Burkina Faso, also known by its short-form name Burkina, is a landlocked nation in West Africa. It is surrounded by six countries: Mali to the north, Niger to the east, Benin to the south east, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Côte d'Ivoire to the south west. Formerly called the Republic of Upper Volta, it was renamed on August 4, 1984, by President Thomas Sankara to mean "the land of upright people" in Moré and Dioula, the major native languages of the country. Literally, "Burkina" may be translated, "men of integrity," from the Moré language, and "Faso" means "father's house" in Dioula. Independence from France came 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 Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana in search of paid labour. The inhabitants of Burkina Faso are known as Burkinabé (pronounced [burːkiˈːnaːbae]).

History

Main article: History of Burkina Faso

Early History

Like all of the west of Africa, Burkina Faso was populated early, notably by hunter-gatherers in the northwestern part of the country (12,000 to 5000 BC), and whose tools (scrapers, chisels and arrowheads) were discovered in 1973. Settlements appeared between 3600 and 2600 BC with farmers, the traces of whose structures leave the impression of relatively permanent buildings. The use of iron, ceramics and polished stone developed between 1500 and 1000 BC, as well as a preoccupation with spiritual matters, as shown by the burial remains which have been discovered.

Relics of the Dogon are found in the centre-north, north and north west region. They left the area between the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries BC to settle in the cliffs of Bandiagara. Elsewhere, the remains of high walls are localised in the southwest of Burkina Faso (as well as in the Côte d'Ivoire), but the people who built them have not yet been definitely identified.

Burkina Faso was a very important economic region for the Songhai Empire during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.

From colony to independence

After a decade of intense rivalry and competition between the British and the French, waged through treaty making expeditions under military or civilian explorers, in 1896, the Mossi kingdom of Ouagadougou was defeated by French colonial forces and became a French protectorate. The western region, where a standoff against the forces of the powerful ruler Samori Ture complicated the situation, and the eastern region came under French occupation in 1897 following different campaigns. By 1898, the majority of the territory corresponding to Burkina Faso today was nominally conquered, although control of many parts remained precarious. The French and British convention of June 14, 1898, ended the scramble between the two colonial powers and basically traced the borders between them. On the French side a war of conquest against local communities and political powers continued for about five years. In the 1904 large-scale reorganization of the French West African colonial empire, the now largely pacified territories of the Volta basin were integrated into the Upper-Senegal-Niger (Haut-Sénégal et Niger) colony of French West Africa (AOF). The colony had its capital in Bamako.

Draftees from the territory participated in the European fronts of First World War in the battalions of the Senegalese Infantry (Tirailleurs sénégalais). Between 1915 and 1916 the districts in the western part of what is now Burkina Faso and the bordering eastern fringe of Mali became the stage of one of the most important armed oppositions to colonial government (known as the Volta-Bani War). The French government finally suppressed the movement, but only after suffering defeats and being forced to gather the largest expeditionary force of its colonial history up to then. Armed opposition also wrecked the Sahelian north, as the Tuareg and allied groups of the Dori region ended their truce with the government. Once the First World War was over, on March 1, 1919, fear of recurrence of armed uprising and economic considerations led the colonial government to separate the present territory of Burkina Faso from Haut Sénégal et Niger so as to intensify its administration. The new colony was named Haute Volta and François Charles Alexis Édouard Hesling became its first governor. Hesling initiated an ambitious road making program and promoted cotton growing for export. The cotton policy, based on coercion, failed and revenue stagnated. The colony was dismantled on September 5, 1932, and its territory divided between Côte d’Ivoire, Mali and Niger, the largest share with most of the population and the cities of Ouagadougou and Bobo-Dioulasso passing to Côte d'Ivoire.

