Background: Burkina Faso (formerly Upper Volta) achieved independence from France in 1960. Repeated military coups during the 1970s and 1980s were followed by multiparty elections in the early 1990s. Burkina Faso's high population density and limited natural resources result in poor economic prospects for the majority of its citizens. Recent unrest in Cote d'Ivoire and northern Ghana has hindered the ability of several hundred thousand seasonal Burkinabe farm workers to find employment in neighboring countries.
July 23rd 2008Africa » Burkina Faso » Nord » Ouahigouya and it was amazing. It’s funny to think that receiving a Science Illustrated magazine, a book, and some gum and mints would make my week. There aren’t any magazines here that I have see ... [full story]
July 18th 2008Africa » Burkina Faso » Centre-Ouest
This week was counterpart workshop and site visit. On Monday we were introduced to our counterparts and started the three day workshop. My CP’s name is Alain and he’s originally from ... [full story]
July 18th 2008Africa » Burkina Faso » Centre-Ouest » Koudougou
I saw my first African accident scene today. After language class on my way to lunch, I took the main road back towards our training center. Up ahead I saw a large group of people on the left si ... [full story]
July 8th 2008Africa » Burkina Faso » Nord » Ouahigouya
Saturday I met up with Brian, a GEE (girls education and empowerment) trainee, who lives just outside of town about 5km into the bush in a small village. He Brad (another IT trainee) an ... [full story]
July 4th 2008Africa » Burkina Faso » Nord » Ouahigouya I came across the blog of a PCT's parent who shared some very useful information regarding packages. I would like to share it with you in case you havent already seen it.
Here is the link to the p ... [full story]
June 28th 2008Africa » Burkina Faso » Nord » Ouahigouya After trying to write chronological blog posts covering the last week like I did when I was in the army, I decided to sum everything up under topic headings. It should give you an idea of what it&rsq ... [full story]
June 13th 2008Africa » Burkina Faso » Centre » Ouagadougou We left Philadelphia at 17:30 on Tuesday 10th 2008 on a 7 hour flight to Paris. The flight for Ouagadougou didn't leave until 16:10 and since quite a few of the trainees hadn't slept, people were cra ... [full story]
June 11th 2008Africa » Burkina Faso » Sahel » Gorom-Gorom Now that school is out, Radhika and I decided to take a trip to Oursi, a village in the Sahel region in northern Burkina Faso. This would be the place we tried to go last summer, when we caught a rid ... [full story]
June 4th 2008Africa » Burkina Faso » Hauts-Bassins I spent my last few days in the village wandering to my favorite places, saying goodbye, and handing out gifts. People loved the soaps, lotions, and flashlights from the US (thanks, mom!) as well as ... [full story]
June 4th 2008Africa » Burkina Faso » Hauts-Bassins As the school year wrapped up in Satiri, the oldest students were preparing for national exams while the others were preparing for vacation. I finished my 3ieme curriculum early so I could spend a fe ... [full story]
Map of Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso's Flag
