Capital: Ouagadougou
Area: 274,200 km²
Population: around 14 million (July 2005)
Ethnic groups: Mossi, Gurunsi, Lobi, Senufo, Bobo, Mande, Fulani
Official language(s): French
Religion(s): Indigenous beliefs, Muslim, and Roman Catholic
Currency: 1 CFA franc = 100 centimes
SOS Children's Villages' activities in the country
It was back in 1980 that Hermann Gmeiner, founder of the SOS Children's Villages, and the French SOS Children's Village association tried to start the SOS Children's Village work in Burkina Faso and to set up an SOS Children's Village there. Unfortunately, the exceedingly unstable political situation in the country meant that SOS-Kinderdorf International was unable to get a foothold in this country at that time. It was only in September 1993 that a definitive government agreement was signed. A suitable site was found 10 km north of the centre of the capital city, Ouagadougou. Construction work started in September 1995 and the first children were able to move into their SOS Children's Village with their families in April 1997.
An attached SOS Kindergarten went into operation in September 1997. It is also very popular with the neighbouring community and the children from the neighbourhood attend it together with the SOS Children's Village children. The SOS Hermann Gmeiner School, which started off in the same building as the kindergarten, went into operation at the same time. It offers a valuable range of subjects for the children from the neighbourhood. Since October 1998, when a smaller building has been built for the kindergarten, the two facilities are now separate. In June 2002, construction of the country's second SOS Children's Village Dafra with an attached SOS Kindergarten started in Bobo-Dioulasso. The project was complemented by an SOS Hermann Gmeiner School. In March 2004, the first children moved into their new home in the SOS Children's Village.
On 11 March 2006 the National Association of Burkina Faso was founded. In 2007 SOS Children's Villages Burkina Faso started to operate a Family Strengthening Programme in Dafra, which enables children who are at risk of losing the care of their family to grow within a caring family environment. To achieve this, SOS Children's Villages Burkina Faso works directly with families and communities to empower them to effectively protect and care for their children, in cooperation with local authorities and other service providers.
At present there are two SOS Children's Villages in Burkina Faso, one SOS Youth Facility, two SOS Kindergartens, two SOS Hermann Gmeiner Schools and one SOS Social Centre.
Contact:
Villages d'Enfants SOS du Burkina Faso
B.P. 1468
1 - Ouagadougou
Burkina Faso
Tel +226-50 34 61 31
Fax +226-50 34 61 33