Whenever there is any news about Captain Ibrahim Traoré or Burkina Faso, one thing the media never fails to talk about is how Ibrahim Traoré promised to fight the insecurity that has plagued the country but one year after his taking power, the insecurity still persists. The media doesn’t stop there, those articles or news programs go further to state how Traoré kicked out French forces who were supposedly helping to fight the insurgency in the country. The whole point of this is to show that Captain Traoré has not done anything to fight the insecurity and he is certainly not capable enough to do it all by himself. The truth is these news media are obviously pushed by Western propaganda to prove that Captain Traoré is incompetent to solve Burkina Faso’s insecurity problem simply because he came into power through a coup. But they are wrong because the fact is since Captain Traoré came into power, he has been doing all he can to combat insecurity in the country given the resources. He has strengthened the Defence force in the country by organizing training and outfitting them. He has built defense relations with other non-Western countries as well as African countries which would in turn strengthen the fight against insecurity in Burkina Faso. And just recently, Ibrahim Traoré announced that the country has acquired more powerful weapons, missiles and other military equipment.

The President unveiled these new high-grade military weapons at a handover ceremony held on the 12th of January 2024. According to the information released these weapons were bought from China and they included armoured vehicles, self-propelled mortars, and various weapons and ammunition. According to Traoré, the delivery is part of a strategic equipment plan that aims to strengthen the country’s security forces in their fight against jihadist insurgents. During the ceremony, President Traoré was seen inspecting six WMA301 fire-support vehicles, which are armed with 105 mm guns and made by Chinese company Norinco. He also examined eight CS/SM1 self-propelled mortars, which use a Dongfeng light tactical vehicle as a platform and have a caliber of 81 mm. Interestingly these are the first of their kind to be seen in Africa.

In addition, Traoré was shown a series of shipping containers that contained a 60 mm WW90 mortar, mortar rounds, and rounds for RPG-7-type recoilless guns. According to Minister of Defence Brigadier General Kassoum Coulibaly, this was the first of five consignments that are expected to arrive over the coming months under the strategic equipment plan. This strategic equipment plan had been earlier announced by Captain Traoré in his televised speech on 31 December 2023, although he didn’t provide much details, only saying that they would emerge over the coming year. And true to his words, these military equipment have been bought and are currently being used in the fight against terrorism. This is definitely a big win for the Burkina Faso military because before Traoré ended the defense agreement with France, France dictated what military equipment Burkina Faso could buy. Imagine that. A whole sovereign country needed the approval of another country before it could get the weapons it needed to equip its defense. The Defence Minister of Burkina Faso confirmed that France stopped the country from getting good weapons and most of the weapons they were allowed to get, which they didn’t even need, were gotten at exorbitant prices.

Now, during the handover ceremony in which President Traoré handed over these high-grade military equipment to the Ministry of Defense and Veterans Affairs, the President said something remarkable. He said that the acquisition of these equipment are the result of a strict management of resources and proves that the country is “capable of waging war.” He also made it known that the acquisition was possible thanks to the contributions of Burkinabè citizens. This just proves how passionate President Traoré is in dealing with the insecurity in the country and this is not the first time the President has shored up the defense of the country. In March 2023, President Traoré acquired military equipment including drones and armored vehicles worth around $415 million to beef up the army’s capacity. Although the identity of the supplier was not revealed, a source within the army indicated that the equipment include drones, fighter jets, weapons, ammunition, troop transport and combat vehicles. It was also revealed that the equipment is already in use by the army and proved to be efficient.

Now, in case you are wondering, the result of Traoré’s strengthening of the Defense in Burkina Faso has been effective. On November 26th, 2023, 400 terrorists were eliminated by the armed forces of Burkina Faso. Around 3,000 terrorists attempted to seize the city of Djibo, a northern city in the country. However, the country’s armed forces managed to carry out a successful counteroffensive thanks to the joint actions of ground forces and aviation. This is just one of the many successes that have been achieved by the Burkinabe military in the fight against terrorism. Isn’t it remarkable? Why don’t the media push this kind of news? All the time that French forces were in Burkina Faso they never achieved this kind of result. Indeed Captain Traoré is making remarkable progress in the fight against terrorism and as part of his plans for the fight, the President plans to create what he calls a Special Rapid Intervention Brigade.

The Special Rapid Intervention Brigade is a military initiative announced by President Traoré in his December 31st, 2023 televised speech. According to the President, the Special Rapid Intervention Brigade is a large inter-army operational unit, created to combat terrorism. According to the Burkinabe sate media, the brigade will have its own headquarters, include special forces and rapid reaction groups, employees of the Republican guard, a support management group, a field artillery battalion, an aviation rapid response squadron, an armored rapid response battalion, a training and development Center for special rapid response units. The main task of the new unit will be to fight against terrorism across the country through special operations. The unit will also ensure the security of the national territory, the protection of state institutions, important facilities and high-ranking officials. It would also help recapture territory from militants operating in Burkina Faso. The brigade is expected to participate in missions abroad within the framework of bilateral or multilateral agreements.

Based on this, it’s evident that Captain Traoré is more than ready to tackle the insecurity in Burkina Faso. Don’t also forget that Traoré signed a Defense pact with Russia and two other African countries, Niger and Mali. With all these arrangements, it’s very much evident that Burkina Faso will make greater progress in the fight against terrorism in 2024. Hopefully, President Traoré is not assassinated before then.

What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments section below. Don’t forget to like, subscribe and share this video.