Burkina Faso (MNN) — Burkina Faso’s military junta has suspended over 900 civil society groups and non-governmental organizations since April. 

The West African country has been fighting Islamic insurgencies for over a decade. The junta’s suspensions are an attempt to stop foreign funds that it suspects could be fueling terrorism. But these actions also tighten the junta’s control over the nation, critics say.

Greg Yoder with Christian World Outreach says their ministry has not been affected by the recent changes, since they operate within the education and religious sphere. In fact, CWO’s women’s vocational training center, the Village of Opportunity, has been viewed favorably by government leaders.

Students at the Village of Opportunity with CWO in Burkina Faso. (Photo courtesy of CWO)

“We have had some of the directors of ministries visit the center and see what we do there. They’re excited about that part of [CWO],” says Yoder.

“If anything, we’ve gotten more negative from those that are trying to attack villages and churches, asking us to stop giving education to young ladies. We haven’t had any physical threats, but our staff there has heard that they want us to stop.”

Burkina Faso continues to experience raids from groups with ties to Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State. Yoder says CWO staff have security measures in place as they continue serving as the hands and feet of Christ, but they are undaunted. 

“The reason we’re not in crisis mode is because we know who we serve, more powerful than any of the things going on in Burkina and the countries around there,” Yoder says. 

The context is serious. Mali and Niger border Burkina Faso. Together, the three countries make up the region known as the Central Sahel. All three countries have experienced coups within the last five years and are “marked by poverty and insecurity,“ a United Nations article reports. 

But Yoder says CWO’s staff and the people they serve press on in these circumstances. 

“People are determined to continue to get an education. These young women will do what they can to get vocational training. People are coming to know the Lord — the young ladies at the school, and through our mobile clinic when they’ve visited villages and even displacement camps,” says Yoder. “God is still working.” 

Praise God for preserving hope in the midst of challenges. Pray for the safety of CWO staff, the young women they serve, and other activities they do in Burkina Faso. 

“The determination of our staff there to continue on and to give their all — I think that’s something that we need to be encouraged by as believers, that God is working despite the things going on in the world,” says Yoder. 

 

Header photo: Girl pushing a bicycle on a field in Burkina Faso (Photo courtesy of Murat Kahraman via Pexels).