Burkina Faso (2003) | Saint Helena (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 45 provinces; Bale, Bam, Banwa, Bazega, Bougouriba, Boulgou, Boulkiemde, Comoe, Ganzourgou, Gnagna, Gourma, Houet, Ioba, Kadiogo, Kenedougou, Komondjari, Kompienga, Kossi, Koulpelogo, Kouritenga, Kourweogo, Leraba, Loroum, Mouhoun, Namentenga, Nahouri, Nayala, Noumbiel, Oubritenga, Oudalan, Passore, Poni, Sanguie, Sanmatenga, Seno, Sissili, Soum, Sourou, Tapoa, Tuy, Yagha, Yatenga, Ziro, Zondoma, Zoundweogo | 1 administrative area and 2 dependencies*; Ascension*, Saint Helena, Tristan da Cunha* |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 46.1% (male 3,057,855; female 3,036,705)
15-64 years: 51% (male 3,296,726; female 3,455,817) 65 years and over: 2.9% (male 161,914; female 219,443) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years:
19.08% (male 699; female 687) 15-64 years: 71.72% (male 2,711; female 2,500) 65 years and over: 9.2% (male 286; female 383) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cotton, peanuts, shea nuts, sesame, sorghum, millet, corn, rice; livestock | corn, potatoes, vegetables; timber; fish, crawfish (on Tristan da Cunha) |
Airports | 33 (2002) | 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 31
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 17 (2002) |
- |
Area | total: 274,200 sq km
land: 273,800 sq km water: 400 sq km |
total:
410 sq km land: 410 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes St. Helena Island, Ascension, and the island group of Tristan da Cunha, which consists of Tristan da Cunha Island, Gough Island, Inaccessible Island, and the three Nightingale Islands |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Colorado | slightly more than two times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Independence from France came to Burkina Faso (formerly Upper Volta) in 1960. Repeated military coups during the 1970s and 1980s were followed by multiparty elections in the early 1990s. Burkina Faso's high population density and limited natural resources result in poor economic prospects for the majority of its citizens. Every year, several hundred thousand seasonal farm workers seek employment in Cote d'Ivoire and Ghana and are adversely affected by instability in those regions. | Uninhabited when first discovered by the Portuguese in 1502, St. Helena was garrisoned by the British during the 17th century. It acquired fame as the place of Napoleon BONAPARTE's exile, from 1815 until his death in 1821, but its importance as a port of call declined after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. Ascension Island is the site of a US Air Force auxiliary airfield; Gough Island has a meteorological station. |
Birth rate | 44.78 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 13.49 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $316 million
expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001) |
revenues:
$11.2 million expenditures: $11 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY92) |
Capital | Ouagadougou | Jamestown |
Climate | tropical; warm, dry winters; hot, wet summers | Saint Helena - tropical; marine; mild, tempered by trade winds; Tristan da Cunha - temperate; marine, mild, tempered by trade winds (tends to be cooler than Saint Helena) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 60 km |
Constitution | 2 June 1991 approved by referendum; 11 June 1991 formally adopted | 1 January 1989 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Burkina Faso former: Upper Volta, Republic of Upper Volta |
conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Saint Helena |
Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States | Saint Helenian pound (SHP) |
Death rate | 18.76 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 6.33 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.3 billion (2000) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Anthony HOLMES
embassy: 602 Avenue Raoul Follereau, Koulouba, Secteur 4 mailing address: 01 B. P. 35, Ouagadougou 01; pouch mail - U. S. Department of State, 2440 Ouagadougou Place, Washington, DC 20521-2440 telephone: [226] 306723 FAX: [226] 303890 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Tertius ZONGO
chancery: 2340 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-5577 FAX: [1] (202) 667-1882 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | two villages are in dispute along the border with Benin; Burkina Faso border regions have become a staging area for Liberia and Cote d'Ivoire rebels and an asylum for refugees caught in regional fighting; the Ivorian Government accuses Burkina Faso of supporting Ivorian rebels | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $484.1 million (1995) | $12.6 million (1995); note - $5.3 million from UK (1997) |
Economy - overview | One of the poorest countries in the world, landlocked Burkina Faso has few natural resources, a fragile soil, and a highly unequal distribution of income. About 90% of the population is engaged in (mainly subsistence) agriculture, which is vulnerable to variations in rainfall. Industry remains dominated by unprofitable government-controlled corporations. Following the African franc currency devaluation in January 1994 the government updated its development program in conjunction with international agencies, and exports and economic growth have increased. Maintenance of macroeconomic progress depends on continued low inflation, reduction in the trade deficit, and reforms designed to encourage private investment. The internal crisis in neighboring Cote d'Ivoire continues to hurt trade and industrial prospects and deepens the need for international assistance. | The economy depends largely on financial assistance from the UK, which amounted to about $5 million in 1997 or almost one-half of annual budgetary revenues. The local population earns income from fishing, the raising of livestock, and sales of handicrafts. Because there are few jobs, 25% of the work force has left to seek employment on Ascension Island, on the Falklands, and in the UK. |
