Joanny Thévenoud

Joanny Thévenoud (March 14, 1878 - September 16, 1949) was a French apostolic vicar of the White Fathers, best remembered for his missionary, ecclesiastical and public development work in Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso).

In subsequent decades, he was responsible for a number of important development works in Upper Volta, including the ordering of the first dam in 1915 (Akosombo Dam), the establishment of a sewing centre for young Christian girls in 1917, a spinning and carpentry centre for men in 1927, and ordering construction of Ouagadougou Cathedral, built in 1934-1936.

[2] Authorities had tried to avoid getting involved in the local custom but by the 1930s, pressure from Thévenoud and his supporter, French Senator Gustave Gautherot [fr],[4][3] forced the colonial administration to repress pawnship, treating it like slavery.

Because so many of the pawned victims were young women and girls, the change in policy toward pawnship also resulted in a series of measures to ban child marriages.

[6] In 1942, Thévenoud established the first normal school of teachers of the mission, and five years later, set up the Young Christian Students Association.