| Burkina Faso |
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| Background: Burkina Faso (formerly Upper Volta) achieved independence from France in 1960. Repeated military coups during the 1970s and 1980s were followed by multiparty elections in the early 1990s. Current President Blaise COMPAORE came to power in a 1987 military coup and has won every election since then. Burkina Faso's high population density and limited natural resources result in poor economic prospects for the majority of its citizens. Recent unrest in Cote d'Ivoire and northern Ghana has hindered the ability of several hundred thousand seasonal Burkinabe farm workers to find employment in neighboring countries. |
| Geography and Environmental |
Capital: name: Ouagadougou
geographic coordinates: 12 22 N, 1 31 W
time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Area Total: 274,200 sq km |
| Area Land: 273,800 sq km |
| Area Water: 400 sq km |
| Area Comparative: slightly larger than Colorado |
| 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 |
| Elevation Extremes Highest Point: Tena Kourou 749 m |
| Natural Resources: manganese, limestone, marble; small deposits of gold, phosphates, pumice, salt |
| Land Use Arable Land: 17.66% |
| Land Use Permanent Crops: 0.22% |
| Land Use Other: 82.12% (2005) |
| Irrigated Land: 250 sq km (2003) |
| Natural Hazards: recurring droughts |
| Environment Current Issues: recent droughts and desertification severely affecting agricultural activities, population distribution, and the economy; overgrazing; soil degradation; deforestation |
| Geography Note: landlocked savanna cut by the three principal rivers of the Black, Red, and White Voltas |
| Population |
Population: 14,326,203
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.) |
| Age Structure 0 to 14 Years: 46.7% (male 3,356,737/female 3,327,058) |
| Age Structure 15 to 64 Years: 50.9% (male 3,635,152/female 3,650,303) |
| Age Structure 65 Years And Over: 2.5% (male 141,554/female 215,399) (2007 est.) |
| Median Age Total: 16.5 years |
| Median Age Male: 16.3 years |
| Median Age Female: 16.7 years (2007 est.) |
| Population Growth Rate: 2.997% (2007 est.) |
| Birth Rate: 45.28 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Death Rate: 15.31 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
| Sex Ratio At Birth: 1.03 male(s)/female |
| Sex Ratio Under 15 Years: 1.009 male(s)/female |
| Sex Ratio 15 to 64 Years: 0.996 male(s)/female |
| Sex Ratio 65 Years And Over: 0.657 male(s)/female |
| Sex Ratio Total Population: 0.992 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
| Infant Mortality Rate Total: 89.79 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Infant Mortality Rate Male: 97.55 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Infant Mortality Rate Female: 81.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
| Life Expectancy At BirthTotalPopulation: 49.21 years |
| Life Expectancy At Birth Male: 47.68 years |
| Life Expectancy At Birth Female: 50.8 years (2007 est.) |
| Total Fertility Rate: 6.41 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
| HIV AIDS Adult Prevalence Rate: 4.2% (2003 est.) |
| HIV AIDS People Living With HIV AIDS: 300,000 (2003 est.) |
| HIV AIDS Deaths: 29,000 (2003 est.) |
| Religions: Muslim 50%, indigenous beliefs 40%, 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 |
| Literacy Total Population: 26.6% |
| Literacy Male: 36.9% |
| Literacy Female: 16.6% (2003 est.) |
| Administrative Divisions: 45 provinces; Bale, Bam, Banwa, Bazega, Bougouriba, Boulgou, Boulkiemde, Comoe, Ganzourgou, Gnagna, Gourma, Houet, Ioba, Kadiogo, Kenedougou, Komondjari, Kompienga, Kossi, Koulpelogo, Kouritenga, Kourweogo, Leraba, Loroum, Mouhoun, Nahouri, Namentenga, Nayala, Noumbiel, Oubritenga, Oudalan, Passore, Poni, Sanguie, Sanmatenga, Seno, Sissili, Soum, Sourou, Tapoa, Tuy, Yagha, Yatenga, Ziro, Zondoma, Zoundweogo |
| Legal System: based on French civil law system and customary law |
| Economy |
