Burkina Faso road incivility — Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso – September 2, 2026 – Burkina Faso’s National Police have established a new specialized unit, the Brigade for Research and Investigation against Road Incivility (BRICIR), to crack down on traffic violations and improve road safety. The unit was officially launched in the capital city, Ouagadougou, on Wednesday.

The BRICIR will focus on tracking down individuals who evade fines issued through electronic ticketing, drivers involved in hit-and-run incidents, and those implicated in traffic accidents. This motorized unit, operating in pairs, is designed to ensure that no act of road incivility goes unpunished. It will also combat illegal or dangerous parking and other infractions.

During the launch ceremony, the Minister of Security, Mahamadou Sana, declared an end to mere awareness campaigns, emphasizing the unit’s repressive role. “From now on, if you run a red light, even a month, two months, or three months later, this brigade will conduct investigations to make you pay the fine and bring you to Faso Mêbo to do community service,” Sana stated. The Director General of the National Police, Thierry Dofizouho Tuina, described the BRICIR as an appropriate response to the current situation of road indiscipline.

The BRICIR is intended to instill greater civic responsibility and discipline on the roads, addressing the common practice of drivers only obeying traffic laws when they perceive police presence. Instructions have been given to deploy similar brigades in other regional capitals across Burkina Faso, aiming to enhance respect for traffic laws nationwide.