About
Burkina Faso
Western Africa, north of Ghana.About the size of Colorado
Population:18,931,686Capital: OuagadougouCurrency: West African CFA FrancLanguages: French (official) Native languages spoken by 90% of the people
Age structure:0-14 years: 45.2 percent15-24: 20.08%25-54 years: 29.13%55-64 years 3.14%65 years and over 2.45%Median age 17 years old
Climate: Tropical; warm, dry winters; hot, wet summersTerrain: Mostly flat to dissected, undulating plains; hill in west and southeastEthnic groups: Mossie over 40% , other approximately 60%( Includes Gurunsi, Senufo, Lobi, Bobo, Mandi, FulaniReligions: Muslim 60.5%, Catholic 19%, animist 15.3, Protestant 4.2%, other 0.6, none 0.4%Sanitation facility access: Only 19.7 percent of the population have access to a toiletInfant mortality rate: 75.32 death/1000 live births (9th highest in the world)
Major Infection Diseases: Degree of risk, very highfood or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fevervectorborne disease: dengue fever, malaria, and yellow feverwater contact disease: schistosomiasisrespiratory disease: meningococcal meningitisanimal contact disease: rabies
note: highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has been identified in this country; it poses a negligible risk with extremely rare cases possible among US citizens who have close contact with birds (2013)
Burkina Faso (Listeni/bərˈkiːnə ˌfɑːsoʊ/ bər-kee-nə fah-soh; French: [buʁkina faso]) is a landlocked country in West Africa around 274,200 square kilometres (105,900 sq mi) in size. It is surrounded by six countries: Mali to the north; Niger to the east; Benin to the southeast; Togo and Ghana to the south; and Ivory Coast to the southwest. Its capital is Ouagadougou. As of 2014, its population was estimated at just over 17.3 million.
Formerly called the Republic of Upper Volta, the country was renamed “Burkina Faso” on 4 August 1984 by then-President Thomas Sankara. Residents of Burkina Faso are known as Burkinabè (/bərˈkiːnəbeɪ/ bər-kee-nə-bay). French is an official language of government and business.
Before the conquest of what is now Burkina Faso by the French and other colonial powers during the late 19th century the country was ruled by various ethnic groups including the Mossi kingdoms. After gaining independence from France in 1960, the country underwent many governmental changes. Today it is a semi-presidential republic. Blaise Compaoré was the most recent president and ruled the country from 1987 until he was ousted from power by the popular youth upheaval of 31 October 2014.
