Burkina Faso Junta Dissolves All Political Parties In Power Consolidation Move
Politics Updated: 30 January 2026 10:34 EAT
Ex militia and the then Burkina Faso president Ibrahim Traore
Burkina Faso’s military-led government has dissolved all political parties and repealed the legal framework governing their operations, further tightening its hold on power nearly four years after the September 2022 coup.
The decision was approved by the council of ministers on Thursday and formalised through a presidential decree, bringing an abrupt end to the legal existence of all political parties in the country.
Under the decree, laws regulating the creation, registration, financing and functioning of political parties have been scrapped, alongside provisions outlining the role and status of the political opposition.
Government officials said the move is aimed at “rebuilding the state” and strengthening national cohesion, arguing that the multiparty system had become fragmented and a source of division and dysfunction.
Political activities by parties had already been suspended since the military seized power in 2022, but the new decree goes further by permanently dissolving the parties and transferring their assets to the state.
Burkina Faso has been ruled by Captain Ibrahim Traoré since he took power amid mounting insecurity caused by jihadist insurgencies linked to al-Qaida and Islamic State groups operating across the Sahel.
Before the coup, the country had more than 100 registered political parties, with 15 represented in parliament following the 2020 general elections, underscoring the scale of the political overhaul now underway.
The junta has repeatedly delayed a return to civilian rule, revising transition timelines and maintaining strict controls on political activity, media and civil society.
Human rights groups and international observers say the dissolution of political parties marks another major contraction of democratic space in Burkina Faso, even as authorities insist further political and institutional reforms will be announced in the future.
Tags: Signs Media Kenya Limited Editor's Pick Politics Signsmedia Burkina Faso Signstvkenya
Share this article
FELIX MAKONA
FACT FINDER AND DATA DRIVEN JOURNALIST. DATA MINING AT IT'S BEST. GET FACTS RANGING FROM MATTERS DISABILITY AND INCLUSION, POLITICS, ECONOMY, SPORTS AND GENERAL NEWS AROUND THE WORLD