Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso (, ; ) is a landlocked country in West Africa. It covers an area of around and is surrounded by six countries: Mali to the north; Niger to the east; Benin to the southeast; Togo and Ghana to the south; and Ivory Coast to the southwest. The July 2018 population estimate by the United Nations was 19,751,651. Burkina Faso is a francophone country, with French as the official language of government and business. Roughly 40% of the population speaks the Mossi language. Formerly called the Republic of Upper Volta (1958–1984), the country was renamed "Burkina Faso" on 4 August 1984 by then-President Thomas Sankara. Its citizens are known as "Burkinabé" ( ). Its capital is Ouagadougou.
Agriculture in Burkina Faso
Although Burkina Faso is not self-sufficient in food, agriculture in Burkina Faso has tremendous potential. It employs the vast majority of the work force and accounted for an estimated 31 percent of Gross Domestic Product in 2004. However, only an estimated 13 percent of the total land area is under annual or perennial crops. Government attempts to modernize the agricultural sector have met with some success, especially with cotton, whose export accounted for 51 percent of total exports in 2004. In 2004, about 85 percent of the 210,000 tons of cotton produced was exported. The resistance to improvement has been due mostly to the insufficient water supply and poor soil. Although total cereal production rose from 1,547,000 tons in 1990 to 3,063,000 tons in 2004, imports are needed to meet demand.