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Funded Projects Archives of the Union of Teachers of Burkina Faso

About the Project

Archives of the Union of Teachers of Burkina Faso
Planning Grant

Ce projet est le fruit d’un partenariat tissé entre le Syndicat nationale des enseignants du Burkina (SNEA-B), les archives nationales du Burkina (ANB) et une équipe de recherche internationale (Université Nazi-Boni de Bobo-Dioulasso, Université Joseph Ki-Zerbo de Ouagadougou et le Centre national de la recherche scientifique en France). Il a permis de collecter, trier, inventorier et classer une vaste documentation désormais accessible librement au siège du SNEA-B à Ouagadougou. Il s’agit à notre connaissance du premier fonds d’archives syndicales constitué du pays.

Au final, ce fonds privé s’étend sur environ 38 mètres linéaires (des années 1950 à 2023. Il comprend des archives diverses : correspondance (interne au syndicat, nationale et internationale), photographies, rapports, notes de réunions et de congrès, presse syndicale, formation syndicale et pédagogique, coopération internationale, grèves et mouvements sociaux, vie quotidienne du syndicat (financements, cotisations, etc.). Cette documentation permet de retracer 70 ans de transformations sociopolitiques du pays, de la lutte anticoloniale aux conflits que traversent actuellement le pays. Elle offre une documentation inédite pour toute personne s’intéressant à l’histoire syndicale, aux mouvements sociaux, à l’histoire de l’école et de la profession enseignante.

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This project is the result of a partnership between the National Union of Teachers of Burkina (SNEA-B), the national archives of Burkina (ANB) and an international research team (Nazi-Boni University of Bobo-Dioulasso, Joseph University Ki-Zerbo of Ouagadougou and the National Center for Scientific Research in France). This partnership made it possible to collect, sort, inventory and classify documents now freely accessible at the SNEA-B headquarters in Ouagadougou.

The collection includes over 38 linear meters documenting the Union from the 1950s to 2023. It includes various archives: correspondence (internal to the union, national and international), photographs, reports, notes from meetings and congresses, press union, union and educational training, international cooperation, strikes and social movements, and daily life of the union (financing, contributions, etc.). These materials retrace 70 years of socio-political transformations in the country, from the anti-colonial struggle to the conflicts we are currently going through in the country. The collection offers unique documentation for anyone interested in trade union history, social movements, the history of schools and the teaching profession.

Project Leads

  • Ophelie Rillon, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS, France)
  • Siaka Traoré, Syndicat National des Enseignants Africains du Burkina (Burkina Faso)

Host Institution

Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS, France)

More Information

Explore all 6 inventories

The MEAP funded project team has created 6 inventories based on the archival materials of the National Union of Teachers of Burkina (SNEA-B):

Three inventories are related to paper archives / 3 inventaires concernent les fonds d’archives papier telles que les correspondances, les comptes rendus de réunions et de congrès syndicaux, les textes juridiques, les rapports de formation, les tracts, etc. : 1SNE (1959-2023) ; 2 SNE (1959-2023) ; 3 SNE (1963-2023)

1 SNE | Inventory of the Archives of the Syndicate National des Enseignants Africains du Burkina
This inventory gathers archives which were kept in offices of the secretary and general secretary (1959-2023) including several recent documents still used by the union.

2 SNE | Inventory of the Archives of the Syndicate National des Enseignants Africains du Burkina
This inventory gathers archives which were kept in the treasurer's office and the warehouse (1959-2023). It includes historical archives kept at union's headquarters and those collected by activists. It also includes recent archives still in use by the treasurer.

3 SNE | Inventory of the Archives of the Syndicate National des Enseignants Africains du Burkina
This inventory makes a list of the leftover not processed by archivists due to time constraints (1963-2023). It may contain potential duplicates of the 1SNE and 2 SNE inventories.

Two inventories are related to periodical collections / 2 inventaires concernent les fonds périodiques reçus par le SNEA-B dans le cadre de la solidarité internationale et le journal syndical La voix des enseignants (LVE) produits par le SNEA-B : PER (1954-2021) ; PER_LVE (1964-2019)

PER | Periodicals Inventory of the Syndicate National des Enseignants Africains du Burkina Faso
This inventory is made of national and international periodicals held by SNEA-B (1954-2021).

PER_LVE | Periodicals Inventory of the Syndicate National des Enseignants Africains du Burkina Faso
This inventory gathers copies of the union newspaper La voix des Enseignant (LVE) published by SNEA-B (1964-2019). This is the only Item Detail inventory.

One inventory is related to documentation / 1 inventaire concerne la documentation imprimée produite ou conservée par le SNEA-B : DOC (1962-2018)

DOC | Documentation Inventory of the Syndicate National des Enseignants Africains du Burkina
This inventory targets printed documentation made or held by SNEA-B (1962-2018).

Three other collections have also been made up, but have not yet been inventoried/
Trois autres fonds ont également été constitués mais ne sont pas encore inventoriés

  • Library collection/Fonds Bibliothèque includes various books (novels, poetry, children's books), mainly in French, held by SNEA-B.
  • Photographic collection/Fonds Photographique contents many photo albums and shots stored in envelopes or in a jumble. Most of them are from 1990-2010, but a few of them are from the 1970s. Various topics are covered by these photographs such as teacher training, international cooperation and 1st May celebration in 1995. Some were published in La voix des Enseignant. Ophélie Rillon worked to identify the photographs with former union members: Jean Kafando (SNEA-B General Secretary from 2000 to 2010); Mrs Ki Alimatou Zerbo, Diarrah Oumou Mintou Brahima Cissé, Margueritte Toure Zagré and Aminata Antaille Sawadogo (retired teachers); Karim Ouedraogo (retired teacher and activist).
  • Audiovisual collection/ gathers CDs, DVDs and audio cassettes containing photographs, videos, working texts and reports produced by SNEA-B or its international partners.


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