Burkina Faso’s military ruler dismissed Prime Minister Apollinaire Joachim Kyelem de Tambela and dissolved the government on Friday, according to a presidential decree reported by AFP. No reason was provided for the decision.
De Tambela, appointed in October 2022 following a military coup led by Captain Ibrahim Traoré, had overseen three successive governments, surviving multiple reshuffles. The decree stated that members of the dissolved government would continue handling ongoing affairs until a new administration is formed.
Burkina Faso has faced ongoing political turmoil since a January 2022 coup in which Lieutenant-Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba overthrew President Roch Marc Christian Kaboré. Damiba himself was ousted just eight months later by Traoré, who now leads the junta. Damiba has since gone into exile in Togo.
The junta has prioritized reclaiming national sovereignty, often criticizing Western influence. Burkina Faso, along with Mali and Niger—also governed by military juntas—has pivoted away from its historical ties with France, the former colonial power, and aligned more closely with Russia.
In September 2023, the three nations formed the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), marking a significant departure from France and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which they accuse of being pro-Western. This shift comes amid ongoing battles against jihadist insurgencies that began in northern Mali in 2012 and later spread to Niger and Burkina Faso.
The conflict has displaced around two million people in Burkina Faso and caused over 26,000 deaths since 2015, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED). Russia has provided military instructors to Burkina Faso and other African nations to assist in combating Islamist violence. Foreign Minister Karamoko Jean-Marie Traoré recently stated that cooperation with Russia better aligns with Burkina Faso’s interests than its historical partnership with France.
