Crisis of Trust and Military Takeovers in West Africa: Analyzing Factors and Citizen Reactions in Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger

The recurrent military coups in West Africa, with the most recent cases in Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, point to an increasing crisis of trust between citizens and their governments. According to the Colpus 2023 report, military coups have increased significantly across the African continent since 2020, indicating the deterioration of democratic systems due to diverse political, social, and economic causes. Although each country has a distinct context, a variety of interacting factors encouraged military takeover resulting in a worrying pattern spanning history, politics, and geopolitics. Drawing from secondary data including media reports, peer reviewed research, reports from international organizations, and grey literature, this paper offers conceptual, and comparative account of this development. The paper highlights how governance failures, rampant corruption, insecurity from violent extremist groups, and socioeconomic inequalities contribute to eroding public trust. The significance of this study lies in its contribution to both scholarship and policy by providing insights into interplay between governance, security, and societal trust and advances theoretical debates on democratic resilience and coup prevention for the future of the region