Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso 2016 Country Review http://www.countrywatch.com Table of Contents Chapter 1 1 Country Overview 1 Country Overview 2 Key Data 3 Burkina Faso 4 Africa 5 Chapter 2 7 Political Overview 7 History 8 Political Conditions 9 Political Risk Index 38 Political Stability 52 Freedom Rankings 68 Human Rights 80 Government Functions 82 Government Structure 84 Principal Government Officials 95 Leader Biography 105 Leader Biography 105 Foreign Relations 117 National Security 120 Defense Forces 123 Chapter 3 125 Economic Overview 125 Economic Overview 126 Nominal GDP and Components 128 Population and GDP Per Capita 130 Real GDP and Inflation 131 Government Spending and Taxation 132 Money Supply, Interest Rates and Unemployment 133 Foreign Trade and the Exchange Rate 134 Data in US Dollars 135 Energy Consumption and Production Standard Units 136 Energy Consumption and Production QUADS 138 World Energy Price Summary 139 CO2 Emissions 140 Agriculture Consumption and Production 141 World Agriculture Pricing Summary 143 Metals Consumption and Production 144 World Metals Pricing Summary 146 Economic Performance Index 147 Chapter 4 159 Investment Overview 159 Foreign Investment Climate 160 Foreign Investment Index 162 Corruption Perceptions Index 175 Competitiveness Ranking 187 Taxation 196 Stock Market 196 Partner Links 197 Chapter 5 198 Social Overview 198 People 199 Human Development Index 203 Life Satisfaction Index 206 Happy Planet Index 218 Status of Women 227 Global Gender Gap Index 229 Culture and Arts 239 Etiquette 240 Travel Information 240 Diseases/Health Data 250 Chapter 6 256 Environmental Overview 256 Environmental Issues 257 Environmental Policy 258 Greenhouse Gas Ranking 259 Global Environmental Snapshot 270 Global Environmental Concepts 281 International Environmental Agreements and Associations 295 Appendices 320 Bibliography 321 Burkina Faso Chapter 1 Country Overview Burkina Faso Review 2016 Page 1 of 333 pages Burkina Faso Country Overview BURKINA FASO A landlocked country in Western Africa, Burkina Faso (formerly Upper Volta) achieved independence from France in 1960, but the country spent many of its post-independence years under military rule with repeated coups during the 1970s and 1980s. The current president, Blaise Compaore, came to power in a bloody 1987 military coup that involved the assassination of then- President Thomas Sankara and other officials. Blaise Compaore seized control of the government, and eventually executed his co-conspirators in the coup for plotting against him. Once he was established with the power of the presidency, Compaore, unlike his predecessor, began to attract foreign investment and expanded the private sector. His economic embrace of neo-liberal policies advocated by international financial institutions has led many countries to turn a blind eye to the manner in which he came to power. However, the truth was that even with these moves, Burkina Faso has remained one of the poorest countries in the world. Although a multiparty system was established, Compaore managed to win every election to date. His latest efforts to hang onto power after almost three decades in the office of the presidency was ironically the cause of his fall from grace. With a power chasm opening up, the military seized power in what could only be understood as a coup d'etat. While the people of Burkina Faso had participated in an uprising intended to protect their democracy, they had instead been faced with betrayal by the military, who exploited the public discontent to seize power for itself. International pressure along with difficult negotiations led to the development of a transitional plan aimed at returning Burkina Faso to democratic order. The election of Roch Marc Christian Kabore as president in late 2015 was the culmination of that process. Burkina Faso Review 2016 Page 2 of 333 pages Burkina Faso Key Data Key Data Region: Africa Population: 18931686 Climate: Tropical; warm, dry winters; hot, wet summers. French (Official) Languages: Tribal languages belonging to the Sudanic family Currency: 1 CFAF = 100 centimes Holiday: Anniversary of the Revolution, 4 August (1983) Area Total: 274200 Area Land: 273800 Coast Line: 0 Burkina Faso Review 2016 Page 3 of 333 pages Burkina Faso Burkina Faso Country Map Burkina Faso Review 2016 Page 4 of 333 pages Burkina Faso Africa Regional Map Burkina Faso Review 2016 Page 5 of 333 pages Burkina Faso Burkina Faso Review 2016 Page 6 of 333 pages Burkina Faso Chapter 2 Political Overview Burkina Faso Review 2016 Page 7 of 333 pages Burkina Faso History Around 1100 in the common era, or C.E., the Bobo, Lobi and Gurunsi peoples primarily inhabited present-day Burkina Faso. After that period, invaders from present-day Ghana conquered central and eastern Burkina Faso. These invaders, the empire-building Mossi and Gurma people, are believed to have originally come from central or eastern Africa. By the 14th century the conquerors established their Mossi states of Ouagadougou, Yatenga and Tengkodogo in the center and the state of