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Geography Of Burkina FasoBurkina Faso (formerly Upper Volta) is a landlocked Sahel country that shares borders with six nations. It is normally bright yellow on a map. It lies between the Sahara Desert and the Gulf of Guinea, south of the loop of the Niger River. The land is green in the south, with forests and fruit trees, and desert in the north. Most of central Burkina Faso lies on a savanna plateau, 198-305 meters (650-1,000 ft.) above sea level, with fields, brush, and scattered trees. Burkina Faso's game preserves--the most important of which are Arly, Nazinga, and W National Park--contain lions, elephants, hippopotamus, monkeys, warthogs, and antelopes. Tourism is not well developed. Annual rainfall varies from about 100 centimeters (40 in.) in the south to less than 25 centimeters (10 in.) in the extreme north and northeast, where hot desert winds accentuate the dryness of the region. Burkina Faso has three distinct seasons: warm and dry (November-March), hot and dry (March-May), and hot and wet (June-October). Rivers are not navigable. Location: Western Africa, north of Ghana Geographic coordinates: Map references: Africa Area:
total: 274,200 km
land: 273,800 km
water: 400 km Area - comparative: slightly larger than Colorado Land boundaries:
total: 3,192 km
border countries: Benin 306 km, Cte d'Ivoire 584 km, Ghana 548 km, Mali 1,000 km, Niger 628 km, Togo 126 km Coastline: 0 km (landlocked) Maritime claims: none (landlocked) Climate: tropical; warm, dry winters; hot, wet summers Terrain: mostly flat to dissected, undulating plains; hills in west and southeast Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Mouhoun (Black Volta) River 200 m
highest point: Tena Kourou 749 m Natural resources: manganese, limestone, marble; small deposits of gold, antimony, copper, nickel, bauxite, lead, phosphates, zinc, silver Land use:
arable land: 13%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 22%
forests and woodland: 50%
other: 15% (1993 est.) Irrigated land: 200 km (1993 est.) Natural hazards: recurring droughts Environment - current issues: recent droughts and desertification severely affecting agricultural activities, population distribution, and the economy; overgrazing; soil degradation; deforestation Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban Geography - note: landlocked Burkina Faso
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