The decision was reversed during the intense anti-colonial agitation that followed the end of the Second World War and on September 4 1947 Upper Volta was recreated in its 1932 boundaries. On December 11 1958, it achieved self-government, and became a republic and member of the Franco-African Community (La Communauté Franco-Africaine). Full independence was attained in 1960. The country's first military coup occurred in 1966; which returned civilian rule in 1978. There was another coup, led by Saye Zerbo in 1980, which in turn was overthrown in 1982. A counter-coup was launched in 1983, which brought the charismatic Captain Thomas Sankara to leadership. In 1984 the revolutionary government changed the name of the country to Burkina Faso, its flag, and its national anthem. The current president is Blaise Compaoré, who came to power in 1987 after a coup d'état that killed Thomas Sankara.

Politics

Main article: Politics of Burkina Faso

The constitution of June 2, 1991 established a semi-presidential government with a parliament (Assemblée) which can be dissolved by the President of the Republic, who is elected for a term of seven years. In 2000, however, there was a constitutional amendment reducing the presidential term from seven to five years, which was enforced during the 2005 elections. Another change according to the amendment would have prevented sitting president Blaise Compaoré from being re-elected. However, notwithstanding a challenge by other presidential candidates, in October 2005 the constitutional council ruled that because Compaoré was already a sitting president in 2000, the amendment would not apply to him until the end of his second term in office. This cleared the way for his candidacy in the 2005 election. On November 13, Compaoré was reelected in a landslide due to a divided political opposition.

The parliament consists of two chambers: the lower house (l'Assemblée Nationale) and the upper house (la Chambre des Représentants). There is also a constitutional chamber, composed of ten members, and an economic and social council whose roles are purely consultative.

Regions, provinces, and departments

Regions of Burkina Faso.

Main articles: Regions of Burkina Faso, Provinces of Burkina Faso, and Departments of Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso is divided into thirteen regions, forty-five provinces, and 301 departments. The regions are:

Geography

Map of Burkina Faso

Tolotama reforestation, Burkina Faso.

Main article: Geography of Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso is made up of two major types of countryside:

The larger part of the country is covered by a peneplain which forms a gently undulating landscape with, in some areas, a few isolated hills, the last vestiges of a precambrian massif.
The south-west of the country forms a sandstone massif, where the highest peak is found: Ténakourou (749 m, 2,450 ft). The massif is bordered by sheer cliffs up to 150 metres (490 ft) high.

The average altitude is 400 metres (1,300 ft) and the difference between the highest and lowest terrain is no greater than 600 metres (2,000 ft). Burkina Faso is therefore a relatively flat country, with a very few localised exceptions.

Hydrography

The country owed its former name of Upper Volta to three rivers which cross it: the Mouhoun (formerly called the Black Volta), the Nakambé (the White Volta) and the Nazinon (the Red Volta). The Mouhoun, along with the Comoé which flows to the south west, is the country's only river which flows year-round

The basin of the Niger River also drains 27% of the country's surface. Its tributaries (the Béli, the Gorouol, the Goudébo and the Dargol) are seasonal streams, and only flow for 4 to 6 months a year but can cause large floods.

The country also contains numerous lakes. The principal lakes are Tingrela, Bam and Dem, and the large ponds of Oursi, Béli, Yomboli and Markoye.

Water shortages are often a problem, especially in the north of the country.

Climate

Burkina Faso has a primarily tropical climate with two very distinct seasons: the rainy season with between 24-35 inches (600 and 900 mm) of rainfall, and the dry season during which the harmattan blows, a hot dry wind from the Sahara. The rainy season lasts approximately 4 months, May/June to September, and is shorter in the north of the country.

Three large climatic zones can be defined:

Sahel Zone

The Sahel in the north typically receives less than 24 inches (600 mm)^[1] rainfall a year and high temperatures 5–47 °C (40–115 °F). A relatively dry tropical savanna, the Sahel extends beyond the borders of Burkina Faso, from the Horn of Africa to the Atlantic Ocean, and borders the Sahara to its north, and the fertile region of the Sudan to the South. Extreme temperatures recorded are 5.5C and 47.0C.

