Community action/Burkina Faso

The aim of this page is to recognise, celebrate and encourage the self-empowerment of community agency networks (CANs) and community groups' activism for climate, environment and many other sustainability topics across Burkina Faso.

Global or International events

2021-2030, UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, International community action events

Yacouba Sawadogo

Yacouba Sawadogo is a farmer from the west African nation of Burkina Faso who has been successfully using a traditional farming technique called Zaï to restore soils damaged by desertification and drought. A documentary feature film The Man Who Stopped the Desert (2010) first screened in the UK portrays his life.

Zaï holes: Zaï holes are holes dug in the soil. Traditionally they were used in a limited way to restore barren land. Yacouba Sawadogo introduced the innovation of filling them with manure and other biodegradable waste, in order to provide a source of nutrients for plant life. The manure attracts termites, whose tunnels help break up the soil further. He also increased the size of the holes slightly over the traditional models. Zaï holes have been used to help cultivate trees, sorghum, and millet.

Outreach: To promote these methods, particularly zaï holes, Yacouba Sawadogo holds bi-yearly "Market Days" at his farm in the village of Gourga. Attendees from over a hundred regional villages come to share seed samples, swap tips, and learn from one another. ^W

Food security

Burkina Faso is faced with high levels of food insecurity, which links with poverty and challenging climatic variation, ranging from severe flooding to extreme drought. High rates of food insecurity are particularly prevalent in rural populations. The World Food Programme has several projects it is working on that are geared towards increasing food security in Burkina Faso. ^W

Burkina Faso is largely wild bush country with a mixture of grass and small trees in varying proportions. The savanna region is mainly grassland in the rainy season and semi desert during the harmattan period (defined as the period when stormy and dusty Sahara winds blow dry and hot). Fauna, one of the most diverse in West Africa, includes the elephant, hippopotamus, buffalo, monkey, lions, crocodile, giraffe, various types of antelope, and a vast variety of bird and insect life.

To ensure conservation and preservation of the wildlife of Burkina Faso, four national parks have been established. These are the Po National Park in the south-centre of the country, Arli National Park established in 1954 in the southeast, W of the Niger National Park, a trans frontier park existing since 1957 in the east bordering Benin and Niger and the Deux Balés National Park. The forests, fauna and fish have been declared part of the national estate of Burkina Faso. In addition, the List of national parks of Burkina Faso consist of one UNESCO Biosphere reserve, three Complete Reserves, six Partial Reserves and ten protected forests. However, according to conservation classification conducted between 1936 and 1957, the country has 78 protected areas that cover 38,369 km2 (14,814 sq mi), which accounts to about 14% of the area of the country. ^W

From Wikipedia:Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Ivory Coast to the southwest. It covers an area of 274,223 km² (105,878 sq mi). In 2024, the country had an estimated population of approximately 23,286,000. After independence it was called the Republic of Upper Volta from 1958 to 1984. It was renamed Burkina Faso by then-president Thomas Sankara. Its citizens are known as Burkinabes, and its capital and largest city is Ouagadougou.

The largest ethnic group in Burkina Faso is the Mossi people, who settled the area in the 11th and 13th centuries. They established kingdoms such as Ouagadougou, Tenkodogo, and Yatenga. In 1896, it was colonized by the French as part of French West Africa; in 1958, Upper Volta became a self-governing colony within the French Community.

In 1960, it gained full independence with Maurice Yaméogo as president. Since it gained its independence, the country has dealt with political instability, droughts, famines, and corruption. There have been various coups, in 1966, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1987, and twice in 2022 (January and September). There were also unsuccessful coup attempts in 1989, 2015, and 2023.

Burkina Faso remains one of the least developed countries in the world, with a GDP of $16.226 billion in 2022. Approximately 63.8% of its population practices Islam, while 26.3% practices Christianity. The country's official languages include Mooré, Dyula and Fula (as of 1998), with Mooré being spoken by over half the population. There are more than 60 indigenous languages, and the constitution provides for other languages to be made official by law. The former government and business language was French until January 2024, when its status was demoted to that of a "working language" alongside English by ratification of a constitutional amendment.

The country's territory is geographically biodiverse, and includes plentiful reserves of gold, manganese, copper and limestone. Due to its multicultural make-up, Burkinabè art has a rich and long history, and is globally renowned for its orthodox style.

The country is governed as a semi-presidential republic, with executive, legislative and judicial powers. It is a member of the United Nations, La Francophonie, and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. On 18 January 2024, Burkina Faso announced its exit from ECOWAS and was suspended from the African Union, after it helped form the Alliance of Sahel States (AES).