Ganzourgou: In Nabmayaoghin, millet is threshed in a manner that unites families and preserves cultural heritage. At dawn, while Zorgho is still asleep, the drums are already speaking, calling to Nabmayaoghin, a peripheral neighborhood where traditional threshing continues to bring together families, neighbors, and generations, far from the noise of the machines.
According to Burkina Information Agency, this unique practice takes place on the granite plateau called Tagla, where men line up, sticks raised, striking displays of millet ears in unison. The grains fly, dust rises, and bodies sweat in a coordinated effort. Traditional musical instruments like the gangando, loums, and benda set the tempo, ensuring the threshing is as precise as a musical score.
On a particular day, the millet of two producers, Raogo Jean Claude Oudraogo and Pierre Oudraogo, was celebrated. Raogo Jean Claude Oudraogo, President of the Boud-yam association of Zorgho and initiator of the event, emphasized the spirit of the gathering: 'After the harvest, we get together. We work together. We eat together.' In Nabmayaoghin, threshing millet is more than agriculture; it's a vibrant social bond, with community mobilization growing with the abundance of the harvest.
The practice sees young people threshing and winnowing, elders sweeping grains, women providing meals, and griots supporting the effort with song and rhythm. However, Mr. Oudraogo notes a decline in this tradition due to the advent of tractors, which save time but distance families. To counter this, a revival initiative has been underway for five years, with scheduled threshing from November to February and participation from neighboring districts.
On the threshing floor, work pauses only for breaks, where local beer and kola nuts are shared, and meals are eaten in groups. In one day, nine large sacks of millet are harvested. The evening continues with t´ prepared with bean sauce and shared among families, reinforcing the sentiment 'Here, we don't eat alone,' as Mr. Oudraogo emphasizes.
The traditional chief of Zotroumsi and provincial director of culture, Ms. Si Boro, expressed the importance of this practice in strengthening social cohesion and preserving cultural heritage. In Nabmayaoghin, the community strives to thresh millet by hand, not to reject modernity, but to maintain the essential bond between people.