Gourma in the east. Until the end of the 19th century, the Mossi dominated Burkina Faso. These conquerors were far outnumbered by their subjects, but by using religion (based on ancestor worship) and a complex administrative system of governance, allowing for some regional autonomy, the Mossi created a powerful state that endured for 800 years. At its peak, the Mossi region was divided into several provinces that were further divided into 300 districts. For centuries, the Mossi were both farmer and soldier. Mossi states had strong armies that included cavalry units, and were able to repel most attacks by the powerful Malian and Songhai empires from the 14th to the 16th century. The Mossi people were able to defend their religious beliefs and social structure against forcible attempts to convert them to Islam by Muslims from the northwest. Near the end of the 19th century the French gained power over the region. The French arrived in 1895 claiming the area under the treaties of the Berlin Conference establishing European control over Africa. First the French peacefully negotiated a protectorate over Yetenga, and then in 1896 they forcibly occupied Ouagadougou. In 1897 they annexed Gourma and the lands of the Bobo, Lobi and Gurunsi peoples. An Anglo-French agreement in 1898 established the boundary with the Gold Coast (now Ghana). Mossi resistance ended with the capture of their capital at Ouagadougou. The region of present day Burkina Faso was administered as part of the French colony of Soudan (then called Upper Senegal-Niger and now mostly part of Mali and not to be confused with Sudan) until 1919. Then in 1919, certain provinces from Cote d'Ivoire were united as a separate protectorate called the Upper Volta in the French West Africa Federation. In 1932, the new colony was divided among Cote d'Ivoire, Soudan, and Niger for administrative convenience. It was later reconstituted in 1937 Burkina Faso Review 2016 Page 8 of 333 pages Burkina Faso as an administrative division called the Upper Coast. After World War II, the Mossi renewed their pressure for separate territorial status and on Sept. 4, 1947, Upper Volta became a French West African territory again in its own right. A revision in the organization of French Overseas Territories began with the passage of the "Loi Cadre" (Basic Law) of July 23, 1956. This act was followed by re-organizational measures approved by the French parliament early in 1957 that ensured a large degree of self-government for individual territories. Upper Volta became an autonomous republic in the French community on Dec. 11, 1958 and achieved full independence on Aug. 5, 1960. The country changed its name to Burkina Faso in the 1980s. Note on History: In certain entries, open source content from the State Department Background Notes and Country Guides have been used. A full listing of sources is available in the Bibliography. Political Conditions Post-Independence Developments The first president, and leader of the Voltaic Democratic Union (known by the acronym UDV), Maurice Yaméogo established a strong presidential government. The 1960 constitution provided for election by universal suffrage of a president and a national assembly for five-year terms. Soon after coming to power, Yaméogo reduced the traditional power of the Mossi states and banned all political parties other than the UDV. His authority soon weakened because of ethnic conflict and the poor performance of the economy. In late 1965, Yaméogo was overwhelmingly re-elected president. But in January 1966 at the height of demonstrations and general strikes against the government's austerity program, by students, labor unions, and civil servants, Yaméogo was ousted in a bloodless coup by a group of army officers headed by Lt. Col. Aboukar Sangoulé Lamizana. This military coup deposed Yaméogo, suspended the constitution, dissolved the National Assembly, temporarily prohibited any political activity, and officially placed Lt. Col. Aboukar Sangoulé at the head of a government of senior army officers. The army remained in power for four years. On Burkina Faso Review 2016 Page 9 of 333 pages Burkina Faso June 14, 1970, in a national referendum, the Voltans ratified a new constitution that established a four-year transition period toward complete civilian rule. Lamizana was to remain in power until 1975, when an elected president would replace him. The UDV did well in the 1970 legislative elections and Lamizana appointed Gérard Kango Ouédraogo to be the prime minister. In 1974, the army headed by Lamizana, again intervened in the political process, dissolving the national assembly, ousting Ouédraogo, and suspending the 1970 constitution. Lamizana remained in power throughout the 1970s as president of military or mixed civil-military governments. After the conflict over the 1970 constitution, a new constitution was written and approved in 1977. Lamizana was re-elected in open elections in 1978. During the 1960s and early 1970s, Upper Volta received a large amount of financial aid from France.

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