Background: Independence from France came to Burkina Faso (formerly Upper Volta) in 1960. Governmental instability during the 1970s and 1980s was followed by multiparty elections in the early 1990s. Several hundred thousand farm workers migrate south every year to Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana.
Government type: parliamentary
Capital: Ouagadougou
Currency: 1 Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (CFAF) = 100 centimes
Geography of Burkina Faso
Location: Western Africa, north of Ghana
Geographic coordinates: 13 00 N, 2 00 W
Map references: Africa
Area:
total: 274,200 sq. km
land: 273,800 sq. km
water: 400 sq. km
Land boundaries:
total: 3,192 km
border countries: Benin 306 km, Cote d’Ivoire 584 km, Ghana 548 km, Mali 1,000 km, Niger 628 km, Togo 126 km
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
Climate: tropical; warm, dry winters; hot, wet summers
Terrain: mostly flat to dissected, undulating plains; hills in west and southeast
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Mouhoun (Black Volta) River 200 m
highest point: Tena Kourou 749 m
Natural resources: manganese, limestone, marble; small deposits of gold, antimony, copper, nickel, bauxite, lead, phosphates, zinc, silver
Land use:
arable land: 13%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 22%
forests and woodland: 50%
other: 15% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 200 sq. km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: recurring droughts
Environment – current issues: recent droughts and desertification severely affecting agricultural activities, population distribution, and the economy; overgrazing; soil degradation; deforestation
Environment – international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban
Geography – note: landlocked savanna cut by the three principal rivers of the Black, Red, and White Voltas
People of Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso’s 12 million people belong to two major West African cultural groups–the Voltaic and the Mande (whose common language is Dioula). The Voltaic Mossi make up about one-half of the population. The Mossi claim descent from warriors who migrated to present-day Burkina Faso from Ghana and established an empire that lasted more than 800 years. Predominantly farmers, the Mossi kingdom is still led by the Mogho Naba, whose court is in Ouagadougou.
Burkina Faso is an ethnically integrated, secular state. Most of Burkina’s people are concentrated in the south and center of the country, sometimes exceeding 48 per square kilometer (125/sq. mi.). This population density, high for Africa, causes migrations of hundreds of thousands of Burkinabe to Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana, many for seasonal agricultural work. A plurality of Burkinabe are Moslem, but most also adhere to traditional African religions. The introduction of Islam to Burkina Faso was initially resisted by the Mossi rulers. Christians, both Roman Catholics and Protestants comprise about 25% of the population, with their largest concentration in urban areas.
Female genital mutilation, child labor, child trafficking, and social exclusion of accused sorcerers remain serious problems, although the government has taken steps in recent years to combat these phenomena. Workers and civil servants generally have the right to organize unions, engage in collective bargaining, and strike for better pay and working conditions. Few Burkinabe have had formal education. Schooling is free but not compulsory, and only about 29% of Burkina’s primary school-age children receive a basic education. The University of Ouagadougou, founded in 1974, was the country’s first institution of higher education. The Polytechnical University in Bobo-Dioulasso was opened in 1995
Population: 13,925,313 (July 2005 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 47.5%
15-64 years: 49.59%
65 years and over: 2.91%
Population growth rate: 2.68%
Birth rate: 44.79 births/1,000 population
Death rate: 17.05 deaths/1,000 population
Net migration rate: -0.97 migrant(s)/1,000 population
Infant mortality rate: 106.92 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 46.41 years
male: 45.86 years
female: 46.98 years
Total fertility rate: 6.35 children born/woman
Nationality:
noun: Burkinabe (singular and plural)
adjective: Burkinabe
Ethnic groups: Mossi over 40%, Gurunsi, Senufo, Lobi, Bobo, Mande, Fulani
Religions: indigenous beliefs 40%, Muslim 50%, Christian (mainly Roman Catholic) 10%
Languages: French (official), native African languages belonging to Sudanic family spoken by 90% of the population
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 19.2%
male: 29.5%
female: 9.2% (1995 est.)
History of Burkina Faso
Until the end of the 19th century, the history of Burkina Faso was dominated by the empire-building Mossi. The French arrived and claimed the area in 1896, but Mossi resistance ended only with the capture of their capital Ouagadougou in 1901. The colony of Upper Volta was established in 1919, but it was dismembered and reconstituted several times until the present borders were recognized in 1947.
