CAPITAL
INFO
CAPITAL
Ouagadougou (wa-ga-doo-goo)
POPULATION
19,742,715 (July 2018 est.)
CLIMATE
Tropical
CURRENCY
605.3 Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) =1 USD (2017 est.)
IMPORTANT CITIES
Bobo-Dioulasso, Ouahigouya, Koudougou, Banfora
AREA
274,200 sq.km.
PEOPLE
NATIONALITY
Burkinabè
MAJOR PEOPLES
Bobo , Bwa, Dogon, Fulani , Lobi, Mossi, Nuna, Tuareg, Winiama
RELIGION
Muslim 61.5{a1a33444ee922ad961904607c501cbe84d9cddb45266103b20616805d66fa906}, Catholic 23.3{a1a33444ee922ad961904607c501cbe84d9cddb45266103b20616805d66fa906}, Animist 7.8{a1a33444ee922ad961904607c501cbe84d9cddb45266103b20616805d66fa906}, Protestant 6.5{a1a33444ee922ad961904607c501cbe84d9cddb45266103b20616805d66fa906}, other 0.2{a1a33444ee922ad961904607c501cbe84d9cddb45266103b20616805d66fa906}, none 0.7{a1a33444ee922ad961904607c501cbe84d9cddb45266103b20616805d66fa906} (2010 est.)
LITERACY
36{a1a33444ee922ad961904607c501cbe84d9cddb45266103b20616805d66fa906} (2015 est.)
PRINCIPAL LANGUAGE
More, Dioula, Fulfulde
OFFICIAL LANGUAGE
French
POLITICS
HEAD OF STATE
Roch Marc Christian Kabore (since December 29 2015)
TYPE OF GOVERNMENT
Parliamentary Republic
DATE OF INDEPENDENCE
August 5,1960
MAJOR EXPORTS
Cotton, Gold, Animal Products,
PRECOLONIAL HISTORY
The history of Burkina Faso is dominated by its largest ethnic group, the Mossi peoples. The Mossi founded powerful kingdoms in the Volta River basin from the 14th century onward, and controlled the region through their mastery of the war horse. They maintained a conflict-free area conducive to trade, keeping close ties to the Asante peoples in Ghana and mutual non-aggression treaties with the territories to the south. However, they exerted their power by means of slave raids upon weaker neighboring peoples, and many captives were shipped to the Atlantic coast and then to Brazil. French colonists claimed the territory in 1896. The Mossi resisted European influence until France captured Ouagadougou, which became the capital of the French Upper Volta in 1919. Throughout its colonial history, the densely populated nation remained underdeveloped in terms of infrastructure, with the excepting of a railroad constructed to transport laborers to the coast. This was a conscious decision on the part of the French to discourage laborers from seeking work anywhere besides the French plantations and factories in Côte d’Ivoire.
POSTCOLONIAL HISTORY
After France relinquished control of Burkina Faso in 1960, several foreign governments, the United Nations, and the European Economic Union assisted the underdeveloped nation by paving roads and constructing factories, including a large textile mill in Koudougou. Internally, the country experienced a power struggle between the supporters of democracy and the military leaders who seized power by accusing the civilian government of corruption. Ethnic minorities have fought continually for a measure of power to balance the size and influence of the Mossi majority. After a series of coup d’états, Captain Blaise Compaoré of the Congress for Democracy and Progress party became president in 1987, ushering in an era of relatively stable government and industrial development. A significant foundation for Ouagadougou’s recent progress dates to 2006, when the Multilateral Debt-Reduction Initiative cancelled approximately 1.25 billion dollars of debt. In 2007, the government began reconstructing the central market (Rood Woko), but closed the country’s two universities in 2008 due to violent student protests demanding improvements in the educational system. In 2009, the Loropéni Ruins, an ancient fortress, was added to UNESCO’s list of world heritage sites for mankind. Burkina Faso celebrated fifty years of independence in 2010, and re-elected Compaoré for the fourth time. Several civilian and political uprisings occurred in 2011, however, and new economic tensions arose in 2012 due to reports of dire grain shortages. In 2014 Campaore tried to force an additional term, but in a popular uprising crowds demonstrated in Ouagadougou and elsewhere, and Campaore fled the country. Michel Kafando is the interim head of state.