Sudan-Sahel zone

Situated between 11°3' and 13°5' north latitude, the Sudan-Sahel region is a transitional zone with regards to rainfall and temperature.

Sudan-Guinea zone

Further to the south, the Sudan-Guinea zone receives more than 35 inches (900 mm)^[1] rain a year and cooler average temperatures.

Natural resources

Burkina Faso has many natural resources, including; manganese, limestone, marble, phosphates, pumice, salt and small deposits of gold.

Economy

Tarfila Farming Group

Shop in Burkina Faso.

Vendors in Burkina Faso.

Main article: Economy of Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso is one of the poorest countries in the world. This is represented numerically in its low GDP per capita income, $1,200. This ranks it as the 27th poorest nation, among other nations such as the Republic of the Congo and Tajikistan.^[2] Agriculture represents 32% of its gross domestic product and occupies 80% of the working population. It consists mostly of livestock but also, especially in the south and southwest, of growing sorghum, pearl millet, maize (corn), peanuts, rice and cotton.

Lack of work causes a high rate of emigration: for example, three million people from Burkina Faso live in Côte d'Ivoire. According to the Central Bank of Western African States (Banque Centrale des États de l'Afrique de l'Ouest), these migrants send tens of billions of Euros back to Burkina Faso each year. Since the 1967 expulsions from Ghana, this situation has provoked tensions in the destination countries. The most recent crisis occurred owing to the events of 2003 in Côte d'Ivoire, which led to the return of 300,000 migrants.

A large part of the economic activity of the country is funded by international aid.

The currency of Burkina Faso is the CFA franc.

There is mineral exploitation of copper, iron, manganese and, above all, gold.

Burkina Faso also hosts the International Art and Craft Fair, Ouagadougou, better known by its French name as SIAO, Le Salon International de L Artisanat de Ouagadougou, one of the most important African handicraft fairs.

Demographics

United Nations Square in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

Sala Well

Main article: Demographics of Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso has an estimated life expectancy at birth of slightly under 50 years of age. The median age of its inhabitants is under 17.

Population growth rate: 3.00% (2006)

The population is concentrated in the south and center of the country, sometimes exceeding 48 per square kilometer (125/sq. mi.). This high population density, causes annual migrations of hundreds of thousands, for seasonal employment.

Approximately 50% of the population is Muslim; Christians account for about 30%, and followers of traditional African religions (typically animism of various forms) make up about 20%. Many Christians incorporate elements of animism into their religious practices.

Culture

Main article: Culture of Burkina Faso

See also List of writers from Burkina Faso, Music of Burkina Faso and Cinema of Burkina Faso.

Education

Main article: Education in Burkina Faso

Education in Burkina Faso is divided into primary, secondary, and higher education. However, schooling is not free. Secondary school costs approximately $65 (33,000CFA) a year which is far above the means of most Burkinabe families. Boys receive preference in schooling; as such, girls' education and literacy rates are far lower. In order to proceed from elementary to middle school, middle to high school, or high school to college, national exams must be passed. Institutions of higher education include the University of Ouagadougou, and The Polytechnical University in Bobo-Dioulasso.

There is also an International School of Ouagadougou (ISO), which is an American-based private school located in the capital city, Ouagadougou.

The United Nations Development Program Report places Burkina Faso as the most illiterate country in the world, with only a 12.8% literacy rate. (See List of countries by literacy rate.)

References

1. ^ SIM Country Profile: Burkina Faso. Retrieved on August 5, 2006.
2. ^ [https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2004rank.html CIA World Factbook, GDP Per Capita Rank Order].

