Célestine Ouezzin-Coulibaly

Makoukou Célestine Ouezzin Coulibaly-Traoré (born Macoucou Traoré; 1914–1997) was an anti-colonial leader in French West Africa. She helped to set up the women's section of the Rassemblement Démocratique Africain in Côte d'Ivoire and Upper Volta, becoming its secretary general in 1948. In 1958, she was appointed Upper Volta's Minister of Social Affairs, probably making her the first woman to join a cabinet in any of the French-speaking West African governments.

Biography Ouezzin Coulibaly was believed to have been born in 1914 in the Banfora region of today's Burkina Faso, then known as Upper Volta. Known at birth as Makoukou (or Macoucou) Traoré, she was the daughter of Balla Traoré, who was chief of the Sindou Canton. Her education culminated in a teaching diploma and she worked as a primary school teacher. In 1930, she married Daniel Ouezzin Coulibaly, obtaining the name Célestine in 1931 when she and her husband were baptized as Roman Catholics.

Ouezzin Coulibaly helped to set up the women's section of the Rassemblement Démocratique Africain in Côte d'Ivoire and Upper Volta, becoming its secretary general in 1948. Together with fellow leaders Anne-Marie Raggi, Marguérite Sacoum, Odette Yacé and Marie Koré, she can therefore be considered one of the pioneers of the independence of the Ivory Coast.

In December 1949, Ouezzin Coulibaly attended the anti-imperialist Asian Women’s Conference held in Beijing, China. After returning home at the beginning of 1950,

After Coulibaly left the position in 1959, despite becoming the first female member of the national assembly, the fact that she did not obtain a government post after Upper Volta's independence in 1960 could be considered a backward step for the political role of women. Representing Upper Volta, Ouezzin Coulibaly was elected to the senate of the French Community on 30 April 1959 where she sat on the Committee for Transport and Telecommunications. She held the position until 16 March 1961.