Burkina Faso has an average income purchasing-power-parity per capita of $1,666 and nominal per capita of $790 in 2014. More than 80% of the population relies on subsistence agriculture, with only a small fraction directly involved in industry and services. Highly variable rainfall, poor soils, lack of adequate communications and other infrastructure, a low literacy rate, and a stagnant economy are all longstanding problems of this landlocked country. The export economy also remained subject to fluctuations in world prices.
The history of Burkina Faso includes the history of various kingdoms within the country, such as the Mossi kingdoms, as well as the later French colonisation of the territory and its independence as the Republic of Upper Volta in 1960.
Ouagadougou, also Vagaga, is the capital of Burkina Faso and the administrative, communications, cultural, and economic centre of the nation. It is also the country's largest city, with a population of 2,200,000 in 2015. The city's name is often shortened to Ouaga. The inhabitants are called ouagalais. The spelling of the name Ouagadougou is derived from the French orthography common in former French African colonies.
Blaise Compaoré is a Burkinabé politician who was president of Burkina Faso from 1987 to 2014. He was a top associate of President Thomas Sankara during the 1980s, and in October 1987, he led a coup d'état during which Sankara was killed. Subsequently, he introduced a policy of "rectification", overturning the leftist and Third Worldist policies pursued by Sankara. He won elections in 1991, 1998, 2005, and 2010 in what were considered unfair circumstances. His attempt to amend the constitution to extend his 27-year term caused the 2014 Burkinabé uprising. On 31 October 2014, Compaoré resigned, whereupon he fled to the Ivory Coast.
The Gabon national football team, nicknamed Les Panthères or Les Brésiliens, is the national team of Gabon and is controlled by the Gabonese Football Federation. They have never qualified for the World Cup, but have qualified seven times for the Africa Cup of Nations.
Roch Marc Christian Kaboré is a Burkinabé politician and banker and the President of Burkina Faso, in office since 2015. Previously he served as the Prime Minister of Burkina Faso between 1994 and 1996 and President of the National Assembly of Burkina Faso from 2002 to 2012. He also served as President of the Congress for Democracy and Progress (CDP). In January 2014, he left the ruling CDP and joined a new opposition party, the People's Movement for Progress.
Sibiri Alain Traoré is a Burkinabé footballer who plays as a striker for Nahdat Berkane, and the Burkina Faso national team. He started his career with local side Planète Champion, before moving to France as a 17-year-old.
Football is the most popular sport in Burkina Faso. And the national association can look back on recent developments with a great deal of pride. Reaching the semi-finals of the African Cup of Nations on home soil in 1998, qualifying for the FIFA World Youth Championship in the UAE in 2003, and appearances at two final competitions of the CAF U-17 Cup, as well as third place at the FIFA U-17 World Championship in Trinidad & Tobago in 2001 are Burkina Fasos outstanding achievements at international level. The nations most famous players include Kassoum Ouegraogo, nicknamed Zico, who had his most successful seasons with Espérance de Tunis before ending his career in Germany, Siaka Ouattara, who spent his entire career with Mulhouse in France, and Moumouni Dagano, who was voted best African player in Belgium in 2001, when he played for the Belgian side Genk. He later went on to play for the French side Guingamp before transferring to another French team, FC Sochaux in 2005. Burkina Faso received an unexpected free pass into the group stage of the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification process, when their opening round contestant, the Central African Republic, withdrew from the competition. This gave the West Africans, who were at that stage ranked 14th on the continent, the certainty that their name would be in the hat when the Preliminary Draw for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany was made. They got off to a flying start, beating Ghana 1-0 in their opening match and laying down a marker for their Group 2 adversaries South Africa, Cape Verde Islands, Congo DR and Uganda. The victory train began to come off the rails with two defeats to Cape Verde, and with a record of two wins and three losses, Burkina Faso were up against it at the half-way stage. Frenchman Bernard Simondi took over the coaching reins from Ivica Todorov and made the team harder to beat at home, even recording wins over South Africa and Congo DR, but in the end it was not quite enough, and the likes of Abdoulaye Cisse, Moumouni Dagano, and Wilfred Sanou went no further in the competition.
Burkina Faso competed at the 2011 World Aquatics Championships in Shanghai, China between July 16 and 31, 2011.
Bertrand Isidore Traoré is a Burkinabé professional footballer who plays as a forward for Ligue 1 club Lyon and the Burkina Faso national team.
The Burkina Faso national basketball team is the national basketball team of Burkina Faso, governed by the Fédération Burkinabe de Basketball.
Burkina Faso competed at the 2013 World Aquatics Championships in Barcelona, Spain from 19 July to 4 August 2013.
Cyrille Bayala is a Burkinabé professional footballer, who plays as a winger for French club AC Ajaccio, on loan from RC Lens, and for the Burkina Faso national team.
Jacques Yaméogo is a Burkinabé football player and manager.
Burkina Faso competed at the 2015 World Aquatics Championships in Kazan, Russia from 24 July to 9 August 2015.
The 2017 Annual King's Cup Football Tournament, commonly referred to as 2017 King's Cup, was the 45th King's Cup, the annual international men's football tournament organised by Football Association of Thailand. It was held in Bangkok, Thailand, from 14 to 16 July 2017.
Burkina Faso–India relations refers to the international relations that exist between Burkina Faso and India. Burkina Faso maintains an embassy in New Delhi. India maintained an embassy in Ouagadougou from November 1996 until its closure in July 2002. Currently, India maintains an honorary consulate in Ouagadougou, which functions under the jurisdiction of the High Commission of India in Accra, Ghana.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
Burkina Faso competed at the 2019 World Aquatics Championships in Gwangju, South Korea from 12 to 28 July.
