🇧🇫Burkina FasoWest Africa
Burkinabe diaspora in Côte d'Ivoire prepares for National Culture Week in Bobo-Dioulasso
via Lefaso.net2 min read
The Burkinabe community in Côte d'Ivoire is preparing to represent the diaspora at the National Culture Week SNC in Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso, from April 15 to May 2, 2026. A delegation of 33 individuals, comprising three selected troupes from Abidjan and Yamoussoukro, will travel for the event. Mamadou Savadogo, head of the delegation, expressed honor in representing the diaspora, noting his birth and upbringing in Côte d'Ivoire. The three troupes include Yipéné, competing in the singing category; Sidi Tinidja, participating in the instrumental competition; and Naaba Yaadga, performing traditional dance. Their goal is to promote Burkinabe culture and win awards. Rissa Agsalek, supervisor for the Sidi Tinidja instrumental group, stated their dedication to bringing trophies back to Abidjan. Balema Denis Bationo, supervisor for the Yipéné troupe, highlighted the lack of structured support for cultural initiatives in Côte d'Ivoire compared to Burkina Faso, where institutional backing exists. Troupes in Côte d'Ivoire largely rely on individual or community efforts for survival. Despite these challenges, the diaspora troupes are en route to Bobo-Dioulasso with the aim of achieving success.
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An initiative developed by the NGO Care, the Climate Vulnerability and Capacity Analysis CVCA approach, is training farmers to better understand and adapt to climate change risks. The five-day workshop focuses on equipping participants, who are trainers themselves, with tools for data collection, analysis, and interpretation, as well as participatory mechanisms to identify local vulnerabilities and design appropriate responses. Tasséré Nacanabo, an environmental and climate change consultant and session facilitator, explained that the training aims to prepare participants to become relays within their communities, ensuring they master key concepts to transmit to others. The training covers nine methodological sheets, from identifying climate risks to developing community adaptation plans. René Soalla, first vice-president of the Confédération paysanne du Faso, highlighted the importance of this training in building sustainable responses to challenges like rainfall variability, natural resource degradation, and livelihood fragility, which exacerbate vulnerabilities for agricultural producers, herders, and pastoralists. This initiative is part of the second phase of the Peaceful Cross-border Pastoral Mobility and Social Stability in the Sahel MOPSS-2 program. Saïdou Hema, project manager at CARE Burkina Faso, noted that MOPSS aims to strengthen peaceful coexistence among natural resource users in cross-border areas of several West African countries, including Burkina Faso, Mali
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The rise of AI-generated images in advertising poses a significant threat to the modeling industry, particularly for commercial models, according to Francis G. Campbell, a corporate communication consultant and expert in image management. Campbell, who also directs Burkina Faso's first agency specializing in artistic career management and support for small and medium-sized enterprises, notes that AI allows for the creation of nearly perfect, realistic African model images, directly impacting the demand for human models. Companies favor AI visuals due to cost reduction, eliminating agency fees, model payments, makeup artists, hairstylists, and studio rentals. AI also offers rapid execution and almost total control over the final visual, allowing for quick modifications to clothing, age, or decor without additional costs. Campbell observes a noticeable decline in contracts for commercial models in institutional campaigns for banks, telecommunication operators, and insurance companies, with more organizations using AI-generated visuals for celebrations like Mother's Day, Tabaski, and Ramadan. While AI offers economic advantages, Campbell believes human models can still compete by evolving into content creators or influencers, building an authentic image and community that AI cannot fully replicate. He argues that AI cannot entirely replace human emotion, authenticity, and expression, especially in African societies where cultural values emphasize human interaction and real exper