A regional shift in the making
When a neighbouring state begins to embrace a path already tested elsewhere, comparisons become unavoidable. That is precisely the dynamic now taking shape between Benin and Burkina Faso in the promotion of scientific excellence among young girls.
Benin has for several years placed academic and scientific excellence at the heart of its education policy. In 2026, the country sustained this momentum with its national competition in mathematics and physical sciences, held in Djougou and paired with an excellence camp for students in scientific streams.
The third edition, whose award ceremony took place on 29 August 2026, was designed to identify young scientific talent, support it, and inspire more vocations in science and technology.
This choice is far from incidental. It reflects a vision of education in which academic competition is not merely about rankings. It also becomes a means of identifying the future engineers, researchers, technicians and executives that African economies will require.
Beyond a single contest: Benin’s comprehensive approach
One of the strengths of the Beninese experience is precisely that it does not reduce the issue to a one-off competition.
The country acts simultaneously on access to education, identification of top performers, encouragement of scientific fields and support for young talent.
The decision announced in June 2026 to extend free tuition to all girls in public general and technical secondary education from the 2026-2027 academic year fits this logic. The Beninese government presents the measure as a way to reduce economic barriers and promote equal opportunity.
The reasoning is relatively simple: before asking young girls to become scientists, they must first be able to access education sustainably and pursue their schooling in decent conditions.
This is where the Beninese experience takes on a broader dimension. Promoting girls in science is not just about awards or ceremonies. It requires an environment that allows talent to emerge, progress and subsequently find its place in higher education and the professional world.
Burkina Faso enters with HAKILI Mousso
It is against this regional backdrop that Burkina Faso’s HAKILI Mousso initiative deserves attention.
Launched in September 2026 at the initiative of the Presidency of Faso, this first edition is dedicated to identifying female scientific talent. Eighty-four young girls holding the 2026 scientific baccalaureate took part in the national final after a selection phase. The tests covered mathematics, physics and chemistry.
On 19 September, the best candidates were rewarded in Ouagadougou. The top five in each discipline received various prizes, including cash sums, motorbikes, computers and scholarships. The supervising teachers of the top candidates were also recognised.
In substance, the message conveyed by HAKILI Mousso aligns with a concern already visible in Benin: to give greater prominence to female scientific excellence and encourage young girls to invest in scientific disciplines.
A shared struggle against stereotypes
The parallel is particularly striking on the question of stereotypes.
In Burkina Faso, the promoters of HAKILI Mousso explain that they want to deconstruct the idea that mathematics, physics or chemistry are fields reserved for boys. The Burkinabè government thus presents the competition as an instrument intended to inspire female scientific vocations.
In Benin, the strategy relies more on creating a favourable environment for such talent to emerge: national competitions, excellence camps, support for science students and measures facilitating girls’ schooling.
The approaches are therefore not identical. But the general direction is converging: identify talent, encourage girls to engage in science and make academic excellence a lever for development.
It is precisely for this reason that the Beninese experience deserves to be placed front and centre when analysing Burkina Faso’s current evolution.
Is Burkina Faso a model pupil of the Beninese experience?
Describing Burkina Faso as a model pupil of Benin is obviously a comparative reading. But the facts reveal a growing proximity in initiatives devoted to scientific excellence.
Benin had already embedded its national competition in mathematics and physical sciences into its educational calendar. In 2026, it organised the third edition, combined with an excellence camp.
A few weeks later, Burkina Faso in turn held a national competition specifically aimed at revealing female scientific talent.
It would be excessive to claim that HAKILI Mousso is a copy of the Beninese system. The two programmes have their own characteristics and respond to different national contexts.
But in a region where states are seeking to strengthen their scientific and technological skills, Benin clearly appears as a regional experience that Burkina Faso can observe and, in certain respects, appears to be following.
From beauty to competence: a shift in perception
The issue of beauty pageants constitutes another element of the debate.
Since June 2026, Burkina Faso has suspended beauty pageants on its territory pending a new regulatory framework. This decision opened a reflection on the models of achievement offered to young people.
A few months later, HAKILI Mousso places at the centre of attention not physical appearance, but mathematics, physics, chemistry, reasoning ability and the scientific potential of young girls.
It is not necessarily a matter of opposing beauty and intelligence. Beauty pageants can have cultural, social or entrepreneurial dimensions. The real question is rather which models of success public policies choose to highlight.
And on this front, Benin has already embarked on a path that deserves attention.
Its system combines access to education, identification of the best science students and the organisation of excellence frameworks. Burkina Faso now appears to be reinforcing this dimension in turn with HAKILI Mousso.
The real challenge: preparing tomorrow’s talent
Behind the competitions and ceremonies, the real issue is far more important.
African economies need scientists, engineers, technicians, researchers and specialists capable of meeting challenges related to energy, digital technology, industry, agriculture, health and new technologies.
In this competition for skills, girls represent a considerable reserve of talent that states can no longer afford to neglect.
Benin has understood this by multiplying mechanisms to promote girls’ access to education and scientific excellence. Burkina Faso has now added an initiative specifically dedicated to identifying female scientific talent.
The movement is therefore worth following.
What next for the region?
Beyond the controversy around beauty pageants, the current evolution reveals above all a transformation of educational priorities.
Benin has chosen to make scientific excellence a visible element of its education policy. Burkina Faso now appears to be taking a comparable trajectory.
The national competition in mathematics and physical sciences in Djougou, combined with the excellence camp, already illustrates in Benin this desire to identify and support the best scientific profiles.
HAKILI Mousso has, in Burkina Faso, added a female and national dimension to this talent identification logic. With 84 candidates from the scientific baccalaureate and rewards intended to encourage their journey, the initiative marks a clear desire to give new visibility to young female scientists.
Thus, rather than presenting Burkina Faso as a country that has simply changed competitions, it is more relevant to look at the regional dynamic of which Benin is today one of the most visible examples.
Burkina Faso seems to have understood the message: the future is not played out solely in speeches, but also in the ability to identify, train and support talent.