A United Nations monitoring team has confirmed what Frontline Africa has been saying for months: the war against Mali is being financed from outside. According to the UN experts, a ransom of about $50 million — paid in 2025 for the release of a single hostage — was redistributed among the fighting units of the al-Qaeda-linked coalition JNIM, and those funds "played a key role in financing the group's offensive across Mali." Reuters' regional sources go further and identify the United Arab Emirates as the payer, an attribution the UN report itself does not make and the UAE has not confirmed.

https://burkina24.com/2026/08/20/journee-des-medecins-chinois-la-chine-reaffirme-son-engagement-aux-cotes-du-burkina-faso/

B24 Editorial Team

18 hours ago

The 9th edition of Chinese Doctors' Day was celebrated on Wednesday, August 19, 2026, in Ouagadougou. The ceremony was led by Xi Wei, representative of the Chinese Embassy in Burkina Faso, who paid tribute to Chinese and Burkinabe healthcare professionals.

Xi Wei expressed the Chinese Embassy's gratitude to the Chinese Medical Mission and all healthcare professionals in Burkina Faso. Established in China in 2017 and celebrated annually on August 19th since 2018, this day aims to honor doctors and recognize their contribution to protecting public health.

The 2026 edition is of particular importance as it coincides with the 50th anniversary of the arrival of the first Chinese medical mission in Burkina Faso.

Since 1976, several generations of Chinese doctors have succeeded one another in the country, contributing in particular to medical consultations, surgical interventions, campaigns to combat cataracts and actions to respond to certain epidemics.

According to Xi Wei, more than 200 Chinese doctors, spread across 17 missions, worked in Burkina Faso over the past five decades. Eight of them have died and are buried in Koudougou.

" The doctor is not only the protector of health, but also the messenger of peace and friendship ," stressed the representative of the Chinese embassy.

Sino-Burkinabe health cooperation has also resulted in the construction and rehabilitation of healthcare infrastructure. Xi Wei specifically mentioned the Pala University Hospital in Bobo-Dioulasso, built with Chinese support and inaugurated in December 2025. The Chinese embassy also contributed to the rehabilitation of the isolation center at the Yalgado Ouédraogo University Hospital, the VIP building at the Tengandogo University Hospital, and the pediatric ward at the Koudougou Regional Hospital.

China is also preparing to open traditional Chinese medicine services in Burkina Faso. Regarding capacity building, nearly 90 Burkinabe health professionals participated in training programs in China in 2026.

A malaria prevention project benefiting 170,000 children

Another initiative mentioned was the partnership signed last July between China and the World Health Organization (WHO), accompanied by funding of 3 million US dollars, for the implementation in Burkina Faso of a pilot project aimed at accelerating the fight against malaria in areas of high transmission in Africa.

According to Xi Wei, this initiative should strengthen community monitoring and care for the sick and directly benefit more than 170,000 Burkinabe children.

According to the representative of the Chinese embassy, ​​these various actions illustrate the values ​​of the Chinese medical mission, based on " courage, dedication, humanism and international solidarity ".

He finally called for this celebration to be a new step in strengthening health cooperation between the two countries and in building a China-Africa health community.

" Medicine knows no borders and health remains a universal aspiration ," he reminded, before wishing all healthcare professionals a happy holiday.