Meet the Woman Baking Bissiga’s Next Chapter
Pélagie is recognized as a leading figure among the women of Bissiga, with a journey closely tied to the history of the epicenter itself. Engaged in local initiatives for more than 20 years, she was one of the founding members when the epicenter’s association was established in 2008.
Since 2015, she has served as a community-based health worker, regularly talking with families about nutrition, maternal and child health, and household well-being. Through decades of consistent presence and leadership, she has built deep trust and legitimacy across the community, especially among women.
A Legacy of Community Leadership
In October 2025, community members gathered for a hands-on training as part of a program supported by The Hunger Project-Burkina Faso to equip local women with practical skills in processing orange-fleshed sweet potato into bread, biscuits, and cakes.
Hands deep in dough and tending to baking trays, Pélagie was right in the middle of it all.
Building a Future Alongside Local Youth
While mastering the OFSP processing techniques was key, what stayed with Pélagie most was the energy of the younger participants around her.
“What impressed me most was the enthusiasm of the new generation for women’s empowerment activities,” she says. “I feel that the next generation is well-prepared, given the determination I see in the young girls and women.”
For Pélagie, seeing the social impact in the lives of young women marked a meaningful transition for the older generation within the epicenter community.
“We, the older women, will soon be able to contribute differently, through guidance and mentoring, because I am convinced that the young women in the community are up to the challenges they face,” she explains.
From Learning to Enterprise
With the installation kits provided at the end of the training, the women of the epicenter are officially moving from learning to enterprise, ready to produce and sell sweet potato products locally.
“With these installation kits, the women of the epicenter can finally begin producing and marketing OFSP-based cakes,” Pélagie adds. “This was much anticipated.”
The women of Bissiga can now start making and selling sweet potato cakes. And Pélagie is getting ready for a new role: guiding the young women coming up behind her.
By pairing decades of local experience with the energy of a new generation, the women of Bissiga are showing what community-led sustainability looks like in action.
Discover how community-led initiatives are creating lasting change. Learn more about our work with partner communities across Burkina Faso.
Photo credits for images above: Burkina Faso 2025. All photos are for The Hunger Project.