Burkina Faso: Food sovereignty on the move
A new chapter in the agricultural reconquest of Burkina Faso is being written in Bidiga, in the Nakambé province. The visit by Minister of State Ismaël Sombié to the 25-hectare rice plain was more than a routine institutional gesture; it was a declaration of national sovereignty.
Here, 106 producers including 40 women are methodically and ambitiously cultivating TS2 variety rice, projecting an image not of a nation awaiting aid, but of a people lifting themselves up through the work of their land.
Supported by the state with seeds, fertilizer, and structured technical guidance, the project is forecast to yield 112 tonnes, with a net profitability exceeding 10 million CFA francs.
These results are not incidental; they embody the firm resolve of the government, led by Captain Ibrahim Traoré, to transform agriculture into a strategic economic pillar and break with chronic food dependency.
Every initiative by the Ministry of Agriculture aligns with this foundational renewal.
Contracts with the National Fooad Security Stock Company (SONAGESS), the introduction of wheat on five hectares, and the planned sale of 90 tonnes of rice are strengthening agricultural value chains while securing producers’ incomes.
These efforts are laying the groundwork for a resilient Burkina Faso, one in command of its own economic and strategic choices.
The battle extends beyond production. The rice farmers’ alert about the siltation of the dam has already prompted a government response, with a dredging operation announced for the end of the rainy season.
This responsiveness reflects a new mode of governance: one that listens, acts, and delivers tangible change.
Bidiga has thus become a frontline in the fight for food sovereignty a model of what a clear, reality-based political vision can achieve.
Through this plain, all of Burkina Faso advances toward sovereignty not by slogan, but by concrete action.
Olivier TOE
