Africa

Flag of Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso is a landlocked West African country with a rich tradition of art, music, and film despite being one of the world's least economically developed nations. It was formerly known as Upper Volta before being renamed in 1984 to mean 'Land of Incorruptible People' in two local languages. The country hosts FESPACO, one of Africa's most prestigious film and television festivals, held every two years in the capital Ouagadougou.

CapitalOuagadougou
RegionAfrica
Current flag since1984
Main coloursRed, Green, Yellow
Populationabout 22 million
Areaabout 274,000 km²
GeographyLandlocked
Flags in history2

Population and area are rounded.

What the flag of Burkina Faso means

Red recalls the revolution and green the country's agricultural wealth; the yellow star is the guiding light of the revolution. The flag was introduced in 1984 by Thomas Sankara when he renamed Upper Volta as Burkina Faso, “land of upright people”. It replaced the black-white-red tricolour of Upper Volta, which stood for the Black, White and Red Volta rivers.

More about the flag

Burkina Faso, formerly Upper Volta, is a landlocked country in West Africa with its capital at Ouagadougou. Thomas Sankara introduced the flag, a new national anthem and the new name on the first anniversary of his revolution, 4 August 1984. He was killed in a coup in 1987, but the flag and the name remained. The red and green echo the Pan-African colours used by Ghana and other neighbours.

How to recognise it

Horizontal red-over-green with a yellow five-pointed star in the centre.

Did you know?

Burkina Faso means "Land of Incorruptible People" in the Mossi and Dioula languages.

Easily confused with

Burkina Faso's flag is often mixed up with these. Learn to tell them apart:

China

Vietnam

Ghana

Flag history of Burkina Faso

Every flag that has flown over Burkina Faso, from today back through time.

1984–present

Flag of Burkina Faso

In 1984 revolutionary leader Thomas Sankara renamed the country Burkina Faso ("Land of Upright People") and introduced this red-and-green flag with a central yellow star for revolution and the nation's riches.

1959–1984

Upper Volta

The Republic of Upper Volta flew black-white-red stripes representing the three tributaries of the Volta River — the Black, White, and Red Volta — until the 1984 renaming.