3 GeoFroggy

Country Name

Conventional long form: none

Conventional short form: Burkina Faso

Local long form: none

Local short form: Burkina Faso

Former: Upper Volta, Republic of Upper Volta

Administrative Divisions

13 regions; Boucle du Mouhoun, Cascades, Centre, Centre-Est, Centre-Nord, Centre-Ouest, Centre-Sud, Est, Hauts-Bassins, Nord, Plateau-Central, Sahel, Sud-Ouest

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

Constitution

History: several previous; latest approved by referendum 2 June 1991, adopted 11 June 1991, temporarily suspended late October to mid-November 2014; initial draft of a new constitution to usher in the new republic was completed in January 2017 and a final draft was submitted to the government in December 2017; a constitutional referendum originally scheduled for adoption in March 2019 was postponed; on 1 March 2022 a transition charter was adopted, allowing military authorities to rule for three years and barring the transitional president from being an electoral candidate after the transition

Amendments: proposed by the president, by a majority of National Assembly membership, or by petition of at least 30,000 eligible voters submitted to the Assembly; passage requires at least three-fourths majority vote in the Assembly; failure to meet that threshold requires majority voter approval in a referendum; constitutional provisions on the form of government, the multiparty system, and national sovereignty cannot be amended; amended several times

Legal System

civil law based on the French model and customary law; in mid-2019, the National Assembly amended the penal code

International Law Organization Participation

Has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Citizenship

Citizenship by birth: no

Citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Burkina Faso

Dual citizenship recognized: yes

Residency requirement for naturalization: 10 years

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Executive Branch

Chief of state: transitional President Capt. Ibrahim TRAORE (since 30 September 2022); note - on 30 September 2022, a military junta led by TRAORE, took power and ousted President Lt. Col. Paul-Henri Sandaogo DAMIBA and took over as head of the Patriotic Movement for Safeguard and Restoration

Head of government: Prime Minister Joachim KYLEM DE TAMBELA (since 21 October 2022); note - transitional President TRAORE appointed KYLEM DE TAMBELA Prime Minister on 21 October 2022; the position had been vacant since 30 September 2022 when the military ousted former Prime Minister Albert OUEDRAOGO

Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister

Elections appointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); last held on 22 November 2020 (next to be held by July 2024); prime minister appointed by the president with consent of the National Assembly

Election results: 2020

2015: Roch Marc Christian KABORE elected president in first round; percent of vote - Roch Marc Christian KABORE (MPP) 53.5%, Zephirin DIABRE (UPC) 29.6%, Tahirou BARRY (PAREN) 3.1%, Benewende Stanislas SANKARA (UNIR-MS) 2.8%, other 10.9%

Legislative Branch

Description: unicameral National Assembly (127 seats; 111 members directly elected in 13 multi-seat constituencies by party-list proportional representation vote and 26 members elected in a nationwide constituency by proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms)

Elections: last held on 22 November 2020 (next to be held by July 2024)

Election results: percent of vote by party - MPP 34.6%, CDP 13.3%, UPC 10.2%, NTD 5.6%, other 36.3%; seats by party - MPP 56, CDP 20, NTD 13, UPC 12, other 26; composition as of October 2021 - men 119, women 8, percent of women 6.3%

Judicial Branch

Highest courts: Supreme Court of Appeals or Cour de Cassation (consists of NA judges); Council of State (consists of NA judges); Constitutional Council or Conseil Constitutionnel (consists of the council president and 9 members)

Judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judge appointments mostly controlled by the president of Burkina Faso; judges have no term limits; Council of State judge appointment and tenure NA; Constitutional Council judges appointed by the president of Burkina Faso upon the proposal of the minister of justice and the president of the National Assembly; judges appointed for 9-year terms with one-third of membership renewed every 3 years

Subordinate courts: Appeals Court; High Court; first instance tribunals; district courts; specialized courts relating to issues of labor, children, and juveniles; village (customary) courts

Political Parties and Leaders

Array

Flag Description

Two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green with a yellow five-pointed star in the center; red recalls the country's struggle for independence, green is for hope and abundance, and yellow represents the country's mineral wealth

National Symbols

National Anthem

Lyrics music: Thomas SANKARA

National Heritage

Lyrics music: Thomas SANKARA

Year

Government Type

  • Presidential republic

Capital

  • Name
    Ouagadougou
  • Geographic Coordinates
    12 22 N, 1 31 W
  • Time Difference
    UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

Diplomatic Representation in the US

  • Chief Of Mission
    Ambassador (vacant); Chargé d'Affaires Jean-Baptiste GAGRE (since 31 July 2023)
  • Chancery
    2340 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
  • Telephone
    [1] (202) 332-5577
  • FAX
    [1] (202) 667-1882
  • Email Address And Website
    contact@burkina-usa.org
  • Https
    //burkina-usa.org/

Diplomatic Representation from the US

  • Chief Of Mission
    Ambassador Sandra E. CLARK (since 25 September 2020)
  • Embassy
    Secteur 15, Ouaga 2000, Avenue Sembene Ousmane, Rue 15.873, Ouagadougou
  • Mailing Address
    2440 Ouagadougou Place, Washington, DC  20521-2440
  • Telephone
    (226) 25-49-53-00
  • FAX
    (226) 25-49-56-23
  • Email Address And Website
    ouagaACS@state.gov
  • Https
    //bf.usembassy.gov/

International Organization Participation

  • ACP
  • AfDB
  • AU (suspended)
  • CD
  • ECOWAS
  • EITI (compliant country)
  • Entente
  • FAO
  • FZ
  • G-77
  • IAEA
  • IBRD
  • ICAO
  • ICC (NGOs)
  • ICCt
  • ICRM
  • IDA
  • IDB
  • IFAD
  • IFC
  • IFRCS
  • ILO
  • IMF
  • Interpol
  • IOC
  • IOM
  • IPU
  • ISO
  • ITSO
  • ITU
  • ITUC (NGOs)
  • MIGA
  • MINUSCA
  • MONUSCO
  • NAM
  • OIC
  • OIF
  • OPCW
  • PCA
  • UN
  • UNCTAD
  • UNESCO
  • UNIDO
  • UNISFA
  • UNITAR
  • UNMISS
  • UNOOSA
  • UNWTO
  • UPU
  • WADB (regional)
  • WAEMU
  • WCO
  • WFTU (NGOs)
  • WHO
  • WIPO
  • WMO
  • WTO