Electricity - consumption | 259.6 million kWh (2001) | 5.6 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 279.2 million kWh (2001) | 6 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 69.9%
hydro: 30.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Mouhoun (Black Volta) River 200 m
highest point: Tena Kourou 749 m |
lowest point:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Queen Mary's Peak on Tristan da Cunha 2,060 m |
Environment - current issues | recent droughts and desertification severely affecting agricultural activities, population distribution, and the economy; overgrazing; soil degradation; deforestation | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban |
- |
Ethnic groups | Mossi over 40%, Gurunsi, Senufo, Lobi, Bobo, Mande, Fulani | African descent 50%, white 25%, Chinese 25% |
Exchange rates | Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.7 (1999), 589.95 (1998) | Saint Helenian pounds per US dollar - 0.6764 (January 2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998), 0.6047 (1997), 0.6403 (1996); note - the Saint Helenian pound is at par with the British pound |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Blaise COMPAORE (since 15 October 1987)
head of government: Prime Minister Ernest Paramanga YONLI (since 6 November 2000) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 15 November 1998 (next to be held NA 2005); in April 2000, the constitution was amended reducing the presidential term from seven to five years, enforceable as of 2005, and allowing the president to be reelected only once; it is unclear whether this amendment will be applied retroactively or not; prime minister appointed by the president with the consent of the legislature election results: Blaise COMPAORE reelected president with 87.5% percent of the vote note: President COMPAORE faces an increasingly well-coordinated opposition; recent charges against a former member of his Presidential Guard in the 1998 assassination of a newspaper editor signify an attempt to defuse chronic areas of dissatisfaction |
chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952) head of government: Governor and Commander in Chief David HOLLAMBY (since NA June 1999) cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, two ex officio officers, and six elected members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor is appointed by the monarch |
Exports | NA (2001) | $704,000 (f.o.b., 1995) |
Exports - commodities | cotton, livestock, gold | fish (frozen, canned, and salt-dried skipjack, tuna), coffee, handicrafts |
Exports - partners | Singapore 14.7%, Italy 11.3%, Colombia 8.6%, France 7.7%, India 6.9%, Ghana 6%, Japan 4.4%, Thailand 4.3% (2002) | South Africa, UK |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green with a yellow five-pointed star in the center; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia | blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Saint Helenian shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the shield features a rocky coastline and three-masted sailing ship |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $14.51 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $18 million (1998 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 35%
industry: 17% services: 48% (2001) |
agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,100 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,500 (1998 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.6% (2002 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 13 00 N, 2 00 W | 15 56 S, 5 42 W |
Geography - note | landlocked savanna cut by the three principal rivers of the Black, Red, and White Voltas | harbors at least 40 species of plants unknown anywhere else in the world; Ascension is a breeding ground for sea turtles and sooty terns |
Highways | total: 12,506 km
paved: 2,001 km unpaved: 10,505 km (1999) |
total:
158 km (Saint Helena 118 km, Ascension 40 km, Tristan da Cunha 0 km) paved: 138 km (Saint Helena 98km, Ascension 40 km, Tristan da Cunha 0 km) unpaved: NA km 20 km (Saint Helena 20 km, Ascension 0 km, Tristan da Cunha 0 km) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 46.8% (1994) |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | NA (2001) | $14.434 million (c.i.f., 1995) |
Imports - commodities | capital goods, foodstuffs, petroleum | food, beverages, tobacco, fuel oils, animal feed, building materials, motor vehicles and parts, machinery and parts |
Imports - partners | France 27.7%, Cote d'Ivoire 23%, Togo 4.3% (2002) | UK, South Africa |
Independence | 5 August 1960 (from France) | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 14% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Industries | cotton lint, beverages, agricultural processing, soap, cigarettes, textiles, gold | construction, crafts (furniture, lacework, fancy woodwork), fishing |
Infant mortality rate | total: 99.78 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 107.87 deaths/1,000 live births female: 91.46 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
22.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.5% (2001 est.) | 3.2% (1997 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, ECA, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ICFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2002) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 250 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court; Appeals Court | Supreme Court; Magistrate's Court; Small Debts Court; Juvenile Court |
Labor force | 5 million
note: a large part of the male labor force migrates annually to neighboring countries for seasonal employment (2002) |
3,500 (1998 est.)
note: 1,200 of whom are working offshore |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 90% (2000 est.) | agriculture and fishing 6%, industry (mainly construction) 48%, services 46% (1987 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 3,193 km
border countries: Benin 306 km, Cote d'Ivoire 584 km, Ghana 549 km, Mali 1,000 km, Niger 628 km, Togo 126 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 12.43%
permanent crops: 0.18% other: 87.39% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
6% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 6% forests and woodland: 6% other: 82% (1993 est.) |
Languages | French (official), native African languages belonging to Sudanic family spoken by 90% of the population | English |
Legal system | based on French civil law system and customary law | NA |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (111 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: National Assembly election last held 5 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - CDP 57, RDA-ADF 17, PDP/PS 10, CFD 5, PAI 5, others 17 |
unicameral Legislative Council (15 seats, including the speaker, 3 ex officio and 12 elected members; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 9 July 1997 (next to be held NA August 2001) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 15 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 44.46 years
male: 43.02 years female: 45.94 years (2003 est.) |
total population:
77.01 years male: 74.13 years female: 80.04 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 26.6% male: 36.9% female: 16.6% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 20 and over can read and write total population: 97% male: 97% female: 98% (1987 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, north of Ghana | islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, about mid-way between South America and Africa |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | exclusive fishing zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2000 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Army, Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Police, People's Militia | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $45.83 million (FY02) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.4% (FY02) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 2,957,710 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,506,944 (2003 est.) | - |
National holiday | Republic Day, 11 December (1958) | Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926) |
Nationality | noun: Burkinabe (singular and plural)
adjective: Burkinabe |
noun:
Saint Helenian(s) adjective: Saint Helenian |
Natural hazards | recurring droughts | active volcanism on Tristan da Cunha |
Natural resources | manganese, limestone, marble; small deposits of gold, antimony, copper, nickel, bauxite, lead, phosphates, zinc, silver | fish |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | African Democratic Rally-Alliance for Democracy and Federation or RDA-ADF [Herman YAMEOGO]; Confederation for Federation and Democracy or CFD [Amadou Diemdioda DICKO]; Congress for Democracy and Progress or CDP [Roch Marc-Christian KABORE]; Movement for Tolerance and Progress or MTP [Nayabtigungou Congo KABORE]; Party for African Independence or PAI [Philippe OUEDRAOGO]; Party for Democracy and Progress or PDP [Joseph KI-ZERBO]; Union of Greens for the Development of Burkina Faso or UVDB [Ram OVEDRAGO] | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Burkinabe General Confederation of Labor or CGTB; Burkinabe Movement for Human Rights or MBDHP; Group of 14 February; National Confederation of Burkinabe Workers or CNTB; National Organization of Free Unions or ONSL; watchdog/political action groups throughout the country in both organizations and communities | none |
Population | 13,228,460
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2003 est.) |
7,266 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 45% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.6% (2003 est.) | 0.72% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | Georgetown (on Ascension), Jamestown |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM 17, shortwave 3 (2002) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | 3,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 622 km
narrow gauge: 622 km 1.000-m gauge note:: another 660 km of this railway extends into Cote D'Ivoire (2002) |
0 km |
Religions | indigenous beliefs 40%, Muslim 50%, Christian (mainly Roman Catholic) 10% | Anglican (majority), Baptist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.74 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth:
1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | universal | NA years of age |
Telephone system | general assessment: all services only fair
domestic: microwave radio relay, open-wire, and radiotelephone communication stations international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment:
can communicate with any place in the world domestic: automatic network international: HF radiotelephone from Saint Helena to Ascension which is a major coaxial submarine cable relay point between South Africa, Portugal, and UK ; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 53,200 (2000) | 2,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 25,200 (2000) | 0 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2002) | 0 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly flat to dissected, undulating plains; hills in west and southeast | Saint Helena - rugged, volcanic; small scattered plateaus and plains
note: the other islands of the group have a volcanic origin |
Total fertility rate | 6.34 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 1.53 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 14% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | none | none |