When a neighbouring state begins to adopt an approach already tested elsewhere, comparisons become unavoidable. This is precisely the dynamic now emerging between Benin and Burkina Faso in the promotion of scientific excellence among young girls.
Benin’s long-standing commitment to scientific excellence
For several years, Benin has placed academic and scientific excellence at the heart of its education policy. In 2026, the country continued this momentum with the General Competition in Mathematics and Physical Sciences, held in Djougou, combined with an excellence camp for students in scientific classes.
The third edition, whose award ceremony took place on 29 August 2026, aimed specifically to identify young scientific talents, support them and inspire more vocations in science and technology.
This choice is not insignificant. It reflects a vision of education in which academic competition serves not merely to establish a ranking. It also becomes a means to identify the future engineers, researchers, technicians and executives that African economies will need.
Beyond competition: Benin’s holistic 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 the best profiles, encouragement of scientific fields and support for young talents.
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 is part of this logic. The Beninese government presents this measure as a way to reduce economic barriers and promote equal opportunities.
The reasoning is relatively simple: before asking young girls to become scientists, they must first be allowed to access education sustainably and pursue their schooling under good 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 talents to emerge, progress and subsequently find their place in higher education and the professional world.
Burkina Faso steps in with HAKILI Mousso
It is in this regional context that the Burkinabè initiative HAKILI Mousso deserves attention.
Launched in September 2026 at the initiative of the Presidency of Faso, this first edition is dedicated to identifying female scientific talents. 84 young girls who obtained the scientific baccalaureate in the 2026 session participated 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, motorcycles, computers and scholarships. The teachers who mentored the best candidates were also honoured.
In essence, 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 battle against stereotypes
The parallel is particularly interesting 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 the emergence of such talents: general competition, excellence camps, support for science students and measures facilitating girls’ schooling.
The approaches are therefore not identical. But the general direction is similar: identify talents, 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 at the forefront when analysing Burkina Faso’s current evolution.
Is Burkina Faso a ‘model student’ of Benin’s experience?
Describing Burkina Faso as a ‘model student’ of Benin is clearly a comparative reading. But the facts reveal a growing proximity in initiatives dedicated to scientific excellence.
Benin had already established the general competition in mathematics and physical sciences in its educational calendar. In 2026, it organised the third edition, associated with an excellence camp.
A few weeks later, Burkina Faso in turn organised a national competition specifically intended to reveal female scientific talents.
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 some aspects, seems to be following.
From beauty to competence: a shift in perspective
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 has opened a reflection on the models of valorisation 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 about 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 initiated a process that deserves to be observed.
Its system combines access to education, identification of the best science students and organisation of excellence frameworks. Burkina Faso now seems to be strengthening this dimension in turn with HAKILI Mousso.
The real challenge: preparing tomorrow’s talents
Behind the competitions and ceremonies, the real issue is far more significant.
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 promote scientific excellence. Burkina Faso has now added an initiative specifically dedicated to identifying female scientific talents.
The movement is therefore interesting to follow.
Benin shows the way, Burkina Faso draws inspiration
Beyond the controversy around beauty pageants, the current evolution above all reveals a transformation of educational priorities.
Benin has chosen to make scientific excellence a visible element of its education policy. Burkina Faso now seems to be taking a comparable trajectory.
The general 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 come, in Burkina Faso, to add a feminine and national dimension to this logic of talent identification. With 84 candidates from the scientific baccalaureate and rewards intended to encourage their progress, 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 talents.
