Yonli is a descendant of the last dynasty of the Gurma kingdom, founded at the end of the 13th century by migrants from Kanem–Bornu, a region situated initially between modern Niger, Nigeria, and Chad.

This dynasty, often confused with the history of the Gurma people, who live in Eastern Burkina Faso, can be subdivided into three lines: Yobri, Tambaga, and Tansarga.

The Ph.D. thesis he defended in 1997 at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands was a logical progression from the research results discovered by this international team in Burkina Faso, particularly in the provinces of Yatenga, Sanmatenga, Namentenga, Bam, and Passoré.

In October 1994, Paramanga Ernest Yonli was appointed, in addition to his role as researcher, the Director General of the National Fund for the Promotion of Employment (F.A.P.E.).

In 1992, during the first general elections, which saw the return of Burkina Faso to the rule of law, Yonli was approached to head up the list of ODP/MT candidates in his constituency of Tapoa.

During the elections for the second government of the 4th Republic in 1997, while simultaneously serving as Cabinet Leader for Prime Minister Kadré Désiré Ouedraogo from 1996, he headed up the list of candidates for the ruling party, which had since become the Congress for Democracy and Progress (CDP).

When in September 1997, President Blaise Compaoré appointed Yonli as Minister for Civil Service, he gave him the formidable task of overseeing the Global Public Administration Reform.

These now annual meetings allow the two sides to examine on a yearly basis the negotiating platform of trade union organizations on the one hand, and government actions aimed at the promotion and optimization of the reform's content on the other.

The institutionalization of these meetings has helped reduce labour conflicts as much as possible, and to instil trust between the government and workers’ unions, both of which have shored up social stability which is a pre-requisite for the harmonious development of a nascent democracy.

In July 2001, in Bobo Dioulasso, Yonli decided in agreement with the business world, to institutionalize exchanges between the government and the entire private sector.

These meetings have served as a forum for self-reflection and brainstorming to effectively tackle the problem of promoting and developing these two social groups who make up more than 70% of the country's active population.

In terms of the decentralization objective, the government chose a progressive approach to ensure the best conditions for the adoption of this process by business managers, elected representatives and the wider population.

Programmes to combat poverty, although not achieving all anticipated results, have made the country the best economic performer in the sub-region from the point of view of its multilateral partners.

It is noteworthy that the National Assembly's draft vote on the reform of Article 37 of Burkina Faso's Constitution ultimately caused President Blaise Compaoré's demise.