Burkina replaces ‘colonisation’ with ‘imperialist invasion’ in textbooks
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Tuko
Burkina Faso's military government has rewritten history, geography and civic education curricula: ‘colonisation’ becomes ‘imperialist invasion’ and ‘coloniser’ becomes ‘invader’. Teachers have received a 190-page guide, according to Higher Education Minister Moumouni Zoungrana, quoted by Tuko.
Burkina Faso's military government has ordered a revision of history, geography and civic education curricula in public schools, with a 190-page guide distributed to teachers that replaces ‘colonisation’ with ‘imperialist invasion’ and ‘coloniser’ with ‘invader’, the Kenyan media outlet Tuko reports.
Europeans presented as explorers in old textbooks are now described as spies, while African resistance leaders, previously portrayed negatively, are being reassessed favourably. Geography lessons incorporate more positive terminology, while civic education emphasises the Confederation of Sahel States, an alliance of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, and the extraction of Burkina Faso's natural resources by Western countries.
Higher Education Minister Professor Moumouni Zoungrana says the changes are intended to remove terms considered degrading to Africans and to ensure schools recognise African achievements such as resistance to colonial domination. The government has also imposed school uniforms incorporating locally made traditional fabrics.
This revision stems from President Ibrahim Traoré's stated desire to reclassify the colonisation of Africa as an ‘invasion’, announced on 8 November. It adds to other educational reforms, such as the project to generalise teaching in national languages in schools.
