In the Sahel region, humanitarian aid is often reduced to bags of food, shelter kits, or emergency health interventions. Yet behind every logistical action lies a need that is often overlooked: to be informed, consulted, and understood. In a prolonged crisis, ethical and participatory communication becomes a vital resource. It is aid in its own right. Co-created storytelling and clear information improve dignity, build trust, and lead to better outcomes in crisis response.
Inoussa Baguian, Fairpicture visual creator, on what works in participatory storytelling.
Safieta KEREGUE fled her village of Titao with her family when armed attacks intensified there. Taking refuge in Ouahigouya, she joined the first cohort of the CivicTech program. Today, she is pursuing studies in English while continuing her work in communications. Through her reporting, she gives a voice to her displaced community.
Photo: Inoussa Baguian 2022, Ouahigouya
The Sahel, this vast region of West Africa, is going through a deep multidimensional crisis: armed conflict, food insecurity, and mass population displacement. In Burkina Faso alone, over two million people have been forced to flee their homes. They now find themselves hosted by already vulnerable communities, which are themselves under pressure.
In this context, the needs are immense. But beyond material responses, there is also the urgent need to be heard, respected, and informed. Too often, affected populations are reduced to figures in reports, rather than recognized as actors of their own resilience. And yet, the stories they carry, the needs they express, and the solutions they propose are essential keys to any effective and sustainable response.
Inoussa Baguian
A participant of the CivicTech program is conducting an interview with a member of an NGO about the feedback mechanism related to complaints filed by internally displaced people. The scene takes place in Ouahigouya, in the northern region of Burkina Faso, 182 kilometers from the capital, Ouagadougou.
Photo: Inoussa Baguian 2022, Ouahigouya
In 2020, I was invited with my organization Fama Films to take part in the establishment of the Community Engagement and Accountability Working Group (CEAWG). During a framing workshop, a simple question was asked: “What is most essential for a population in distress?”
The answers came quickly. Shelter coordinators replied “tents.” Logistics teams said “transport.” Others pointed to “food,” “water,” “healthcare.” No one mentioned information.
Yet, how can a population access aid if they don’t know it exists? How can they trust it if they don’t know who is helping them or why? How can they protect themselves if they don’t know what is threatening them? That’s when we realized that information itself is a form of aid. And it deserves the same rigor as the delivery of food packages.
Since then, Fama Films has committed to producing clear and accessible audiovisual content to explain assistance mechanisms, selection criteria, and complaint procedures. But above all, we have championed ethical, participatory, and two-way communication. To inform, but also to consult, consider, and provide feedback. This triptych lies at the heart of dignified assistance. Being informed also means having a say.
Samira, a displaced woman from Dori
In crisis zones, everything is fragile: psychological balance, trust, safety. The arrival of a film crew with heavy equipment can have the opposite effect of what’s intended. Too often, I’ve seen Western crews show up with Sony F55 cameras, cinema lenses, reflectors, boom mics, and translators brought in from capital cities. In front of them stood women without shelter for months, traumatized children, and wary men.
The camera then becomes a wall, not a bridge.
At Fama Films, all our reporters live within the communities they document. They are not visitors but full members. Their gear? A MOJO kit: a smartphone, a wireless lavalier mic, a small tripod. Nothing more. These are familiar items, seen every day in the hands of young people. No big lights, no staging. This minimalism is both a strategic and ethical choice.
As a result, the focus stays on the words, not the equipment. People listen, instead of posing.
We rediscovered this shared vision while working with Fairpicture on a video project for the “Support Program for Bilingual Schools in Burkina Faso.” Thanks to the FairConsent app, we strengthened our process of obtaining free and informed consent. Some people who had been filmed later expressed concerns at the end of the process. Out of respect for their wishes, we removed those images from our story. This too is what ethical communication means: accepting that every voice has the right to change its mind.
Habibou NYAMPA is one of 24 young people trained by the CivicTech program in ethical reporting, accountability, and professional ethics. Since completing the training, she has continued to make her community’s voice heard in a humanitarian context marked by growing challenges.
Photo: Inoussa Baguian 2022, Ouahigouya
Humanitarian aid in the Sahel cannot be reduced to tons of rice or vaccines. It is also about how we look, how we speak, how we show up.
To communicate ethically is to reject the savior posture and instead become an ally. It means stepping outside the frame to make room for others. It means building a shared memory — one grounded in human dignity.
In the Sahel, where conflicts persist and aid fluctuates, words remain. They heal. They build connections. Sometimes, they mend wounds more effectively than tents.
Because ultimately, being heard is also a form of salvation.
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