Burkina Faso: Making the SNC, an instrument of reconciliation with the globality

The Emeritus Archbishop of Bobo-Dioulasso, Monsignor Anselme Titianma Sanon, gave on Monday, May 1st, 2023, the opening conference of the literature symposium held on the occasion of the 20th edition of the National Culture Week (SNC) Bobo 2023.

The opening conference, titled «Cultural Diversity, Community Melting Pot, and Vector of Peace and Social Cohesion» was presented by Archbishop Emeritus of Bobo-Dioulasso, Monsignor Anselme Titianma Sanon, as part of the 20th edition of the National Culture Week (SNC in French) Bobo 2023.

According to Monseigneur Anselme Titianma Sanon, there are three definitions of culture. The first one is culture as cultivating one’s field or land, the second one is culture as knowledge and know-how, and the third one is culture of peace.

The Emeritus Archbishop of Bobo-Dioulasso stated that each society has its culture, and each culture has its cultural traits, including language, economic production, political organization, the art of carving wood to make masks, the art of working with clay to create useful objects for society, and the art of using cotton to make clothes with multiple colors.

« Humanity is humanism and it is the meeting of cultural traits that make Africa diverse and united», he declared.

He argued that «this multiplicity, in unity, shows that we exist for ourselves and for others, and it brings something more to our identity»

According to Archbishop Emeritus Anselme Titianma Sanon, «When you learn a new language, you are strengthened, you find new strength, you have a different vision of the universe that you did not have before.

He added that diversity through cultural traits can be found in all areas, including food culture. «Some people eat with their hands, others with forks that can be made of wood or iron, and still others with chopsticks», he said.

According to the Emeritus Archbishop, accepting cultural society means accepting the cultural traits that make each of us have a cultural identity that we carry and that allows us to present ourselves as equals.

According to Archbishop Emeritus, the encounter with the other allows us to be ourselves and to show our ability to bring something to the other person.

He added that, it is the acceptance of difference and belonging to the same land, sharing the same values that allow us to say that we exist on the same level as others. He emphasized that “No one is unnecessary on this earth.”

Still according to the archbishop, the promotion of culture in Burkina Faso, which has been materialized for 40 years through the National Culture Week (SNC), was led during the colonization period by Voltaics such as Lompolo Koné, Kargougou Moussa, and others.

For him, President Thomas Sankara gave a second wind to the promotion of culture in Burkina Faso with the creation of the National Culture Week and the launch of the Institute of Black Peoples.

He affirmed, « Our Africa of tomorrow will be the work of our hands. The Burkina Faso of tomorrow, we will shape it with our hands with its forests, savannas, minerals. Each generation must bring its share».

He wondered, «Our generation can ask itself if it has played its role and in which areas,” citing the fields of culture, politics, morality, and living together.

The Burkinabe prelate advocated for the creation of a cultural radio and television channel for the whole of Africa so that all African cultural aspects could be seen and heard by Africans and even beyond the continent.

He said, «We need a channel through which all the peoples of Africa come together».

To conclude, the Emeritus Archbishop stated that culture is a monumental and precious instrument in our hands.

He invited the current generation to make the National Culture Week (SNC) an instrument for the unity of all of Africa, an instrument for reconciliation with globality and dialogue among peoples.

H. Nelchael