Food Assistance Fact Sheet - Burkina Faso

Food Security Situation  

CIA World Factbook

• Burkina Faso is classified as a least developed, low income, and food deficit country.  The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) 2011 Human Development Index (HDI) ranks Burkina Faso 181 out of 187 countries. Over 43 percent of the population lives below the poverty line.

• Fifty percent of households are food insecure, global acute malnutrition among children under five is above ten percent and stunting among children under five is at nearly 30 percent.

• The 2012 coup d’état in neighboring Mali and rebel uprising in the north displaced hundreds of thousands of Malians.  An estimated 35,000 have sought refuge in Burkina Faso, placing additional strain on the food security of host communities.

• Cereal prices remain 23 – 60 percent higher than last year, and 36 – 59 percent higher than the five-year average. Forecasts for 2012 production in the country’s different livelihood zones point to average to good harvests provided rainfall patterns stay in line with seasonal rainfall outlooks and there are no major infestations of crop pests.

Food Assistance Programs

• The Office of Food for Peace (FFP) targets approximately 460,000 food insecure Burkinabes and Malian refugees throughout Burkina Faso.

• FFP partners with Catholic Relief Services (CRS), ACDI/VOCA, and the World Food Program (WFP) on programs aiming to improve agriculture, livelihoods, education, health and nutrition, water and sanitation, micro-credit, civil society strengthening, and natural resource management.

Food for Peace Contributions

Total Contributions:

Fiscal Year 2012 Contribution Breakdown:

Food Security Situation information provided by UNDP, WFP< and FEW NET as of November 16, 2012
^Includes $5.6 million in a regional West Africa contribution

Country Specific Guidance

• Fiscal Year 2011 Burkina Faso Country Specific Guidance

• Burkina Faso Food Security Country Framework