Burkina Faso

**Burkina Faso** (UK: Help:IPA/English /bɜːˌkiː.nə ˈfæs.əʊ/, US: /bʊrˌkiː.nə ˈfɑː.soʊ/) is a country in West Africa. It used to be called Upper Volta and the name was changed to Burkina Faso in 1984. The country was once ruled by France, but it has been independent since 1960. The capital is Ouagadougou.

In 2005, about 13,228,000 people lived in the country. It is next to Mali, Niger, Benin, Togo, Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire. It does not have any coast with an ocean or sea. People from Burkina Faso are called Burkinabé (pronounced burr-KEE-na-bay).

## History

People have lived in the area of Burkina Faso for thousands of years. At first, they were hunter-gatherers, hunting animals and collecting fruits and vegetables. Later they became farmers. People called the Mossi arrived between the 11th and 13th centuries. They ruled the area until the end of the 19th century. In 1896 France beat the Mossi kingdom and became the colonial rulers of Burkina Faso. After World War I, the country was called Upper Volta.

In 1960, Upper Volta became independent from France. The first president of the new country was Maurice Yaméogo. After he became the president, Yaméogo banned other political parties. For several years the people of Upper Volta were very unhappy with the government and in 1966 the military took over in a military coup. In 1983 the government was taken over again by military men called Thomas Sankara and Blaise Compaoré. Sankara became president. In 1984, he changed the name of the country to Burkina Faso. It means "land of honest people".

In December 1985, Burkina Faso went to war for five days with near-by country Mali. In 1987, there was another military coup and Sankara was assassinated (murdered). Blaise Compaoré became the president.

On 28 October 2014 protesters began to march and demonstrate in Ouagadougou. Compaoré was ready to change the constitution and extend his 27-year rule. On 30 October 2014, some protesters set fire to the parliament. They also took over the national television headquarters. On 31 October 2014, President Compaoré, resigned after 27 years in office.

In 2015 the country held their first election. Roch Marc Christian Kaboré, a former Prime Minister, was elected as president. In 2022, Kaboré was removed from power during a military coup d'état led by Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba.

## Regions, provinces, and departments

Burkina Faso is divided into thirteen regions, forty-five provinces, and 301 departments. The regions are:
- _Boucle du Mouhoun_
- _Cascades_
- _Centre_
- _Centre-Est_
- _Centre-Nord_
- _Centre-Ouest_
- _Centre-Sud_
- _Est_
- _Hauts-Bassins_
- _Nord_
- _Plateau-Central_
- _Sahel_
- _Sud-Ouest_

## Cities

Below is a list of the largest cities in Burkina Faso. For other cities see List of cities in Burkina Faso.

|City|Population (Census 2006)|
| --- | --- |
|Ouagadougou|1,181,702|
|Bobo Dioulasso|435,543|
|Koudougou|82,720|
|Banfora|72,144|
|Ouahigouya|70,957|
|Kaya|25,880|
|Tenkodogo|40,839|
|Fada N'gourma|40,815|
|Dédougou|37,793|
|Houndé|34,669|

## Geography and climate

Burkina Faso is made up of two major types of countryside. The larger part of the country is covered by a peneplain. It has a gently undulating landscape with a few isolated hills. The southwest of the country forms a sandstone massif. The highest peak, Ténakourou, is found at an elevation of . The area is bordered by sheer cliffs up to  high. The average altitude of Burkina Faso is . The difference between the highest and lowest terrain is no greater than . Burkina Faso is a mostly flat country.

Burkina Faso has a tropical climate with two distinct seasons. In the rainy season, the country receives between  of rainfall. In the dry season, the harmattan – a hot dry wind from the Sahara – blows. The rainy season lasts about four months, from May/June to September. It is shorter in the north of the country.

Burkina Faso's natural resources include manganese, limestone, marble, phosphates, pumice, salt and small deposits of gold.

Burkina Faso's fauna and flora are protected in two national parks and several reserves.

## Culture

Literature in Burkina Faso is based on the oral tradition, which remains important. Since the 1970s, literature has developed in Burkina Faso with many more writers being published.

There is also a large artist community, especially in Ouagadougou. Much of the crafts produced are for the growing tourist industry.

The food of Burkina Faso, typical of west African cuisine, is based around staple foods of sorghum, millet, rice, maize, peanuts, potatoes, beans, yams and okra. The most common sources of protein are chicken, eggs and fresh water fish.

## Related pages

- Burkina Faso at the Olympics
- Burkina Faso national football team
- List of rivers of Burkina Faso

## Infobox (country)

- **conventional long name**: Burkina Faso
- **common name**: Burkina Faso
- **image flag**: Flag of Burkina Faso.svg
- **image coat**: Coat of arms of Burkina Faso.svg
- **national motto**:

- **capital**: Ouagadougou
- **largest city**: capital
- **languages type**: Working languages
- **languages**: French, English
- **official languages**: Mooré, Bissa, Dyula, Fulani
- **ethnic groups year**: 2010 est.
- **religion year**: 2006
- **government type**: Unitary state, Unitary Semi-presidential system, semi-presidential Republic, constitutional republic
- **leader title1**: List of heads of state of Burkina Faso, President
- **leader name1**: Ibrahim Traore
(Interim)
- **leader title2**: List of heads of government of Burkina Faso, Prime Minister
- **legislature**: National Assembly of Burkina Faso, National Assembly
- **sovereignty type**: Independence
- **established event1**: Republic of Upper Volta proclaimed
- **established date1**: 11 December 1958
- **established event2**: from France
- **established date2**: 5 August 1960
- **area km2**: 274,200
- **area rank**: 74th
- **area sq mi**: 105,869
- **percent water**: 0.146%
- **population estimate**: 21,510,181
- **population census**: 14,017,262
- **population estimate year**: 2020
- **population estimate rank**: 58th
- **population census year**: 2006
- **population density km2**: 64
- **population density sq mi**: 163,63
- **population density rank**: 137th
- **gdp ppp**: $45.339 billion
- **gdp ppp year**: 2020
- **gdp ppp per capita**: $2,207
- **gdp nominal**: $16.226 billion
- **gdp nominal year**: 2020
- **gdp nominal per capita**: $792
- **gini**: 38.9
- **gini year**: 2020
- **gini change**: steady
- **hdi**: 0.452
- **hdi year**: 2019
- **hdi change**: increase
- **hdi rank**: 182nd
- **currency**: West African CFA franc
- **currency code**: XOF
- **time zone**: GMT
- **drives on**: right
- **calling code**: +226
- **iso3166code**: BF
- **cctld**: .bf
- **footnotes**: The data here is an estimation for the year 2005 produced by the International Monetary Fund in April 2005.