The French administered the area indirectly through Mossi authorities until independence was achieved on August 5, 1960. The first president, Maurice Yameogo, amended the constitution soon after taking office to ban opposition political parties. His government lasted until 1966, when the first of several military coups placed Lt. Col. Sangoule Lamizana at the head of a government of senior army officers. Lamizana remained in power throughout the 1970s, as president of military and then elected governments.
With the support of unions and civil groups, Col. Saye Zerbo overthrew President Lamizana in 1980. Colonel Zerbo also encountered resistance from trade unions and was overthrown 2 years later by Maj. Dr. Jean-Baptiste Ouedraogo and the Council of Popular Salvation (CSP). Factional infighting developed between moderates in the CSP and radicals, led by Capt. Thomas Sankara, who was appointed prime minister in January 1983, but was subsequently arrested. Efforts to bring about his release, directed by Capt. Blaise Compaore, resulted in yet another military coup d’etat, led by Sankara and Compaore on August 4, 1983.
Sankara established the National Revolutionary Committee with himself as President and vowed to “mobilize the masses.” But the committee’s membership remained secret and was dominated by Marxist-Leninist military officers. In 1984, Upper Volta changed its name to Burkina Faso, meaning “the country of honorable people.” But many of the strict security and austerity measures taken by Sankara provoked resistance. Despite his initial popularity and personal charisma, Sankara was assassinated in a widely supported coup which brought Capt. Blaise Compaore to power in October 1987.
Compaore pledged to pursue the goals of the revolution but to “rectify” Sankara’s “deviations” from the original aims. In fact, Compaore reversed most of Sankara’s policies and combined the leftist party he headed with more centrist parties after the 1989 arrest and execution of two colonels who had supported Compaore and governed with him up to that point.
Burkina Faso Economy
Economy – overview: One of the poorest countries in the world, landlocked Burkina Faso has a high population density, few natural resources, and a fragile soil. About 90% of the population is engaged in (mainly subsistence) agriculture which is highly vulnerable to variations in rainfall. Industry remains dominated by unprofitable government-controlled corporations. Following the African franc currency devaluation in January 1994 the government updated its development program in conjunction with international agencies, and exports and economic growth have increased. Maintenance of its macroeconomic progress in 2001-02 depends on continued low inflation, reduction in the trade deficit, and reforms designed to encourage private investment.
GDP: purchasing power parity – $12 billion (2000 est.)
GDP – real growth rate: 5.5% (1999 est.), 5% (2000 est.)
GDP – per capita: purchasing power parity – $1,000 (2000 est.)
GDP – composition by sector:
agriculture: 26%
industry: 27%
services: 47% (1998)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 2.2%
highest 10%: 39.5% (1994)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.5% (1999 est.), 1.5% (2000 est.)
Labor force: 5 million (1999)
note: a large part of the male labor force migrates annually to neighboring countries for seasonal employment.
Labor force – by occupation: agriculture 90% (2000 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $277 million
expenditures: $492 million, including capital expenditures of $233 million (1995 est.)
Industries: cotton lint, beverages, agricultural processing, soap, cigarettes, textiles, gold
Industrial production growth rate: 4.2% (1995)
Electricity – production: 285 million kWh (1999)
Electricity – production by source:
fossil fuel: 71.93%
hydro: 28.07%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1999)
Electricity – consumption: 265.1 million kWh (1999)
Electricity – exports: 0 kWh (1999)
Electricity – imports: 0 kWh (1999)
Agriculture – products: peanuts, shea nuts, sesame, cotton, sorghum, millet, corn, rice; livestock
Exports: $220 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.)
Exports – commodities: cotton, animal products, gold
Exports – partners: Italy 13%, France 10%, Indonesia 8%, Thailand 7% (1999)
Imports: $610 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.)
Imports – commodities: machinery, food products, petroleum
Imports – partners: Cote d’Ivoire 30%, France 28%, Spain 3%, Benelux 3% (1999)
Debt – external: $1.3 billion (1997)
Economic aid – recipient: $484.1 million (1995)
Currency: Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note – responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States
Map of Burkina Faso
