Ibrahim Traore is Burkina Faso’s president today, courtesy of two coups in under nine months – January and September 2022.
He became the world’s youngest head of state in September, when he and other junior military officers ousted Lieutenant-Colonel Paul Henri Damiba, who had also ascended to the presidency through a coup in January.
Justifying why they were removing Damiba from office, Traore said in a televised address on October 1, 2022 that the embattled head of state had failed to tackle the perennial problem of insurgency.
Damiba, 41, had been ousted by Traore, who was seven years his junior, and two positions lower than him in the military chain of command.
Burkina Faso, a landlocked country in West Africa, has faced increasing violence from insurgent groups, primarily linked to Islamist extremists. This violence has plagued the country, displacing thousands of people and destabilizing regions that were once peaceful.
Paul Henri Damiba, who assumed power in January 2022, had promised to tackle the insurgency that had been raging for years. However, his efforts were widely considered ineffective. The military, frustrated with the lack of progress, turned on him.
In September 2022, Ibrahim Traore, then a 34-year-old officer, led the charge against Damiba, citing his inability to protect the citizens of Burkina Faso as the primary reason for the coup. Traore’s military faction argued that Damiba’s leadership had not adequately addressed the insurgency’s threat, thus endangering the country’s security.
Traore’s rise was swift and dramatic. He was a relatively unknown figure in Burkina Faso’s military hierarchy before the coup. Though a junior officer compared to Damiba, his actions signaled a growing discontent within the military ranks, many of whom were weary of the ongoing violence and what they saw as Damiba’s failures to act decisively.
As Traore’s forces took control in September, they seized key government institutions and declared Damiba’s ouster in a televised address. Traore’s leadership was presented as a necessary step to restore order and protect the citizens from the escalating violence. In his speech, he emphasized that the military’s primary objective was to ensure national security and reclaim control over the insurgency-plagued areas.
His military coup was not just an internal power struggle; it was a reflection of the frustrations of the Burkinabe people, who had been suffering under the growing threat of insurgents. The conflict, rooted in regional instability and Islamic extremism, had not been sufficiently addressed by the previous administration.
The international community, while expressing concern over the military takeover, acknowledged the gravity of the situation in Burkina Faso. Many questioned whether the new government under Traore would be able to bring a solution to the insurgency or whether it would face similar challenges as its predecessors.
For Ibrahim Traore, becoming the world’s youngest head of state marked a moment of both opportunity and tremendous pressure. His success in taking power did not guarantee stability, and his leadership would be judged not only by his ability to defeat insurgents but also by his ability to establish a government that could win the trust of a war-weary nation.
Burkina Faso’s political future remained uncertain, with many wondering how long the military would maintain control and whether a path to civilian rule would eventually emerge.
In the midst of this uncertainty, Traore’s leadership would be tested as he navigated the delicate balance between military control and the demands for security and peace from the Burkinabe people.