Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso is a country of almost 14 million people and like most countries in Africa, it has a very young population with a median age of 16.5 years.  Almost half of the population (47%) is under the age of 14.  The country is also poor. Agriculture represents 32% of its gross domestic product and occupies 80% of the working population. It consists mostly of livestock but also, especially in the south and southwest, of growing sorghum, millet, corn, peanuts, rice and cotton.  The per capita income is $360 a year and 45% of the population lives on less than one dollar a day.  81% live on less than two dollars a day.  Education and literacy numbers are also low.  63% of primary school age children are not in school.  Of the 37% that do go to primary school, only 27% complete the full course. Only 7% of girls and 11% of boys in Burkina Faso go on to secondary schools.  These numbers have been steady for the past fifteen years.   Literacy rates are far below the regional average of almost 60% for adults and 72% for youth.  In Burkina Faso only 12.8% of adults and 19.4 % of youth are literate.   The country has also done a poor job integrating technology into everyday life.  Less than half of one percent of the population, or about 53,000 people, have access to the internet, only one percent have access to telephones.  

World Links in Burkina Faso

World Links began working in Burkina Faso in 2001.  Ten schools and 212 teachers were trainedin the program. The program in Burkina Faso worked with the World Bank (PEPP) project to provide the necessary computer euuipment for the schools, and worked closely with a variety of other partner organizations to support the program, including RENER/RESAFAD (wireless connectivity and distance learning), the Agence de la Francophonie (Linux solutions) and UNESCO (collaborative projects).