Traoré to send minor offenders to state farms instead of prison in Burkina Faso

Ibrahim Traoré has announced that people convicted of minor offences in Burkina Faso will not serve prison time but will instead work on state farms producing food. The announcement was spread via social media and is not a general abolition of prisons.

## What has been announced, and what has not

Captain **Ibrahim Traoré**, head of state of Burkina Faso since the September 2022 coup, has announced that those convicted of minor offences will not serve prison sentences. Instead, they will work on state farms producing food for the country as part of their sentence. The wording is circulating on social media and should be read carefully: prisons are not being abolished, nor are all inmates being released. The announcement affects minor offenders, who would leave their cells to join agricultural production.

## Farm work as a sentence

The measure fits into a context of pressure on public finances and food insecurity in the Sahel. Burkina Faso is an agrarian country, and much of its population depends on the land. Turning prison labour into manpower for state farms pursues two goals at once: easing overcrowding in prisons with scarce resources and boosting food production. The announcement adds a performance criterion: the more the convict works, the better their situation. This is the most questionable point, as it mixes punishment with a productivity assessment.

## The questions left open

The practical details are not yet known: which offences exactly fall into the minor category, how the work will be monitored, or what pay or rights the convicts will have. Nor is it clear what legal framework replaces the custodial sentence. The measure comes at a time of rupture with **France** and rapprochement with **Russia**, with the country under jihadist pressure. Any change to the penal system requires procedural safeguards; without them, forced labour as a punishment is legally delicate territory.