3 Questions for a Young African Leader after Côte d’Ivoire Terror Attack
Ako uses community radio to inspire peace
Bassam is a quiet beach town in Côte d’Ivoire where I once spent an afternoon filming historical sites and hard-working fishermen next to children playing in the surf.
Last weekend, that serene environment was interrupted by a midday terrorist attack that killed at least 18 people, shocking the community in this West African nation.
The subject of my film was Ako, a man committed to bringing peace to a country that suffered from election violence just a few years ago. When I heard about the attack on March 13, I immediately reached out to him, concerned for his well-being.
At the time the killings took place, Ako was at church about 22 miles away.
“My first reaction was: Oh my Lord, this is another great challenge for the country,” he told me.
“I was both upset and revolted about the violence as I connected on Facebook and saw the pictures of people massacred by the terrorists lying on the ground.”
Ako could not help but be reminded of the aftermath of the 2011 elections — a political crisis turned into a brutal civil war that left 3,000 people dead.
The painful memories of that time led Ako to start a community radio station to promote peaceful messages ahead of the country’s 2015 presidential election. I traveled to Abidjan last October to document this courageous young man’s work, which is supported by USAID.
I asked Ako three questions about what Ivorians are saying, why Americans should care and how Ako’s radio work can bring unity.
1.) What are Ivorians saying after this attack?
After the unfortunate event that happened in Côte d’Ivoire last Sunday, a general consternation was observed in the country.
Many people are fear-stricken and this can be observed in various Facebook forums and even short messages circulating on mobile phones telling people to avoid going out late and public places as well.
Unfortunately, some people have tried to politicize the event, pointing out that it occurred as a consequence of the current government’s inability to secure its populations while the threat had been known for a long time.
2.) What message do you want to communicate to the American people following this attack?
Ivorians have demonstrated resilience in the face of serious challenges in the past.
We are determined to bar any terror enterprise from prospering in Côte d’Ivoire.
Once again, we need the assistance of the American people to overcome the threat. The situation is all the more serious as West Africa is the current target of three major terrorist groups.
The threat is likewise huge for Senegal, another West African country.
3.) How can your work promoting peaceful messages on the radio help reduce tension?
As a community-based radio station, this event comes as another big challenge.
We need not only to inform and educate the population about the threats and the adequate behavior they should have in case of any terrorist threat, but also we need to find ways to reassure our community about the current situation.
We have been doing that with the official information provided by our government. But we need to do more, to take our own initiatives.
The challenge is that none of our staff knows about terrorism and how to address the issue in our radio shows.
However, like previous challenges — the Ebola crisis, the post-election war of 2011 and the 2015 elections — once we are empowered, we could be really effective.
Based on Ako’s responses, you can see why he was selected as a fellow for the Young African Leaders Initiative and why he was featured on Devex’s blog.
We must empower young leaders like Ako to promote peaceful messages and counter extremists wherever they are found.
To learn more about Ako’s work, and his organization Impact For Change, contact him at @seniorako. Read his story and watch a short film about his work on USAID’s Storytelling Hub.
About the Author
Evan Papp works on strategic communications in USAID’s Bureau for Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance. Follow him @EvanMatthewPapp.
