How Burkina Faso’s Russia‑backed junta leader became a pan‑African icon—and why critics fear the hype

On the evening of May 18 2025 a new mural appeared on Avenue Kwamé N’Krumah in central Ouagadougou.

Painted in luminous blues and golds, it shows Captain Ibrahim Traoré—red beret, side‑arm, and a glowing halo—blessing a crowd of children. The caption under the portrait reads simply: “Saint Traoré, Protector of the Sahel.” For admirers across West Africa, the 37‑year‑old soldier who seized power in a 2022 coup has become more than a president; he is a symbol of an imagined post‑colonial renaissance.

From anonymous captain to pan‑African avatar

When Traoré toppled Lt‑Col Paul‑Henri Sandaogo Damiba in September 2022, even Burkinabè journalists struggled to pronounce his name. Two‑and‑a‑half years on, his speeches trend on TikTok, AI‑generated songs have him serenaded by R. Kelly and Beyoncé, and Nigerian street vendors sell T‑shirts that pair him with Thomas Sankara and Che Guevara.

The Financial Times traces the blitz to a Russian‑run influence network that provides slick graphics, synchronised Telegram channels and pro‑Traoré hashtags, seizing on disillusionment with Western‑backed democracies.

Russia’s invisible hand

Traoré expelled French troops within months of taking office and in April 2024 welcomed hundreds of Russian “Africa Corps” instructors. During an official visit to Moscow on 11 May 2025, Al‑Qaeda attackers overran a Burkinabè army post, killing at least 60 soldiers—yet state TV aired only images of Traoré embraced by Vladimir Putin.

Russian support is also economic: Nordgold won a new licence in late April, while Russian miners now hold stakes in four of Burkina Faso’s eight industrial gold sites. Analysts say the quid pro quo is information dominance: pro‑Kremlin outlets flood Facebook and WhatsApp groups with heroic clips of Traoré battling “imperialists.”

Manufacturing sainthood

A BBC investigation found that many viral videos hail from Ghanaian and Serbian bot farms; one clip showing a Belgrade protest was falsely repackaged as a “Million‑Man March for Traoré in Paris.” citeturn3view0 The Times of London documented AI‑fabricated ballads and deep‑fake sermons portraying Traoré as a messiah appointed to “cleanse Africa.”

Yet beyond foreign meddling lies genuine appeal. Surveys by Afrobarometer show trust in multiparty elections has plunged 18 points since 2015; Traoré’s raw anti‑elite rhetoric taps that anger. “He tells young Africans they owe the West nothing—and they believe him,” notes Beverly Ochieng of Control Risks.

Domestic cost of charisma

Inside Burkina Faso, dissent has a price. Reporters Without Borders counts 17 journalists and bloggers jailed under a sweeping “Patriotic Mobilisation” decree that also drafts critics into the military. Rights groups accuse the junta of extrajudicial killings during sweeps against jihadists; a leaked military report cited 214 civilian deaths in the village of Karma alone.

Despite such abuses, the cult grows. Every Friday, crowds gather at Ouagadougou’s Place de la Nation to recite a new chant: “Traoré our shield, Traoré our sword.” The line between citizenship and faith is blurring, says sociologist Adama Kiélem. “We are watching a political project turn into a quasi‑religion.”

What happens when the halo slips?

Burkina Faso still controls barely 45 % of its territory, the World Food Programme warns of famine in blockaded northern provinces, and foreign investment has cratered. If today’s saintly glow fades, Traoré may face the fate of past strongmen who discovered that propaganda cannot fill empty stomachs.

For now, though, the mural on Avenue Kwamé N’Krumah remains untouched—fresh flowers placed at its base each dawn by devotees convinced that Captain Traoré is the man who will finally break the Sahel’s curse.

Sources

Financial Times, “The cult of Saint Traoré: how a Russia‑backed junta leader became an icon,” 22 May 2025.

BBC News, “Why Burkina Faso’s junta leader has captured hearts and minds around the world,” 11 May 2025.

The Times (UK), “Burkina Faso’s latest TikTok star? Its president — thanks to Putin,” 19 May 2025.

Reuters, “JNIM claims attacks in Burkina Faso as Traoré visits Russia,” 15 May 2025.