Burkina Faso

International phone code for Burkina Faso: +226

Standard EAN-13 (country barcode):  -

Olympic country code:  BUR

FIFA code: BFA

Land area: 105,714 sq mi (273,799 sq km); total area: 105,869 sq mi (274,200 sq km)

Population (2014 est.): 18,365,123 (growth rate: 3.05%); birth rate: 42.42/1000; infant mortality rate: 76.8/1000; life expectancy: 54.78

Capital and largest city (2011 est.): Ouagadougou, 2.053 million

Monetary unit: CFA Franc

Ethnicity/race: Mossi (over 40%), Gurunsi, Senufo, Lobi, Bobo, Mande, Fulani

National Holiday: Republic Day, December 11

Religions: Muslim 60.5%, Catholic 19%, animist 15.3%, Protestant 4.2%, other 0.6%, none 0.4% (2006 est.)

Literacy rate: 28.7% (2007 est.)

Background:

Burkina Faso achieved independence from France 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.

Recent unrest in Cote d'Ivoire and northern Ghana has hindered the ability of several hundred thousand seasonal Burkinabe farm workers to find employment in neighboring countries.

In 2014 protests and mass uprising in Burkina led to the overthrow of long-serving ruler Blaise Compaore. Blaise Compaore has managed to run down one of the poorest countries on the planet for 27 years.