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$Unique_ID{COW00620}
$Pretitle{407}
$Title{Burkina Faso
Politics and Government}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{Phoenix International Development Foundation}
$Affiliation{Embassy of Burkina Faso, Washington DC}
$Subject{burkina
faso
years
materials
ouagadougou
workers
exemption
population
cfa
country}
$Date{1989}
$Log{}
Country: Burkina Faso
Book: Burkina Faso the Crossroads of West Africa
Author: Phoenix International Development Foundation
Affiliation: Embassy of Burkina Faso, Washington DC
Date: 1989
Politics and Government
Burkina Faso received its independence from France on August 5, 1960 as
Upper Volta and changed its name to Burkina Faso on August 14, 1984. The
country's first president, Maurice Yameogo, was forced to resign in 1966
following a general strike and several days of street demonstrations. During
the following 17 years, Burkina Faso experienced several military coups and
was ruled by both military and civilian governments. However, since 1983 when
Captain Thomas Sankara seized power in a military coup, the country has been
ruled by a "nationalistic" and "popular revolutionary" (but non-Marxist)
leadership that follows policies of austerity and encourages private sector
and foreign investment. This leadership group, known as the Popular Front, and
the Burkinabe government are currently headed by President Blaise Compaore.
Monetary and Banking System
Burkina Faso is a member of the Union Monetaire Ouest-Africain (UMOA)
or West African Monetary Union which uses the CFA franc as its currency. The
other members of this union are Benin, Cote d'Ivoire, Mali, Niger, Senegal
and Togo. The CFA franc is currently fixed at a rate of 50 CFA francs to one
French franc and has unlimited convertibility into the French franc at this
rate. This CFA francs' convertibility is guaranteed by the French treasury.
The BCEAO (Banque Central des Etats de l'Afrique de l'Ouest) is the
central bank for the franc zone and is located in Dakar, Senegal. The BCEAO
controls the money supply within the union and within each member state.
Monetary policy for the UMOA is determined by the Board of Directors of the
BCEAO with assistance at the national levels from a monetary committee in
each member country.
Burkina Faso's banking system is well developed. It is comprised of eight
commercial or development banks and five financial institutions which are all
partly or wholly state-owned. Of these, three are traditional commercial banks
which are affiliated with French Banks. They are
- the Banque Internationale pour le Commerce, l'Industrie et
l'Agriculture (BICIAB) which is affiliated with the Banque Nationale de Paris;
- the International Bank of Burkina (BIB) which is affiliated with the
Banque Internationale de l'Afrique Occidentale of France; and
- the Banque pour le Financement du Commerce et des Investissements
(BFCIB) which is affiliated with Societe Generale of France.
Both the BIB and the BICIAB have correspondent banks in the United
States. The former has AFRIBANK as its U.S correspondent bank, while the
latter has Bank of America as its correspondent bank.
People
Population: 8 million in 1985 Annual growth rate: 2.6%
Ethnic Groups: Mossi, Bobo, Mande, Fulani and others
Religions: Animism - 53%, Islam - 36%, Christianity - 11%
Languages: French (official); More, Dioula and Poular are the three main
spoken languages
Literacy rate: 26.92% in 1988, according to Embassy of Burkina Faso to
the U.S.A.
Demographics
Burkina Faso's population is composed of over 50 distinct tribal groups.
However, one tribal group, the Mossi, make up 48% of the population and
dominate the country's economic and political life.
Burkina Faso has a very young population, with 81 percent of Burkinabe
being less than 40 years old and 6.8% being over the age of 55. Most of this
population is concentrated in the southern and central areas of the country,
with the population density in these areas sometimes exceeding 125 per square
mile. Despite these high population concentrations, only 10 percent of
Burkinabe live in an urban environment.
Few Burkinabe have had a formal education. Schooling is free but not
compulsory, and primary school attendance is about 22 percent. French,
Burkina Faso's official language, is taught in the schools and used by the
administration and bureaucracy. However, only about 15 percent of the total
population speak French. Instead, most Burkinabe speak their own tribal
languages with More, the Mossi language, being the lingua franca for half of
the country and Dioula dominating the western third.
Although most Burkinabe are either Animist or Muslim, many of Burkina
Faso's elite are educated in Catholic schools. Thus, Catholicism has a
significant influence in the country. Many of these elite were also trained
in the educational system established by the French and follow the cultural
standards of both Africa and Europe (especially France).
Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso, is also its largest city and
has a population of 366,000 inhabitants. The country's other two major towns
the Bobo-Dioulasso which has a population of 290,000 inhabitants and Koudougou
with a population of 106,000 inhabitants.
The Labor Force
Burkinabe workers have a reputation as good and serious workers.
Unskilled and semiskilled workers are in abundant supply. However, Burkina
Faso does have a shortage of skilled workers, mainly in the management,
engineering and electrical fields.
Burkina Faso has relatively well-developed labor regulations. The labor
code guarantees many rights to workers and is effectively enforced by a Labor
Court. Workers usually know these rights and do not hesitate to seek
enforcement of their rights. Labor unions are also well organized and defend
employees in industrial disputes. They claim allegiance of 60 percent of the
country's government workers and half the private sector employees in its
urban areas. Although trade unions are free to operate within the country,
the government strongly discourages strikes.
The latest collective agreement for the commercial sector divides
employees into eight categories with minimum basic pay rates from 19,780 CFA
fr. (about $75) to 70,000 CFA fr. (about $264) per month, and management
staff into four categories with pay rates from 70,000 CFA fr. to 500,000 CFA
fr. (about $1,900). Employers must provide all employees with social security
coverage which is 18.5% of the monthly salary. However, the government
provides free health care for all workers. The minimum wage for agricultural
workers (SMAG) is 117 CFA (about $.44) per hour.
Conditions for the employment of workers by enterprises are provided in
Decree No. 98 of February 15, 1967. To comply with this decree, a statement
must be made to the Inspector of Work and Social Rules before the start-up of
any new enterprise, and the creation of new jobs must be reported to the
Office of Employment and Migration by the employer before he fills any
positions. For compliance, an employer must also ask any worker he is about to
hire for his job seekers' registration card which is issued by this office.
No job seeking card will be issued to foreigners in professions where a great
number of unemployed Burkinabe are registered, and employment contracts for
all non-citizens must be authorized by the Director of Labor. In the event of
a layoff, the Labor Code requires that the employer dismiss workers according
to the amount of training and seniority and advise them at least 30 days prior
to their termination. Workers terminated in a general reduction of force have
re-employment priority over other applicants for a two-year period, and
employees terminated for reasons other than theft or flagrant neglect of duty
have the right to termination benefits.
Economic Infrastructure
Air Transportation
Burkina Faso has two international airports. One is in Ouag