Ouagadougou: The Burkinabe government has declared the United Nations Resident Coordinator, Carol Flore-Smereczniak, persona non grata in response to a contentious report on "Children and Armed Conflict in Burkina Faso." The government expressed strong disapproval, arguing that the report was developed without consultation with national authorities and contained "unfounded" information.

According to Burkina Information Agency, government spokesman Gilbert Pingdwend© Ou©draogo criticized the task force, co-chaired by Ms. Flore-Smereczniak, for producing a document with "baseless assertions and untruths," which equated the Burkinabe defense and security forces with armed terrorist groups. The government lamented that national structures were excluded from the report's preparation, which, in their view, would have provided a "more complete and unbiased" understanding of the situation concerning children in high-security areas.

The Burkinabe government recalled that it had issued an official clarification to relevant UN agencies in March 2025, asserting that the Resident Coordinator had lost credibility as a reliable interlocutor. Despite these tensions, the government reaffirmed its commitment to the United Nations' ideals and expressed willingness to continue cooperation with UN representatives and teams dedicated to providing genuine support.

This incident follows the expulsion of Ms. Flore-Smereczniak's predecessor, Barbara Manzi, on December 23, 2022, highlighting ongoing challenges in the relationship between Burkina Faso and the United Nations.