External links

Research

Charities

Paper for All - Registered charity that provides academic resources to children, to support education and enable sustainable development

Culture

Government and organizations

Premier Ministère official government portal (in French)
Embassy of Burkina Faso in Washington, DC government information and links
Aid organization, photos and videos from Burkina Faso

News

allAfrica - Burkina Faso news headline links

Overviews

BBC News - Country Profile: Burkina Faso
Encyclopaedia Britannica, Country Page - Burkina Faso
CIA World Factbook entry on [https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/.html Burkina Faso]

Directories and portals

Tourism

Real Estate Ouagadougou Burkina Faso

Geographic locale

• • [ e] Countries of West Africa
Benin Burkina Faso Cameroon Cte d'Ivoire Equatorial Guinea Gabon The Gambia Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Liberia Mali Niger Nigeria Republic of the Congo Senegal Sierra Leone Togo

• • [ e]

Countries of Africa

Sovereign states
Algeria Angola Benin Botswana Burkina Faso Burundi Cameroon Cape Verde Central African Republic Chad Democratic Republic of the Congo Republic of the Congo Comoros Cte d'Ivoire Djibouti Egypt¹ Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Ethiopia Gabon The Gambia Ghana Guinea-Bissau Guinea Kenya Lesotho Liberia Libya Madagascar Malawi Mali Mauritania Mauritius Morocco Mozambique Namibia Niger Nigeria Rwanda Senegal Seychelles Sierra Leone Somalia South Africa Sudan Swaziland So Tom and Prncipe Tanzania Togo Tunisia Uganda Zambia Zimbabwe Dependencies

International membership

• • [ e]

African Union (AU)

Algeria Angola Benin Botswana Burkina Faso Burundi Cameroon Cape Verde Central African Republic Chad Comoros Democratic Republic of the Congo Republic of the Congo Cte d'Ivoire Djibouti Egypt Eritrea Ethiopia Equatorial Guinea Gabon The Gambia Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Kenya Lesotho Liberia Libya Madagascar Malawi Mali Mauritania Mauritius Mozambique Namibia Niger Nigeria Rwanda Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic So Tom and Prncipe Senegal Seychelles Sierra Leone Somalia South Africa Sudan Swaziland Tanzania Togo Tunisia Uganda Zambia Zimbabwe

• • [ e] Community of Sahel-Saharan States
Benin Burkina Faso Central African Republic Chad Comoros Cte d'Ivoire Djibouti Egypt Eritrea The Gambia Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Liberia Libya Mali Morocco Niger Nigeria Senegal Sierra Leone Somalia Sudan Togo Tunisia

• • [ e] Member states and observers of La Francophonie
Members	Albania Andorra Belgium (French Community) Benin Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Canada (New Brunswick Quebec) Cape Verde Central African Republic Chad Cyprus¹ Comoros Democratic Republic of the Congo Republic of the Congo Cte d'Ivoire Djibouti Dominica Egypt Equatorial Guinea Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia France (including French Guiana Guadeloupe Martinique Saint Pierre and Miquelon) Gabon Ghana¹ Greece Guinea Guinea-Bissau Haiti Laos Luxembourg Lebanon Madagascar Mali Mauritania Mauritius Moldova Monaco Morocco Niger Romania Rwanda St. Lucia So Tom and Prncipe Senegal Seychelles Switzerland Togo Tunisia Vanuatu Vietnam
Observers	Armenia Austria Croatia Czech Republic Georgia Hungary Lithuania Mozambique Poland Serbia Slovakia Slovenia Ukraine
¹ Associate member.

• • [ e]

Member states and observers of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC)

Members

Afghanistan Albania Algeria Azerbaijan Bahrain Bangladesh Benin Burkina Faso Brunei Cameroon Chad Comoros Cte d'Ivoire Djibouti Egypt Gabon Gambia Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana Indonesia Iran Iraq Jordan Kuwait Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Lebanon Libya Maldives Malaysia Mali Mauritania Morocco Mozambique Niger Nigeria Oman Pakistan Palestine Qatar Saudi Arabia Senegal Sierra Leone Somalia Sudan Suriname Syria Tajikistan Turkey Tunisia Togo Turkmenistan Uganda Uzbekistan United Arab Emirates Yemen

