Burkina Faso’s prime minister resigns amid security crisis

Burkina Faso’s Prime Minister Christophe Dabire has resigned amid a security crisis and protests calling for a government reshuffle.

President Roch Marc Christian Kabore accepted Dabire’s resignation and that of his cabinet on Wednesday. Members of the outgoing government will maintain their posts until the establishment of a new government, however.

The president last month stressed the need for a “stronger” cabinet on the eve of anti-government protests over violence by militant groups. A week later, he pledged to root out corruption from the country.

Public anger was first aroused when an attack by an al-Qaeda-affiliated group killed 53 military police officers and four civilians in mid-November.

Dabire first became prime minister in early 2019 and was reappointed in January 2021. He was previously Burkina Faso’s representative at the eight-nation West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA).

Burkina Faso, one of the world’s poorest countries, has been battling armed combatants with links to the al-Qaeda and Daesh terrorist groups since 2016.

According to United Nations data, Takfiri and inter-communal violence was to blame for 4,000 deaths last year in the Sahel region countries of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger.

SS