Burkina Faso: Digital skills, the government invests in young people with the ASI TALK program
As digital transformation accelerates in Burkina Faso, both public and private actors are stepping up efforts to equip young people with digital skills. In this context, the Burkinabe company African Society Informatics (ASI) has launched a new program aimed at training 500 young people in the digital field over the next two months.
The announcement was made by the Ministry of Digital Transition in a statement published on its Facebook page on August 2. Titled “ASI TALK”, the initiative aims to develop skills in innovation, leadership, and digital transformation among young people.
The program is based on a hands-on approach, combining technical training, collaborative work, and project support. In addition to the training sessions, roundtable discussions will be held to address key issues in the digital sector. Four projects, each led by a group of ten young participants, will be selected for an incubation phase, with the goal of turning them into profitable startups under expert guidance.
This project comes at a time when demand for digital skills is growing rapidly. According to the World Bank, 230 million jobs in Sub-Saharan Africa will require digital skills by 2030.
Burkina Faso is actively participating in this revolution. In January 2025, the government launched a digital training caravan in partnership with Orange Digital Center, targeting students from the equivalent of 10th grade onward.
These initiatives respond to a concerning socio-economic situation. In 2023, 34% of Burkinabe youth were neither employed, in training, nor in school. Furthermore, 52% of young people aged 18 to 35 identified as unemployed, while only 8% held a full- or part-time job.
“We want our youth to shift from being mere consumers of technology to becoming creators of solutions tailored to our local challenges,” said Élise Kaba, representative of the Ministry of Digital Transition.
