Ahmed Kargbo
CYSE 494
Prof. Batchelder
Personal Leadership Philosophy
Leadership, to me, is defined by a set of core principles that guide how a person behaves, communicates, and influences others. The most important elements of leadership to me are integrity, accountability, effective communication, and collaboration. Some of the personal qualities I would hope to see from someone in a leadership role are discipline, being strategic, willingness to sacrifice, and leading by example. These traits form the foundation of how I evaluate leaders and also how I aspire to lead in my own life. A leader I believe possesses and exhibits these traits and a person has shaped my idea of what a functional leader should be is the current president of Burkina Faso, Captain Ibrahim Traore.
Captain Traore took on the leadership role during a period of instability in Burkina Faso; he gained traction for his approach of embracing national sovereignty, anti-corruption, and enforcing security reform. This leadership approach embeds the traits of discipline, being strategic, accountability, integrity and leading by example. Captain Traore’s main goal was to bring his nation to stability and then develop them from ground up and since his takeover back in 2022, Burkina Faso has made massive strides in terms of its government operations. Captain Traore is known for his leading by example leadership style, he constantly engages directly with his communities, leads the frontline troops and is always physically present even in the most dangerous environments. This level of involvement shows that he does not expect others to take risks that he is not willing to take. Two leadership qualities that differ Captain Traore from other leaders are his discipline and accountability. Having a militaristic background instils discipline in Captain Traore. Captain Traore is known to live a humble and modest life avoiding luxury and materialistic items, he is also always present in the community and mingles with civilians unlike most other leaders.
Accountability sets Captain Traore apart specifically due his anti-corruption stance. Corruption is a common dilemma amongst African leaders. Corruption has historically undermined development across the continent, with leaders often misusing public funds or exploiting national resources for personal gain. Captain Traore challenges this issue by implementing transparency. Captain Traore believes in transparency when dealing with the public and especially when there is an issue that relates to the public economy. The ultimate reason why Captain Traore’s leadership is loved by many is his campaign for national sovereignty. When Captain Traore took over, he commanded the French army to leave Burkina Faso. Even though the country had gained its independence from France, the French army still remained present claiming to fight terrorism. Captain Traore dismissed the French army because he claimed they provided no support and used up the country’s resources; he also made a great point stating that the French army was not needed anymore because Burkina Faso is now independent and can fight for themselves.
From a Western point of view Captain Traore’s militaristic leadership is frowned upon but from the people of Burkina Faso and Pan Africanists, Captain Traore has made massive progressive in rebuilding the nation from ground up like a true leader should. Being an African who resides in the Western world, I applaud Captain Traore for his leadership approach because he has turned Burkina Faso into one of the fastest growing African nations. Seeing leadership philosophies like this example gives me hope for my home country Sierra Leone. My country has faced instability since the 90’s mainly due to poor and biased leadership, I hope that some day we can find a fair and innovative leader who exemplifies the most important elements of leadership such integrity, accountability, discipline, effective communication, and collaboration in order to develop the nation from ground up similar to Burkina Faso.
My personal leadership philosophy has been shaped by cultural influences, personal experiences, and by observing leaders who exemplify the traits I value. Integrity, accountability, discipline, effective communication, and collaboration form the foundation of how I define leadership. Captain Ibrahim Traore’s leadership has had a massive impact on my view of our world leaders and also my personal ideas of leadership. Captain Traore has shown that leadership is a call to action and it can be done correctly if the leader is willing. As I continue to grow, learn, and develop my leadership skills a personal area for improvement would be for me to improve my communication skills.
References
Sandner, P. (2025, September 10). Burkina Faso’s Traoré: A hero to some, autocrat to others. DW. Burkina Faso’s Traore: A hero to some, autocrat to others
Tayo Aina. (2023). I investigated Africa’s most wanted president: Ibrahim Traoré [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/IR_W7eloVd0?si=80mg7QfO0sTFzt24