About Africa in General.                                             A map of Africa.

And here is a link to a map of Burkina Faso.           ABC has done some neat research.

Pronounciations ---   Burkina Faso        Ouagadougou 
                                                   Click on either for their pronounciations.

BURKINA FASO (Republic of Burkina Faso)

Former name
Republic of Upper Volta

Geographical location
West Africa, landlocked between latitudes 9 and 15N, and longitudes 2E and 5W; bordered on W by Mali, on E by Niger and Benin and on S by Togo, Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire

Area
274,200 square kilometers (105,869 square miles) (about the size of Colorado which is 103,595 sq. miles)

Population
10,422,828 (1995 estimate)

Date of Independence
August 5, 1960

Former Colonial Power
France

Capital
Ouagadougou, pop 700,000 (1995 estimate)

Important Towns
Bobo-Dioulasso,  Koudougou, Ouahigouya, Kaya and Banfora

Membership of international organizations
UN (September 20 1960); OAU (foundation member May 1963); ECA; ADB; Niger Basin Authority; CEAO; ECOWAS; Conseil de l'Entente; Organization of Islamic Conference; Islamic Development Bank; ACP-EEC Convention; Non-Aligned Movement

Currency
Franc CFA: 100 franc CFA = 1 FF = 17c US

Per capita GDP
US$ 660 (1993)

Main Minerals
Manganese

Main Exports
Cotton, groundnuts, oil seeds, livestock

Main Trading Partners
Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Germany, Netherlands, USA

Official Language
French

Other Major Languages
Moore and Dyula (Jula)

Major People Groups
Mossi (49%), Peul (8%), Gourmantche (7%), Bobo (7%), Bisa-Samo (7%) and Gurunsi (6%).
(of about 70 total people groups)

Leading Education Facilities
Universite de Ouagadougou (founded 1969, university status 1974); Centre d'Etudes Economiques et Sociales d'Afrique Occidentale, Bobo-Dioulasso (founded 1960)

The Military Establishment
Total armed forces: Active, 8,700; Army, 7,000; Air Force, 200. Para-Military: 1,750.
People's Militia: 45,000

Public Holidays
January 1, January 3, May 1 (Labor Day), Easter, Ascension Day, Whitsun, August 4 (National Day), August 15 (Assumption), November 1 (All Saints), December 25 and Moslem festivals are also observed (dates vary)