Early history The northwestern part of present-day Burkina Faso was populated by
hunter-gatherers from 14,000 BC to 5,000 BC. Their tools, including
scrapers,
chisels and
arrowheads, were discovered in 1973 through
archaeological excavations. Agricultural settlements were established between 3600 and 2600 BC.
Iron industry, in
smelting and
forging for tools and weapons, had developed in
Sub-Saharan Africa by 1200 BC. To date, the oldest evidence of iron smelting found in Burkina Faso dates from 800 to 700 BC and forms part of the
Ancient Ferrous Metallurgy World Heritage Site. From the 3rd to the 13th centuries AD, the
Iron Age Bura culture existed in the territory of present-day southeastern Burkina Faso and southwestern Niger. Various ethnic groups of present-day Burkina Faso, such as the
Mossi,
Fula and
Dioula, arrived in successive waves between the 8th and 15th centuries. From the 11th century, the Mossi people established
several separate kingdoms.
8th to 18th centuries There is debate about the exact dates when Burkina Faso's many ethnic groups arrived to the area. The proto-
Mossi arrived in the far eastern part of what is today Burkina Faso sometime between the 8th and 11th centuries, and accepted
Islam as their religion in the 11th century. The
Samo arrived around the 15th century. The
Dogon lived in Burkina Faso's north and northwest regions until sometime in the 15th or 16th centuries, and many of the other ethnic groups that make up the country's population arrived in the region during this time. were experts at raiding deep into enemy territory, even against the formidable
Mali Empire. from entering Sia (Bobo-Dioulasso) during his stay in April 1892. During the
Middle Ages, the Mossi established several separate kingdoms including those of Tenkodogo, Yatenga, Zandoma, and Ouagadougou. Sometime between 1328 and 1338, Mossi warriors raided
Timbuktu but the Mossi were defeated by
Sonni Ali of
Songhai at the Battle of Kobi in Mali in 1483. During the early 16th century, the Songhai conducted many slave raids into what is today Burkina Faso.
From colony to independence (1890s–1958) Starting in the early 1890s during the European
Scramble for Africa, a series of European military officers made attempts to claim parts of what is today Burkina Faso. At times these
colonialists and their armies fought the local peoples; at times they forged alliances with them and made treaties. The colonialist officers and their home governments also made treaties among themselves. The territory of Burkina Faso was invaded by
France, becoming a
French protectorate in 1896. 1913 The eastern and western regions, where a standoff against the forces of the powerful ruler
Samori Ture complicated the situation, came under French occupation in 1897. By 1898, the majority of the territory corresponding to Burkina Faso was nominally conquered; however, French control of many parts remained uncertain.
Draftees from the territory participated in the European fronts of
World War I in the battalions of the
Senegalese Rifles. Between 1915 and 1916, the districts in the western part of what is now Burkina Faso and the bordering eastern fringe of Mali became the stage of one of the most important armed oppositions to colonial government: the
Volta-Bani War. The French government finally suppressed the movement but only after suffering defeats. It also had to organize its largest expeditionary force of its colonial history to send into the country to suppress the insurrection. Armed opposition wracked the Sahelian north when the
Tuareg and allied groups of the Dori region ended their truce with the government. , in 1930
French Upper Volta was established on 1 March 1919. The French feared a recurrence of armed uprising and had related economic considerations. To bolster its administration, the colonial government separated the present territory of Burkina Faso from Upper Senegal and Niger. The new colony was named
Haute Volta for its location on the upper courses of the
Volta River (the
Black,
Red and
White Volta), and François Charles Alexis Édouard Hesling became its first
governor. Hesling initiated an ambitious road-making program to improve infrastructure and promoted the growth of cotton for export. The cotton policy – based on
coercion – failed, and revenue generated by the colony stagnated. The colony was dismantled on 5 September 1932, being split between the French colonies of
Ivory Coast,
French Sudan and
Niger. Ivory Coast received the largest share, which contained most of the population as well as the cities of Ouagadougou and Bobo-Dioulasso. France reversed this change during the period of intense anti-colonial agitation that followed the end of
World War II. On 4 September 1947, it revived the colony of Upper Volta, with its previous boundaries, as a part of the
French Union. The French designated its colonies as departments of
metropolitan France on the European continent. On 11 December 1958, the colony achieved
self-government as the
Republic of Upper Volta; it joined the Franco-African Community. A revision in the organization of French Overseas Territories had begun with the passage of the Basic Law (Loi Cadre) of 23 July 1956. This act was followed by reorganization measures approved by the French parliament early in 1957 to ensure a large degree of self-government for individual territories. Upper Volta became an autonomous republic in the French community on 11 December 1958. Full independence from France was received in 1960.
