Burkina Faso Overview People Government - Politics
- Government - Politics - Capital City - National Defense
Geography Environment & Climate Economy News - Weather History National Symbols Photos Videos Travel and Tourism Link-to-CountryReports Sources   United States Edition Video Library

Burkina Faso Government

What is the capital of Burkina Faso?

Country Name Burkina Faso
Full Country Name none
Local - Long none
Local - Short Burkina Faso
Former Name Upper Volta, Republic of Upper Volta
Etymology- history of name name translates as "Land of the Honest (Incorruptible) Men"
Government Type presidential republic
Capital Name Ouagadougou
Capital - geographic coordinate 12 22 N, 1 31 W
Capital Time Difference UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
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

Burkina Faso Capital City Map

Source: Google Maps

Burkina Faso Government and Politics

Who is the president of Burkina Faso?

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 Transition 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: prior to the 2022 coups and adhoc suspension of laws and constitutional provisions, Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister

elections/appointments: prior to the 2022 coups and adhoc suspension of laws and constitutional provisions, 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 were to be held by July 2024, but may be delayed by the transitional government due to security concerns); prime minister appointed by the president with consent of the National Assembly

election results:

2020: Roch Marc Christian KABORE reelected president in first round; percent of vote - Roch Marc Christian KABORE (MPP) 57.9%, Eddie KOMBOIGO (CDP) 15.5%, Zephirin DIABRE (UPC) 12.5%, other 14.1%

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%
Citizenship Criteria: 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
Legal System: civil law based on the French model and customary law; in mid-2019, the National Assembly amended the penal code
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Legislative Branch: description: prior to the 2022 coups and adhoc suspension of laws and constitutional provisions, 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); 71-member Transitional Legislative Assembly (ALT) appointed by the military junta in 2022 indefinitely replaced the National Assembly

elections: last held on 22 November 2020 (next were to be held by July 2024, but may be delayed by the transitional government due to security concerns)

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 court(s): 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
Regions or States: 13 regions

Boucle du Mouhoun, Cascades, Centre, Centre-Est, Centre-Nord, Centre-Ouest, Centre-Sud, Est, Hauts-Bassins, Nord, Plateau-Central, Sahel, Sud-Ouest
Political Parties and Leaders: Act Together [Kadre OUEDRAOGO]

African Democratic Rally/Alliance for Democracy and Federation or ADF/RDA [Gilbert Noel OUEDRAOGO]

Congress for Democracy and Progress or CDP [Eddie KOMBOIGO]

Convergence for Progress and Solidarity-Generation 3 or CPS-G3

Movement for the Future Burkina Faso or MBF

National Convention for Progress or CNP

New Era for Democracy or NTD [Vincent DABILGOU]

Pan-African Alliance for Refoundation or APR

Party for Democracy and Socialism/Metba or PDS/Metba [Philippe OUEDRAOGO]

Party for Development and Change or PDC [Aziz SEREME]

Patriotic Rally for Integrity or RPI

Peoples Movement for Progress or MPP [Roch Marc Christian KABORE]

Progressives United for Renewal or PUR

Union for Progress and Reform or UPC [Zephirin DIABRE]

Union for Rebirth - Sankarist Party or UNIR-PS [Benewende Stanislas SANKARA]

note: only parties with seats in the National Assembly included
International Law Organization Participation: has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
International Organization Participation: ACP, AfDB, AU (suspended), CD, 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
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 US: chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Chargé d'Affaires Eric WHITAKER (since January 2024)

embassy: Secteur 15, Ouaga 2000, Avenue Sembene Ousmane, Rue 15.873, Ouagadougou

mailing address: AmEmbassy Ouagadougou, Department of State, 2440 Ouagadougou Place, Washington, DC 20521-2440

telephone: (226) 25-49-53-00

FAX: (226) 25-49-56-23

email address and website:

AmembOuaga@state.gov

https://bf.usembassy.gov/
World Regions
Africa Asia Central America Europe Middle East North America Oceania South America The Caribbean
Most Popular
United States of America China France Italy Canada Spain India Brazil Mexico
All Countries
Afghanistan Akrotiri Albania Algeria American Samoa Andorra Angola Anguilla Antarctica Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Armenia Aruba Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Brazil British Indian Ocean Territory British Virgin Islands Brunei Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burma Burundi Cabo Verde Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad Chile China Christmas Island Clipperton Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Colombia Comoros Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Cook Islands Coral Sea Islands Costa Rica Cote d’Ivoire Croatia Cuba Curacao Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Dhekelia Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Eswatini Ethiopia Falkland Islands Faroe Islands Fiji Finland France French Guiana French Polynesia Gabon Gambia, The Gaza Strip Georgia Germany Ghana Gibraltar Greece Greenland Grenada Guadeloupe Guam Guatemala Guernsey Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana Haiti Holy See Honduras Hong Kong Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Isle of Man Israel Italy Jamaica Jan Mayen Japan Jersey Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Korea, North Korea, South Kosovo Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macau Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania Mauritius Mayotte Mexico Micronesia Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Montserrat Morocco Mozambique Namibia Nauru Nepal Netherlands New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria Niue Norfolk Island North Macedonia Northern Mariana Islands Norway Oman Pakistan Palau Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Pitcairn Islands Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Qatar Reunion Romania Russia Rwanda Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Pierre and Miquelon Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Samoa San Marino Sao Tome and Principe Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Africa Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Sudan, South Suriname Svalbard Sweden Switzerland Syria Taiwan Tajikistan Tanzania Thailand Timor-Leste Togo Tokelau Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom United States (US) Uruguay Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela Vietnam Virgin Islands Wake Island Wallis and Futuna West Bank Western Sahara World Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe