Ahmad 
A delegation from Russia’s “Rosatom” nuclear company has begun a four-day visit to Burkina Faso to discuss a project to build a power plant.
Burkina Faso has been growing closer to Russia since the coup led by Captain Ibrahim Traoré in September 2022, and the two governments signed an agreement in October 2023 in Moscow aimed at building a nuclear power plant.
The delegation held a working session with Burkina Faso’s Minister of Energy, Mines and Quarries, Yacoub Djouba, who said the visit focused on discussing the technical aspects necessary to implement the project.
Minister Djouba stressed the importance of the visit in providing a deeper understanding of energy issues, as well as other aspects of importance to the relevant ministries such as health, higher education, agriculture and the environment.
“Rosatom’s” chief engineer, Alexander Renev, pledged to do everything possible to speed up the installation work on the nuclear plant, noting that the search for a location for the plant would take into account security issues in the country, which faces increasing security challenges due to attacks by extremist jihadist groups.
Burkina Faso residents are facing a severe electricity crisis, with data showing that only 22.5% of the population has access to electricity at the end of 2020.
The government is seeking to solve this problem once and for all in the long term through this nuclear project.
Burkina Faso currently relies on importing electricity from Ivory Coast and Ghana and produces part of its needs locally through hydroelectric and solar energy.
This nuclear project comes as a step to reduce dependence on imports and provide stable energy to meet the growing needs of the population.
The “Rosatom” delegation is conducting comprehensive assessments of the project during this visit, which concludes on Friday, with the hope that this nuclear plant will be a new addition to the diversity of energy sources on the African continent, as South Africa is the only country with a nuclear plant on its territory.
Russia seeks to strengthen its economic relations with African countries by investing in sectors such as energy, mining, and agriculture. For example, Russian companies are developing projects in the field of mineral extraction, oil, and gas in several African countries.
Russia provides military support to several African countries through arms sales and military training and is keen to strengthen cultural and educational relations by providing scholarships for African students to study at Russian universities, in addition to organizing cultural events aimed at enhancing mutual understanding between peoples.
Russia strengthens its diplomatic relations with African countries through official visits and signing cooperation agreements in various fields, and many African leaders have visited Russia in recent years, reflecting the strengthening of bilateral relations.
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