Burkina Faso

Map of Burkina Faso

Country	Burkina Faso
Capital	Ouagadougou
Independence	5 August 1960 (from France)
National holiday	Republic Day, 11 December (1958); note - commemorates the day that Upper Volta became an autonomous republic in the French Community
Population	17,812,961 (July 2013 est.)
Sex ratio	1.03 male(s)/female 0-14 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-24 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 25-54 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 55-64 years: 0.69 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2013 est.)
Nationality	Burkinabe (singular and plural)
Religions	Muslim 60.5%, Catholic 19%, animist 15.3%, Protestant 4.2%, other 0.6%, none 0.4%
Languages	French (official), native African languages belonging to Sudanic family spoken by 90% of the population
Literacy	Age 15 and over can read and write total population: 28.7% male: 36.7% female: 21.6% (2007 est.)
Location	Western Africa, north of Ghana
Geographic coordinates	13 00 N, 2 00 W
Map references	Africa
Area	total: 274,200 sq km land: 273,800 sq km water: 400 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than Colorado
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
Coastline	0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims	none (landlocked)
Climate	tropical; warm, dry winters; hot, wet summers
Terrain	mostly flat to dissected, undulating plains; hills in west and southeast
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Mouhoun (Black Volta) River 200 m highest point: Tena Kourou 749 m
Natural resources	manganese, limestone, marble; small deposits of gold, phosphates, pumice, salt
Industries	Cotton lint, beverages, agricultural processing, soap, cigarettes, textiles, gold
Exports - commodities	Gold, cotton, livestock
Imports - commodities	capital goods, foodstuffs, petroleum
Land use	arable land: 17.66% permanent crops: 0.22% other: 82.12% (2005)
Irrigated land	300 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources	17.5 cu km (2001)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)	total: 0.8 cu km/yr (13%/1%/86%) per capita: 60 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazards	recurring droughts
Environment - current issues	recent droughts and desertification severely affecting agricultural activities, population distribution, and the economy; overgrazing; soil degradation; deforestation
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note	landlocked savanna cut by the three principal rivers of the Black, Red, and White Voltas