The 7th edition of the Festival des Africains du Niger, held at the Radisson Blu, was much more than just an artistic celebration. It also provided a platform for profound political reflection, led by Moumouni Saidou, a member of the Refoundation Advisory Council. At the heart of his argument was the idea that cultural sovereignty is essential for rethinking migration. Rather than forced exile, he proposed the concept of chosen mobility within the continent, based on the removal of the mental and physical borders inherited from colonisation.

Breaking down borders to create a shared space

Moumouni Saidou’s analysis is based on the idea that today’s borders are man-made obstacles to unity among peoples. By bringing together people from across Africa, including Chad, Cameroon, Benin and Mali, the festival offers a glimpse of the kind of interconnected space that should be the norm on the continent.

For the advisor, promoting cultural sovereignty means challenging the notion of foreignness among Africans. The explicit objective is to enable populations to ‘cross borders’ and become ‘people of the same space’. Migration then ceases to be a matter of managing flows and becomes an act of identity affirmation. As a result of rediscovering a shared culture, administrative barriers disappear and migrants become continental citizens who feel at home everywhere, from Niamey to Bamako or Ouagadougou.

Identity as a universal passport

The promotion of intra-African mobility is based on the ‘maatocracy’ ideology. According to Mr Saidou, this system of ancestral values centred on truth, justice and solidarity has the power to unite nations.

In this vision, culture takes precedence over politics. When Africans share the same ethical and social codes, which are rooted in a history stretching back millennia, mistrust of ‘the other’ disappears. Cultural sovereignty acts as an invisible yet powerful passport. It ensures that Africans travelling to other countries in the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) or beyond are perceived as a natural part of a shared civilisation, not as intruders. Integration through culture enables free movement where political arrangements often fail.

Knowledge of the territory: curbing migration and encouraging exchange

A key part of the interview process involves exploring the relationship that young people have with their local area. Moumouni Saidou emphasises the urgent need to understand the geography and resources of the land, including uranium, gold, oil and water.

This cognitive appropriation directly impacts migration dynamics. On the one hand, it discourages desperate emigration to the West. By becoming aware of local wealth and rejecting the narrative of a poor Africa, young people find reasons to stay and develop their communities. On the other hand, it encourages internal and strategic economic migration. Knowledge of resources enables African expertise to circulate where it is needed for endogenous development. Thus, cultural sovereignty transforms migration, shifting the focus from escaping to the outside world to rediscovering and enhancing the inside.

The AES: Laboratory for Free Cultural Exchange

The Alliance of Sahel States is the political embodiment of this philosophy. Breaking with ‘neo-colonial’ models, the current leaders – Tiani, Goïta and Traoré – are striving for total sovereignty. This sovereignty encompasses not only military defence, but also the freedom of peoples to move within their historical territories. According to Moumouni Saidou, information warfare plays a pivotal role here. We must deconstruct terms that criminalise mobility or divide populations. By promoting its own concepts and heritage, Africa is regaining control of its population and demographic movements.

Moumouni Saidou’s vision offers a new perspective: when underpinned by strong cultural sovereignty, migration becomes an instrument of power. It ceases to be a vulnerability and becomes a driver of regional integration. Uniting Africans means more than harmonising policies – it means enabling every African to feel sovereign across their entire continent.