Burkina Faso: Introduction

The document describes Burkina Faso as a landlocked West African nation facing severe political instability, characterized by six coups and ongoing jihadi violence. It highlights the country's status as the most affected by terrorism globally in 2023, resulting in millions of internally displaced persons and significant disruptions to health and education. Economically, the nation relies on subsistence farming and gold mining, while its geopolitical alignment has shifted toward Russia and the Confederation of Sahel States following its withdrawal from ECOWAS.

• Burkina Faso experienced extreme levels of terrorism in 2023, ranking as the most affected country globally according to the 2024 Global Terrorism Index. Fatalities from terrorism increased by 68% in 2023 compared to the start of jihadi violence in 2014, and the number of internally displaced persons rose from under 50,000 in January 2019 to 2.01 million by 30 March 2023.
• The security crisis has caused substantial damage to social infrastructure. As of December 2023, 20% of healthcare facilities (413 total) were affected, impacting care for 3.8 million people. Additionally, 20% of educational infrastructure—comprising 5,330 primary and secondary schools—is closed, affecting 820,865 students, of whom 396,716 are girls.
• Burkina Faso has undergone a significant shift in international relations under Captain Ibrahim Traoré, ending security cooperation with France and aligning with Russia. The country withdrew from the G5 Sahel alliance in December 2023 and formally exited the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on 29 January 2025. In August 2024, it co-founded the Confederation of Sahel States (CSS) with Mali and Niger to cooperate on security, defense, and economic development, with an intention to create a common currency to replace the West African Franc (CFA).
• The economy is classified as low-income and is primarily based on livestock raising and subsistence farming, though it is heavily dependent on gold mining, which provides approximately 80% of exports and 16% of GDP. The country faces low human development, ranking 185th out of 193 countries on the 2023/2024 Human Development Index and 149th out of 167 on the 2024 SDG Index.

APA

Yeboua, K. (2026). Burkina Faso: Introduction. Institute for Security Studies. https://futures.issafrica.org/geographic/guide.pdf?geography=BF&topic=01-introduction

Chicago

Yeboua, Kouassi. Burkina Faso: Introduction. Institute for Security Studies, 2026. https://futures.issafrica.org/geographic/guide.pdf?geography=BF&topic=01-introduction.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Yeboua |first1=Kouassi |title=Burkina Faso: Introduction |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |date=28 May 2026 |url=https://futures.issafrica.org/geographic/guide.pdf?geography=BF&topic=01-introduction |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{yeboua2026burkina, author = {Yeboua, Kouassi}, title = {{Burkina Faso: Introduction}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, year = {2026}, month = may, url = {https://futures.issafrica.org/geographic/guide.pdf?geography=BF&topic=01-introduction}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }