The story
Faso Kuma in Ouagadougou
Faso Kuma is a national oratory and debate competition for Burkinabe university students, its name meaning the word of the Faso in Dioula. Eight teams face off over about six weeks, working toward semifinals and a grand final, under a theme about defending intangible cultural heritage amid insecurity. It launched at Ouagadougou's Institut superieur de genie electrique under the patronage of Konomba Traore, a recognized living human treasure.
Eight student teams from Ouagadougou's higher-education institutions spent about a month and a half preparing to argue, persuade, and perform in Faso Kuma, a national oratory competition whose name means the word of the Faso in Dioula.