Following on from the discussions held at FESPACO 2025 and the political reforms promoted by the Confederation of Sahel States (AES) in Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso, the Confederation of Cinema and Audiovisual Professionals of the AES is expected to be officially launched at the constituent general assembly scheduled to be held from February 7 to 12, 2026, in Bamako.
In January 2025, a seminar was organized in Bamako by the national cinema federations of Mali and Burkina Faso (FENACAM and FNCA-BF) to lay the foundations for a common cinema and audiovisual policy within the AES.
A few weeks later, in February 2025, during FESPACO, which is held in Ouagadougou every two years, professionals from the AES space discussed a common "economic model" for cinema, noting that the creative potential was immense, but that the industries were still too fragmented, underfunded, and poorly integrated at the regional level, and that the potential market exceeded 70 million inhabitants within the confederation.
It was on this occasion that explicit mention was made of the establishment of a cinema and audiovisual confederation of the Alliance of Sahel States, tasked with bringing together existing professional organizations and speaking with one voice to governments and donors.
The creation of this entity is part of a new political context: that of the Confederation of Sahel States (AES), which, at the end of 2025, formalized common tools such as a television channel (AES TV) and a confederal investment bank.
AES TV, launched in Bamako in December 2025, is presented as the common media outlet responsible for promoting the Confederation's vision and actions and speaking on behalf of the Sahel on the regional and international stage. For film and audiovisual professionals, this infrastructure opens up a strategic opportunity: to eventually have a broadcaster capable of hosting, co-producing, and promoting works from the AES region.
In this context, the new structure will have the following role:
- To represent the interests of AES producers, directors, technicians, and theater operators before governments, confederal institutions (AES, AES TV, BCID-AES), and international partners. The aim is to influence public policy (funding, quotas, taxation, legal framework) through a single structure rather than a patchwork of different representatives.
- Work towards a common framework for financing, co-production, distribution, and circulation of works in the three countries, drawing inspiration from the principles already established at the continental level by the African Audiovisual and Cinema Commission (AACC).
- Develop a viable economic model for cinema and audiovisual media in the AES area, based on the size of the market and new confederal financial tools. The future confederation must act as an intermediary between projects (films, series, platforms, theaters) and funding sources (BCID-AES, national funds, international partners).
- Coordinate and amplify the training efforts already undertaken by national federations: schools, writing residencies, technical workshops, in line with pan-African recommendations that encourage the creation of regional film schools and the strengthening of professional skills.
- Support the presence of AES cinema at festivals (FESPACO, regional and international festivals), support the creation of specific windows for the confederation's works, and work with AES TV and other broadcasters to ensure better exposure for local content.