Upper Volta (1958–1984) , the first president of Upper Volta, examines documents pertaining to the ratification of the country's independence in 1960. The Republic of Upper Volta () was established on 11 December 1958 as a
self-governing colony within the
French Community. The name
Upper Volta related to the nation's location along the upper reaches of the
Volta River. The river's three
tributaries, the
Black,
White and
Red Volta, were expressed in the three colors of the
former national flag. Before attaining autonomy, it had been French Upper Volta and part of the French Union. On 5 August 1960, it attained full independence from
France. The first president,
Maurice Yaméogo, was the leader of the
Voltaic Democratic Union (UDV). The 1960 constitution provided for election by
universal suffrage of a president and a national assembly. Soon after coming to power, Yaméogo banned all political parties other than the UDV. The government lasted until 1966. After much unrest, including mass demonstrations and strikes by students, labor unions, and civil servants, the military intervened.
Lamizana's rule and multiple coups The
1966 military coup deposed Yaméogo, suspended the constitution, dissolved the National Assembly, and placed Lt. Col.
Sangoulé Lamizana at the head of a government of senior army officers. The army remained in power for four years. On 14 June 1976, the Voltans ratified a new constitution that established a four-year transition period toward complete civilian rule. Lamizana remained in power throughout the 1970s as president of military or mixed civil-military governments. Lamizana's rule coincided with the beginning of the
Sahel drought and famine which had a devastating impact on Upper Volta and neighboring countries. After conflict over the 1976 constitution, a new constitution was written and approved in 1977. Lamizana was re-elected by open elections in 1978. Lamizana's government faced problems with the country's traditionally powerful trade unions, and on 25 November 1980, Col.
Saye Zerbo overthrew President Lamizana in a
bloodless coup. Colonel Zerbo established the Military Committee of Recovery for National Progress as the supreme governmental authority, thus eradicating the 1977 constitution. Colonel Zerbo also encountered resistance from trade unions and was overthrown two years later by Maj. Dr.
Jean-Baptiste Ouédraogo and the Council of Popular Salvation (CSP) in the
1982 Upper Voltan coup d'état. The CSP continued to ban political parties and organizations, yet promised a transition to civilian rule and a new constitution.
1983 coup d'état Infighting developed between the right and left factions of the CSP. The leader of the leftists, Capt.
Thomas Sankara, was appointed prime minister in January 1983, but was subsequently arrested. Efforts to free him, directed by Capt.
Blaise Compaoré, resulted in a military coup d'état on 4 August 1983. The coup brought Sankara to power and his government began to implement a series of revolutionary programs which included mass-vaccinations, infrastructure improvements, the expansion of women's rights, encouragement of domestic agricultural consumption, and anti-desertification projects.
Burkina Faso (since 1984) On 2 August 1984, on Sankara's initiative, the country's name changed from "Upper Volta" to "Burkina Faso", or
land of the honest men; (the literal translation is
land of the upright men). Sankara pushed for agrarian self-sufficiency and promoted public health by vaccinating 2,500,000 children against
meningitis,
yellow fever, and
measles. In the 1980s, when ecological awareness was still very low, Sankara was one of the few African leaders to consider environmental protection a priority. He engaged in three major battles: against bush fires "which will be considered as crimes and will be punished as such"; against cattle roaming "which infringes on the rights of peoples because unattended animals destroy nature"; and against the illegitimate cutting of firewood "whose profession will have to be organized and regulated". As part of a development program involving a large part of the population, ten million trees were planted in Burkina Faso in fifteen months during the revolution. To face the advancing desert and recurrent droughts, Sankara also proposed the planting of wooded strips about fifty kilometers wide, crossing the country from east to west. Cereal production, close to 1.1 billion tons before 1983, was predicted to rise to 1.6 billion tons in 1987. Jean Ziegler, former UN special rapporteur for the right to food, said that the country "had become food self-sufficient."
Compaoré presidency (left), President 1987–2014, shaking hands with
George W. Bush On 15 October 1987, Sankara and twelve other government officials were assassinated in a coup d'état organized by Blaise Compaoré, Sankara's former colleague, who took over as Burkina Faso's president. He held the position until October 2014. After the coup and although Sankara was known to be dead, some CDRs mounted an armed resistance to the
army for several days. A majority of Burkinabè citizens hold that
France's foreign ministry, the
Quai d'Orsay, was behind Compaoré in organizing the coup. There is some evidence for France's support of the coup. Compaoré gave the deterioration in relations with neighbouring countries as one of the reasons for the coup. He argued that Sankara had jeopardised foreign relations with the former colonial power (
France) and with neighbouring
Ivory Coast. Following the coup, Compaoré immediately reversed the nationalizations, overturned nearly all of Sankara's policies, returned the country back into the IMF fold, and ultimately spurned most of Sankara's legacy. Following an alleged
coup-attempt in 1989, Compaoré introduced limited democratic reforms in 1990. Under the new (1991)
constitution, Compaoré was
re-elected without opposition in December 1991. In 1998 Compaoré won
election in a landslide. In 2004, 13 people were tried for plotting a coup against President Compaoré and the coup's alleged mastermind was sentenced to life imprisonment. In 2000, the constitution was amended to reduce the presidential term to five years and set term limits to two, preventing successive re-election. The amendment took effect during the 2005 elections. If passed beforehand, it would have prevented Compaoré from being reelected. Other presidential candidates challenged the election results. But in October 2005, the constitutional council ruled that the amendment would not apply until the end of his second term in office. This cleared the way for his candidacy in
the 2005 election. On 13 November 2005, he was reelected in a landslide. In the
2010 presidential election, Compaoré was re-elected. Only 1.6 million Burkinabè voted, out of a total population 10 times that size. In February 2011, the death of a schoolboy provoked the
2011 Burkinabè protests, a series of popular protests, coupled with a military mutiny and a magistrates' strike, that called for Compaoré's resignation, democratic reforms, higher wages for troops and public servants and economic freedom. As a result, governors were replaced and wages for public servants were raised. In April 2011, there was an
army mutiny; the president named new chiefs of staff, and a curfew was imposed in
Ouagadougou. Compaoré's government played the role of negotiator in several West-African disputes, including the
2010–2011 Ivorian crisis, the Inter-Togolese Dialogue (2007), and the
2012 Malian Crisis. , Burkina Faso remained one of the
least-developed countries in the world.
Kafando presidency Starting on 28 October 2014 protesters began to march and demonstrate in Ouagadougou against President Compaoré, who appeared ready to amend the constitution and extend his rule. On 30 October protesters set fire to the parliament building and took over the national TV headquarters.
Ouagadougou International Airport closed and MPs suspended the vote on changing the constitution (the change would have allowed Compaoré to stand for re-election in 2015). Later in the day, the military dissolved all government institutions and imposed a
curfew. On 31 October 2014, Compaoré resigned.
Lt. Col. Isaac Zida said that he would lead the country during its transitional period before the planned
2015 presidential election, but there were concerns over his close ties to the former president. In November 2014 opposition parties,
civil-society groups and religious leaders adopted a plan for a transitional authority to guide Burkina Faso to elections. Under the plan
Michel Kafando became the transitional president and Lt. Col. Zida became the acting Prime Minister and Defense Minister. On 16 September 2015, the
Regiment of Presidential Security (RSP) carried out a
coup d'état, seizing the president and prime minister and then declaring the
National Council for Democracy the new national government. However, on 22 September 2015, the coup leader,
Gilbert Diendéré, apologized and promised to restore civilian government. On 23 September 2015 the prime minister and interim president were restored to power.
Kaboré presidency and Jihadist insurgency (2015–2023) General elections took place on 29 November 2015.
Roch Marc Christian Kaboré won the election in the first round with 53.5% of the vote, defeating businessman
Zéphirin Diabré, who took 29.7%. Kaboré was sworn in as president on 29 December 2015. Kaboré was re-elected in the
general election of 22 November 2020, but his party Mouvement du Peuple pour le Progrès (MPP), failed to reach absolute parliamentary majority. It secured 56 seats out of a total of 127. The Congress for Democracy and Progress (CDP), the party of former President Blaise Compaoré, was distant second with 20 seats. A
Jihadist insurgency began in August 2015, part of the
Islamist insurgency in the Sahel. Between August 2015 and October 2016, seven different posts were attacked across the country. On 15 January 2016, terrorists
attacked the capital city of
Ouagadougou, killing 30 people.
Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb and
Al-Mourabitoune, which until then had mostly operated in neighbouring
Mali, claimed responsibility for the attack. In 2016, attacks increased after a new group
Ansarul Islam, led by imam
Ibrahim Malam Dicko, was founded. Its attacks focused particularly on
Soum province and it killed dozens of people in the
attack on Nassoumbou on 16 December. Between 27 March and 10 April 2017, the governments of
Mali, France, and Burkina Faso launched a joint operation named "Operation Panga", which involved 1,300 soldiers from the three countries, in the Fhero Forest, near the
Burkina Faso-Mali border, considered a sanctuary for Ansarul Islam. The head of Ansarul Islam, Ibrahim Malam Dicko, was killed in June 2017 and
Jafar Dicko became leader. On 2 March 2018,
Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin attacked the French embassy in
Ouagadougou as well as the general staff of the Burkinabè army. Eight soldiers and eight attackers were killed, and a further 61 soldiers and 24 civilians were injured. The insurgency expanded to the east of the country and, in early October, the Armed Forces of Burkina Faso launched a major military operation in the country's East, supported by French forces. According to
Human Rights Watch, between mid-2018 to February 2019, at least 42 people were murdered by jihadists and a minimum of 116 mostly Fulani civilians were killed by military forces without trial. The attacks
increased significantly in 2019. According to the
ACLED, armed violence in Burkina Faso jumped by 174% in 2019, with nearly 1,300 civilians dead and 860,000 displaced. Jihadist groups also began to specifically target
Christians. On 8 July 2020, the United States raised concerns after a
Human Rights Watch report revealed mass graves with at least 180 bodies, which were found in northern Burkina Faso where soldiers were fighting jihadists. On 4 June 2021, the Associated Press reported that according to the government of Burkina Faso, gunmen killed at least 100 people in Solhan village in northern Burkina Faso near the Niger border. A local market and several homes were also burned down. A government spokesman blamed jihadists. Heni Nsaibia, senior researcher at the
Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project said it was the deadliest attack recorded in Burkina Faso since the beginning of the jihadist insurgency. From 4–5 June 2021, unknown militants
massacred more than 170 people in the villages of Solhan and Tadaryat. Jihadists killed 80 people in
Gorgadji on 20 August. On 14 November, the
Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin attacked a gendarmerie in
Inata, killing 53 soldiers, the heaviest loss of life by the Burkinabe military during the insurgency, and a major
morale loss in the country. In December Islamists killed 41 people in an ambush, including the popular vigilante leader Ladji Yoro. Yoro was a central figure in the
Volunteers for the Defense of the Homeland (VDP) a pro-government militia that had taken a leading role in the struggle against Islamists. In 2023, shortly after the murder of a Catholic priest by insurgents, the bishop of Dori, Laurent Dabiré, claimed in an interview with Catholic charity
Aid to the Church in Need that around 50% of the country was in the hands of Islamists.
2022 coups d'état between Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger In a successful coup on 24 January 2022, mutinying soldiers arrested and deposed President
Roch Marc Christian Kaboré following gunfire. The
Patriotic Movement for Safeguard and Restoration (MPSR) supported by the military declared itself to be in power, led by Lieutenant Colonel
Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba. On 31 January, the military junta restored the constitution and appointed Damiba interim president. In the aftermath of the coup,
ECOWAS and the
African Union suspended Burkina Faso's membership. On 10 February, the Constitutional Council declared Damiba president. He was sworn in as president on 16 February. On 1 March 2022, the junta approved a charter allowing a military-led transition of 3 years. The charter provides for the transition process to be followed by the holding of elections.
President Kaboré, who had been detained since the military junta took power, was released on 6 April 2022. The insurgency continued following the coup, with about 60% of the country under government control. The
Siege of Djibo began in February 2022 and continued as of June 2023. Between 100 and 165 people
were killed in
Seytenga Department,
Séno Province on 12–13 June and around 16,000 people fled their homes. In June 2022, the Government announced the creation of "military zones", which civilians were required to vacate so that the country's Armed and Security Forces could fight insurgents without any "hindrances". On 30 September 2022, Damiba was ousted in a military coup led by Capt.
Ibrahim Traoré. This came eight months after Damiba had seized power. The rationale given by Traoré for the coup d'état was the purported inability of Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba to deal with an Islamist insurgency. Damiba resigned and left the country. On 6 October 2022, Captain Ibrahim Traoré was officially appointed as president.
Apollinaire Joachim Kyélem de Tambèla was appointed interim Prime Minister on 21 October 2022. On 13 April 2023, authorities in Burkina Faso declared a mobilisation in order to give the nation all means necessary to combat terrorism and create a "legal framework for all the actions to be taken" against the insurgents in recapturing 40% of the national territory from Islamist insurgents. On 20 April, the Rapid Intervention Brigade committed the
Karma massacre, rounding up and executing civilians
en masse. Between 60 and 156 civilians were killed. On 25 August 2024,
JNIM again launched
a major attack in the region of
Barsalogho, killing at least 400 people. In 2025, the armed forces foiled an attempted coup which they said had been planned by plotters based in the
Ivory Coast. Thousands rallied in Ouagadougou in support of the military government after the foiled coup plot. In May, reports of a digital
cult around Traoré began to surface. ==Geography==