Burkina Faso: Country Profile

Joel Joy

Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa, bordered by Togo and Ghana to
the South, Benin in the southeast, Niger in the northeast and Mali in the northwest. Its
geographical region has been fraught with political and economic challenges since it s
constitution as a sovereign state. Its reliance on agriculture makes its economy
vulnerable to climate changes and weather phenomena.
Burkina Faso has a population of over 20 million people that deals with a range of
issues such as high levels of poverty and political instability. Once referred to as Upper
Volta, it gained its independence from French colonial rule in 1960, but the path to
rebuilding the nation has been met with major hurdles such as regular droughts,
military coups and now affecting the country more than ever, the rise of the jihadist
insurgency.
The jihadist insurgency, originating in Mali has plagued Burkina Faso for nearly a
decade now. Over 20,000 people have lost their lives and millions have been displaced
due to the violence perpetrated by the jihadist groups. This violence has been largely
driven by the Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), the fastest-growing violent
group in the world. According to a recent UN report, close to a quarter of the country’s
population is in dire need of humanitarian assistance.
Experts say that the primary motivation behind these sustained conflicts is to control
the country’s goldmines and regional economic trade routes connecting other
landlocked Sahel countries to the West African coast.
The response from Burkina Faso’s government has been controversial. To combat the
insurgency, the military seized control in two coups in 2022. This would result in the
country’s suspension from both the African Union and the regional Economic
Community of West African States (ECOWAS). The junta, led by Capt. Ibrahim Traoré
has been criticized and accused of committing human rights violations in this campaign
to contain the jihadist groups which have links to al-Qaida and the Islamic State. He
has been accused of attacks against civilians and threats against journalists and
human rights groups that have tried to bring these abuses to light. The military has
been accused of particularly targeting the nomadic Fulani (Peul) group. It has now
resorted to hiring self-defence groups and ethnic militias such as the Koglweogo and
Dozo.
Civilian deaths at the hands of the military and security forces increased by 70% from
2022 to 2023. Government officials continue to deny killed civilians and justify their
continued massacres of villages saying that jihadis often disguise themselves as
soldiers. The UN Human Rights Office has pushed for an independent investigation into
the matter, while one was opened towards the end of last year, there has been no
response so far.
Both Mali and Niger share an alliance with the junta, which are also governed by their
military juntas. These countries seek to shift away from their traditional Western
partners and seek closer ties with Russia whose influence is growing in these
countries. Burkina Faso’s decision to expel a small French military presence due to a
failure to stop the fighting despite deploying thousands of troops there for years.