Vi er i Burkina Faso

Like most other Sub-Saharan countries, Burkina Faso continues to experience very difficult economic conditions. Around 60 per cent of the population live in poverty and nearly 80 per cent are without a job. In spite of economic growth, high levels of poverty have in fact intensified in some areas of the country. Rural areas are more affected by extreme poverty than Burkina Faso's urban centres. The so-called "rural poor" amount to six million. Employment is often limited to the informal sector, which accounts for a vast proportion of jobs available.

In 2009, massive flooding forced thousands of Burkinabe to leave their homes. More than 50,000 people lost everything in the floods were living in tents and shacks across the capital. Hundreds of schools and a number of hospitals were destroyed by the floods. Aid organisations provided tents, medical equipment and water purification tablets in order to prevent the outbreak of waterborne diseases.

In rural areas, only six per cent of the population have access to proper sanitation facilities. This partially explains the high rate of major infectious diseases such as bacterial diarrhoea, hepatitis A and typhoid fever. At a national prevalence rate of 1.2 per cent, HIV is also a major public health concern. Although the government has included the problem in its general development plan and poverty reduction strategy, thousands of people affected by the virus remain without access to anti-retroviral therapy. However, HIV testing and counselling facilities do exist and efforts to fight the epidemic have been increased. As for now, 17,000 children aged 0 to 14 are HIV-positive. At 53.7 years, life expectancy is very low.