The verdict in three sentences
If you work as a secretary in an NGO, a donor-funded project or a company in Ouagadougou and you are aiming for a role next to a director, the Kolonell Academy Executive Assistant course (level 5 Advanced, 200,000 FCFA, 40 h) gives you a complete method and ten portfolio pieces. It costs far less than a year of in-person secretarial school and you follow it on a phone or computer, at your own pace, with lifetime access. It does assume solid command of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook: if that is not you yet, start with a lower level of the track.
What executive assistant training costs in Ouagadougou in 2026
In Ouagadougou you have three routes: a BTS or secretarial program in person at a private institute, free content found online, or a structured online course. Here are the 2026 orders of magnitude.
| Option | Indicative 2026 cost | Duration | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| In-person BTS or secretarial program | 300,000 to 600,000 FCFA per year (order of magnitude) | 1 to 2 years | School diploma, lectures, fixed hours |
| Short secretarial course at a center | 75,000 to 200,000 FCFA (order of magnitude) | 1 to 3 weeks | Office basics, little executive-level practice |
| Free videos and tutorials | 0 FCFA (excluding mobile data) | Variable | Scattered tips, no projects, no structure |
| Kolonell Academy, Executive Assistant | 200,000 FCFA (about 305 EUR), one-off | 40 h, about 2 months at 5 h a week | 10 modules, 10 projects, certificate verifiable online |
| Full Office Productivity track (5 levels) | 350,000 FCFA instead of 450,000 | At your own pace | From beginner up to executive assistant |
An online course does not replace a state diploma. It serves a different purpose: learning the concrete tasks of an executive office and proving them with documents you can show in an interview. Details are on the Executive Assistant course page (the course is taught in French).
The program: ten modules, ten projects
The course is made of written lessons, a PDF handout per module, exercises with answer keys, quizzes and projects to submit, each framed by a scoring grid. There is no video and no live class: everything is text, readable on 3G, with no app to install.
| Module | What you learn | Project to submit |
|---|---|---|
| 1. The executive assistant role (free preview) | Duties, confidentiality, relationship with the executive | Job description and confidentiality charter |
| 2. The executive's calendar and priorities | Protected slots, urgent/important matrix, weekly review | Calendar rules and an arbitrated week |
| 3. Mail and administrative correspondence | Mail circuit, signature folder, internal memos | Mail register and five templates |
| 4. Meetings, boards and general assemblies | OHADA-compliant notices, minutes, decision follow-up | Meeting kit and board minutes |
| 6. Executive reporting with Excel | Indicators, data collection, one-page dashboard | Monthly dashboard |
| 8. Travel, events and expenses | Mission orders, seminars, expense claims | Mission file and seminar budget |
| 10. Organizing the office | Written procedures, shared tools, first 30 days | Procedures manual (final project) |
Modules 5 (filing and archiving), 7 (executive presentations) and 9 (professional communication) complete the program. For an NGO office in Ouagadougou, three modules matter most: calendar and priorities (a project coordinator gets requests from donors, partners and field staff), meetings and boards (steering committees, boards, assemblies) and Excel reporting (the monthly table management sends to headquarters).
To be transparent: the practices taught rest on a common francophone African base (OHADA law, administrative conventions), with Senegal-specific notes and examples from Dakar, Abidjan, Bamako and Cotonou. In Ouagadougou you apply the same method and check your organization's internal rules.
What the job can pay
The course page gives figures for Senegal and Côte d'Ivoire. For Ouagadougou there is no comparable official scale: pay depends heavily on the type of employer.
| Situation | 2026 order of magnitude (net per month) |
|---|---|
| Entry-level executive assistant in Senegal | 170,000 to 430,000 FCFA |
| Experienced assistant at a multinational in Senegal | Over 600,000 FCFA |
| Executive assistant at an SME in Abidjan | 150,000 to 250,000 FCFA |
| Large company or multinational in Abidjan | 400,000 to 700,000 FCFA |
| Freelance remote assistance, per client | 75,000 to 250,000 FCFA per month depending on volume |
These are 2026 orders of magnitude that vary by profile, and no income is guaranteed. The course guarantees neither a job nor a contract: it prepares you and gives you the material to prove it.
Learn this skill with Kolonell Academy
Short, practical online courses (taught in French), graded exercises, certificate. Pay with Wave or Orange Money.
Mini case study
Consider a hypothetical learner: Mariam, 29, a secretary on a donor-funded project in Ouagadougou who already knows office software. She is thinking of offering remote administrative support to an SME manager on the side. Simple math: the course costs 200,000 FCFA. If she found one client at 100,000 FCFA a month, at the low end of the observed range, the cost would be covered in two months of billing. If she finds none, she still has a portfolio of ten documents (procedures manual, dashboard, meeting kit) to present for an internal promotion. This scenario is purely illustrative and depends entirely on her prospecting and the market.
FAQ
Do I need to be an executive assistant already to enroll?
No, but you need to master Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook at the level of course 4 of the track, the complete Office suite course. Office experience is a plus, not a requirement. You also need access to Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace.
How much time should I plan?
About 40 hours: just over 13 hours of lessons, the exercises and ten projects, including a final project of about 5 hours. At 5 hours a week, plan for two months.
How do I pay from Ouagadougou?
With Wave or Orange Money at +221 77 596 93 33. Your access is activated within 24 working hours of payment. Access is not refundable once activated, which is why it makes sense to read the free module 1 first.
What is the certificate worth?
You receive a numbered Kolonell Academy certificate, verifiable online via QR code, that you can add to LinkedIn, once you pass the module quizzes with at least 70 %; your final project must also be approved by a reviewer. It is not a state diploma: it proves you completed the course, and your portfolio does the rest.
Is there any support?
You get a forum dedicated to the course and WhatsApp support for practical questions. The whole track, from beginner up to this level 5, is on the Office Productivity track page: 350,000 FCFA instead of 450,000.
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Take the next step. Enroll in Executive Assistant: office tools, organization and communication: 40 h, level 5 Advanced, 200,000 FCFA (about 305 EUR / 330 USD), numbered Kolonell Academy certificate verifiable online. Pay with Wave or Orange Money. Questions? WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