Observers

Countries and territories	Bosnia and Herzegovina Central African Republic Russia Thailand Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (only recognised by Turkey)
Muslim communities	Moro National Liberation Front
International organizations	Economic Cooperation Organization African Union Arab League Non-Aligned Movement United Nations

• • [ e]

Niger-Congo-speaking nations

• • [ e] Kordofanian
Sudan

• • [ e]

Mande

Gambia

Guinea

Guinea-Bissau
Mali

Mauritania
Senegal

Sierra Leone
Liberia

Cte d'Ivoire

Nigeria

Burkina Faso

Benin

Togo

• • [ e]

Atlantic-Congo

Atlantic

Benin
Burkina Faso

Cameroon

CAR

Ijoid

Nigeria

Chad
Cte d'Ivoire

Gambia

Guinea

Dogon
Mali

Guinea-Bissau
Liberia
Mali

Mauritania

Niger
Senegal

Sierra Leone

Sudan

Togo

• • [ e]

Volta-Congo

Senufo

Benin
Cte d'Ivoire
Mali

Gur

Benin
Burkina Faso
Cte d'Ivoire

Ghana
Mali

Nigeria

Togo

Adamawa-Ubangi

Cameroon

CAR

Chad

Nigeria

Kru
Burkina Faso
Cte d'Ivoire
Liberia

Kwa

Benin
Cte d'Ivoire

Ghana

Nigeria

Togo

• • [ e]

Benue-Congo

Bantu
Angola

Botswana
Burundi

Cameroon

DRC

Yoruba and Igbo

Nigeria

Rep. of the Congo

Equatorial Guinea
Gabon
Kenya

Nigeria
Malawi

Mozambique

Namibia

Rwanda

Somalia

South Africa

Swaziland

Tanzania

Uganda

Zambia

Zimbabwe

CAR = Central African Republic DRC = Democratic Republic of the Congo

Coat of arms elements

A motto (from Italian) is a phrase or a short list of words meant formally to describe the general motivation or intention of an entity, social group, or organization.
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French (français, pronounced [fʁɑ̃ˈsɛ]) is a Romance language originally spoken in France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Switzerland, and today by about 300 million people around the world as either
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For the Radiohead song, see "The National Anthem".

A national anthem is a generally patriotic musical composition that evokes and eulogizes the history, traditions and struggles of its people, recognized either by a country's government as the official
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Une Seule Nuit (also known as L'Hymne de la victoire or Ditanyè) is the national anthem of Burkina Faso. It was written by the former president Thomas Sankara and adopted in 1984, when the country adopted its present name, and replaced the
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capital (also called capital city or political capital — although the latter phrase has a second meaning based on an alternative sense of "capital") is the center of government.
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Burkina Faso's 10 million people belong to two major West African cultural groups--the Voltaic and the Mande. The Voltaic are far more numerous and include the Mossi, who make up about one-half of the population.
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Ouagadougou (IPA: /ˌwɑgəˈduːguː/, Mossi IPA: [wɑg^əd^əg^ə]) is the capital of Burkina Faso.
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An official language is a language that is given a special legal status in the countries, states, and other territories. It is typically the language used in a nation's legislative bodies, though the law in many nations requires that government documents be produced in other
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A demonym or gentilic is a word that denotes the members of a people or the inhabitants of a place. In English, the name of a people's language is often the same as this word, e.g., the "French" (language or people).
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government is a body that has the power to make and the authority to enforce rules and laws within a civil, corporate, religious, academic, or other organization or group.^[1]
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The semi-presidential system is a system of government in which a prime minister and a president are both active participants in the day-to-day administration of the state.
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republic, for all other uses see: republic (disambiguation)

List of forms of government

Anarchism
Aristocracy
Authoritarianism
Autocracy
Communist state
Democracy

Direct democracy