| Overview: One of the poorest countries in the world, landlocked Burkina Faso has few natural resources and a weak industrial base. About 90% of the population is engaged in subsistence agriculture, which is vulnerable to periodic drought. Cotton is the main cash crop and the government has joined with three other cotton producing countries in the region - Mali, Niger, and Chad - to lobby for improved access to Western markets. GDP growth has largely been driven by increases in world cotton prices. Industry remains dominated by unprofitable government-controlled corporations. Following the CFA franc currency devaluation in January 1994, the government updated its development program in conjunction with international agencies; exports and economic growth have increased. The government devolved macroeconomic policy and inflation targeting to the West African regional central bank (BCEAO), but maintains control over fiscal and microeconomic policies, including implementing reforms to encourage private investment. The bitter internal crisis in neighboring Cote d'Ivoire continues to hurt trade and industrial prospects and deepens the need for international assistance. Burkina Faso is eligible for a Millennium Challenge Account grant, which would increase investment in the country's human capital. |
| GDP Purchasing Power Parity: $17.87 billion (2006 est.) |
| GDP Real Growth Rate: 5.2% (2006 est.) |
| GDP Composition By Sector Agriculture: 32.6% |
| GDP Composition By Sector Industry: 19.7% |
| GDP Composition By Sector Services: 47.7% (2006 est.) |
Labor Force: 5 million
note: a large part of the male labor force migrates annually to neighboring countries for seasonal employment (2003) |
Labor Force By Occupation: agriculture: 90%
industry and services: 10% (2000 est.) |
| Unemployment Rate: NA% |
Household Income Or Consumption By Percentage Share: lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 46.8% (1994) |
| Inflation Rate Consumer Prices: 4% (2006 est.) |
| Industries: cotton lint, beverages, agricultural processing, soap, cigarettes, textiles, gold |
| Industrial Production Growth Rate: 14% (2001 est.) |
| Energy |
| Electricity Production: 400 million kWh (2004) |
| Electricity Production By Source Fossil Fuel: 69.9% |
| Electricity Production By Source Hydro: 30.1% |
| Electricity Production By Source Nuclear: 0% |
| Electricity Production By Source Other: 0% (2001) |
| Electricity Consumption: 372 million kWh (2004) |
| Electricity Exports: 0 kWh (2004) |
| Electricity Imports: 0 kWh (2004) |
| Oil Production: 0 bbl/day (2004) |
| Oil Consumption: 8,200 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
| Natural Gas Production: 0 cu m (2004 est.) |
| Natural Gas Consumption: 0 cu m (2004 est.) |
| Exports: $543.5 million f.o.b. (2006 est.) |
| Exports Commodities: cotton, livestock, gold |
| Exports Partners: China 39.7%, Singapore 13%, Thailand 5.9%, Ghana 5.4%, Taiwan 4.6% (2005) |
| Imports: $1.016 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.) |
| Imports Commodities: capital goods, foodstuffs, petroleum |
| Imports Partners: France 23.7%, Cote d'Ivoire 23.3%, Togo 6.7% (2005) |
| Debt External: $1.85 billion (2003) |
| Economic Aid Recipient: $468.4 million (2003) |
| Communications |
| Telephones Main Lines In Use: 97,400 (2005) |
| TelephonesMobileCellular: 572,200 (2005) |
| Telephone System General Assessment: all services only fair |
| Telephone System Domestic: microwave radio relay, open-wire, and radiotelephone communication stations |
| Telephone System International: country code - 226; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
| Radio Broadcast Stations: AM 3, FM 17, shortwave 3 (2002) |
| Radios: 394,020 (2000) |
| Television Broadcast Stations: 1 (2002) |
| Televisions: 131,340 (2002) |
| Internet Service Providers-ISPs: 1 (2002) |
| Internet Users: 64,600 (2005) |
| Transportation |
| Railways Total: 622 km |
| Railways Narrow Gauge: 622 km 1.000-m gauge |
| Airports: 34 (2006) |
| Military Expenditures Percent Of GDP: 1.2% (2006) |
| Disputes International: two villages remain in dispute along the border with Benin; Benin accuses Burkina Faso of moving boundary pillars; in recent years citizens and rogue security forces rob and harass local populations on both sides of the poorly-defined Burkina Faso-Niger border; despite the presence of over 9,000 UN forces (UNOCI) in Cote d'Ivoire since 2004, ethnic conflict continues to spread into neighboring states who can no longer send their migrant workers to work in Ivorian cocoa plantations |