people I love [and who work for the institution].' He concluded by expressing confidence in the bank's future leadership and its commitment to 'responsiveness and integrity.'
