Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of 274,200 km2 (105,900 sq mi), bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Ivory Coast to the southwest. As of 2021, the country had an estimated population of 20,321,378. Previously called Republic of Upper Volta (1958–1984), it was renamed Burkina Faso by President Thomas Sankara. Its citizens are known as Burkinabè, and its capital and largest city is Ouagadougou. Its name is often translated into English as the "Land of Honest Men".
Ouagadougou or Wagadugu 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 2,415,266 in 2019. 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-Ivorian former politician who served as the second president of Burkina Faso from 1987 to 2014. He was a close associate of the first 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. In April 2022, he was found guilty by a special military tribunal of complicity in Sankara’s murder. He is also the longest-serving president of Burkina Faso.
The regions of Burkina Faso are divided into 45 administrative provinces. These 45 provinces are currently sub-divided into 351 departments or communes.
Fada N'gourma, also written Fada-Ngourma or Noungu, is a city and an important market town in eastern Burkina Faso, lying 219 kilometres (136 mi) east of Ouagadougou, in the Gourmantché area. It is the capital of the East region and of Gourma province. It is known for its blanket and carpet manufacturing as well as its honey.
Gourma is one of the 45 provinces of Burkina Faso, in Est Region. The capital of Gourma is Fada N’Gourma. The population of Gourma was 437,242 in 2019.
The Catholic Church in Burkina Faso is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome. According to the CIA Factbook, in 2018, 17% of the population are members of the Catholic Church.
The Mossi Kingdoms, sometimes referred to as the Mossi Empire, were a group of powerful kingdoms in modern-day Burkina Faso which dominated the region of the upper Volta river for hundreds of years. The largest Mossi kingdoms was that of Ouagadougou and the king of Ouagadougou known as the Mogho Naaba, or King of All the World, serves as the Emperor of all the Mossi. The first kingdom was founded when Dagomba warriors from the region that is present-day Ghana and Mandé warriors moved into the area and intermarried with local people. Centralization of the political and military powers of the kingdoms begin in the 13th century and led to conflicts between the Mossi kingdoms and many of the other powerful states in the region. In 1896, the French took over the kingdoms and created the French Upper Volta which largely used the Mossi administrative structure for many decades in governing the colony.
Articles related to Burkina Faso include:
Water supply and sanitation in France is universal and of good quality. Salient features of the sector compared to other developed countries are the high degree of private sector participation using concession and lease contracts and the existence of basin agencies that levy fees on utilities in order to finance environmental investments. Water losses in France (26%) are high compared to England (19%) and Germany (7%).
The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Ouagadougou is the Metropolitan See for the Ecclesiastical province of Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso.
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Fada N'Gourma is a diocese located in the city of Fada N’Gourma in the Ecclesiastical province of Koupéla in Burkina Faso.
Drinking water supply and sanitation in Benin has been subject to considerable progress since the 1990s, in particular in rural areas, where coverage is higher than in many other African countries, and almost all development partners follow a national demand-responsive strategy, which has been adopted in 1992. New strategies to increase water supply in rural and urban areas have been adopted in 2005 and 2006. Tariffs in urban and rural areas are usually high enough to cover the costs for operation and maintenance.
A landlocked sub-Saharan country, Burkina Faso is among the poorest countries in the world—44 percent of its population lives below the international poverty line of US$1.90 per day —and it ranks 185th out of 188 countries on UNDP's 2016 Human Development Index .Rapid population growth, gender inequality, and low levels of educational attainment contribute to food insecurity and poverty in Burkina Faso. The total population is just over 20 million with the estimated population growth rate is 3.1 percent per year and seven out of 10 Burkinabe are younger than 30. Total health care expenditures were an estimated 5% of GDP. Total expenditure on health per capita is 82 in 2014.
Water supply and sanitation in Burkina Faso are characterized by high access to water supply in urban areas, while access to an at least basic water sources in rural areas – where three quarters of the population live – remains relatively low. An estimated one third of water facilities in rural areas are out of service because of a lack of maintenance. Access to at least basic sanitation lags significantly behind access to water supply.
Solidarités International is a non-profit organization working in areas of conflict and natural disasters. Its main aim is to provide quick and effective support for people in life-threatening situations by meeting their vital needs: water, food and shelter. The organization also has a particular focus on unsafe drinking water and food insecurity among the most vulnerable populations. Solidarités International, an organization founded in 1980 by Alain Boinet under France's 1901 charity law, comprises 2 350 national and international employees. Each year it carries out over 120 humanitarian programs in 20 countries.
IRC is an international think tank that works with governments, NGOs, entrepreneurs and people around the world to find long-term solutions to the global crisis in water, sanitation and hygiene services. Founded in 1968, IRC is a non-profit organisation registered since 1980 as a Foundation under Dutch Law. It has its headquarters in The Hague, the Netherlands with country offices in Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Mali and Uganda. In 2021, IRC had 130 staff members and 30 associates, and recorded a turnover of €8.7 million.
The African Ministers' Council on Water (AMCOW) (French: Conseil des Ministres Africains Chargés de L'eau), is considered by the African Union as the support mechanism for its Specialised Technical Committee (STC) to drive achievement in the water and sanitation sectors. It is a regional development network of 55 African countries that advances socioeconomic development and the abolition of poverty through effective cooperation, management of water supply services, and provision of the continent's water resources to its members.
On December 25, 2022, a bus traveling from Fada N'gourma to the trading town of Kantchari hit a landmine near the village of Bougui, Burkina Faso. Ten people were killed and fifteen were injured.
