In this photo from 2016, a group of children were taken to a road safety school in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso to learn how to stay safe and obey the laws while riding their bikes or mopeds.
What's going on?
On Monday, January 24, Burkina Faso experienced a coup d’état. Military forces deposed president Roch Kaboré, who had served as the country’s democratic leader since 2015. Burkina Faso is now under the leadership of the Patriotic Movement for Preservation and Restoration (MPSR), led by Lieutenant-Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba.
Since gaining independence from France in 1960, the country has had little political stability. In a country of 21 million, some 1.5 million people are internally displaced, according to the UNHCR.
What is MCC doing?
MCC began working in Burkina Faso in 1975. Today, we have projects with local partners in the areas of food security, peacebuilding, education, emergency relief and health. To read a recent story about MCC's work in Burkina Faso, please see the current issue of A Common Place magazine.
What you can do
- Pray: Join us as we pray for peace and order in Burkina Faso*:
Our loving God,
We pray for a return to peace and order in Burkina Faso. We pray for peace and unity within the population. We think of all those who have experienced violence and unrest at the hands of extremist groups. Grant them your mercy and your justice. We pray for the leadership of the country, that they would act with integrity for the common good and be filled with concern for the most vulnerable. We pray for the church in Burkina Faso as it seeks to be a witness for peace in this season of violence and instability.
Amen.
*Written prayer by Anicka Fast, MCC Representative for Burkina Faso.
- Give: Your donations to MCC will allow us to continue our work meeting the needs of the most vulnerable in Burkina Faso.
- Advocate: Send messages to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of International Development calling for peacebuilding efforts alongside development and humanitarian work. Ask for an emphasis on local peacebuilding as an alternative to foreign military interventions and operations.