“AFRICA WILL NOT KNEEL”: EXAMINING IBRAHIM TRAORE’S RESISTANCE TO NEOCOLONIALISM IN HIS SPEECHES

Abstract

This research closely examines the anti-imperialist narrative of Burkina Faso’s President Ibrahim Traore in his bold speeches. Traore is a young emerging voice of Africa which critiques the western dominance in Africa’s internal affairs using financial and military aids as a tool. Neocolonial theoretical framework has been used to uncover the resistance and history behind Traore’s stance. Concepts of famous scholars like Kwame Nkrumah, Frank and Walter Rodney have been employed in the research to have a deeper understanding of western tactics which they use to control the world. Great concepts of Pan-Africanism and anti-imperial resistance started their legacy from Thomas Sankara and still persist in Africa in the form of Ibrahim Traore. He uncovers the mask of sophisticated global platforms like World Bank and IMF which in Traore’s view are just sources to manipulate and control the developing countries. This research emphasizes that Traore’s speeches are not merely the critique of western elites, but they are a call to decolonize Africa both financially and ideologically. This study contributes to the ongoing debates of western unnecessary influence on countries like Nigeria and Burkina Faso, contributing to the awareness of global politics and dark realities behind apparently harmless institutions.