5 Facts of Burkina Faso

The capital of Burkina Faso is Ouagadougou

 

Burkina Faso is located in Africa in the Sahel region and is between the rainforests of the coast and the Sahara Desert. Situated on a savanna, the environment consists of brush, occasional trees and fields. Neighbors include Niger and Mali on the Northwest; the capital of Burkina Faso is Ouagadougou. With wet and dry seasons that are very pronounced, it is about the size of the state of Colorado. Some of the lesser known facts regarding Burkina Faso include the following:

5 Facts You Might Not Know

1

Islam, Christianity and indigenous religion are practiced side by side with large acceptance of different beliefs. According to Wikipedia, a popular saying in the country is that 50% are Muslim, 50% are Christian, and 100% are animist.

2

Although it is one of the poorest countries in the world, Burkina Faso has a stable government and is home to an important film festival every two years, the Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou (FESPACO). This festival is one of the most exciting film venues in Africa.

3

Burkina Faso has the one of the largest elephant populations in Africa and has recently signed a West African Elephant conservation pact. Elephants in West Africa may be a different species than other African elephants according to the IUCN Species Survival Commission's African Elephant Specialist Group.

4

With a rich combination of wildlife, Burkina Faso is also home to endangered cheetahs, aardvarks, lions, baboons, warthogs and crocodiles. With streams and rivers running through the country, the crocodile has flourished. A unique animal found in the country is the giant pangolin, a mammal with a scale-like skin and appearance that resembles a reptile.

5

The name Burkina Faso, which means land of honest men, is a result of a coup in 1983 in which Thomas Sankara developed relations with Libya and Ghana. Before that time, the country was known as Upper Volta.