🇧🇫Burkina FasoWest Africa
Nakambé region: Customary and religious leaders commit to girls' schooling and retention
via Lefaso.net7 min read
From April 18 to 30, 2026, the Bankui and Nakambé regions hosted the "Kom-pugli kaoreng yõodo" communication campaign, which translates to "the importance of schooling for young girls" in the Mooré national language. This initiative, part of the Women's Empowerment and Demographic Dividend in Sub-Saharan Africa SWEDD+ project, is supported by the Burkinabe government through the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Secondary Education, Vocational Training, and Technical Education, with assistance from the World Bank and the United Nations Population Fund UNFPA. The campaign involved various community activities, including educational talks, public conferences, theater forums, and radio broadcasts, alongside advocacy efforts with community leaders. In Tenkodogo, customary and religious leaders expressed concern over girls' school dropout rates, attributing it to early pregnancies, sociocultural pressures, early marriages, gold panning, the security context, lack of parental financial resources, mockery, and the desire for easy money among youth. They committed to actively promoting girls' schooling and retention, with each religious and customary entity planning specific actions within their communities. In Garango, His Majesty Krigouta of the royal palace also pledged to champion the cause, vowing to use his influence to promote children's schooling and girls' retention, and to combat child marriages and harmful practices. He emphasized that an educated girl is a strength f
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