Burkina Faso
Compassion started working in Burkina Faso in 2004. Today, there are over 79,000 children registered in our programs through 255 church partners.
Where We Work
Snapshot of Burkina Faso
55%
of people live below the poverty line
80%
lack access to improved sanitation
371
mothers die from pregnancy related causes per 100,000 births
A letter from Compassion Burkina Faso Director Palamanga Ouali
Dear Sponsor, Warm greetings from Burkina Faso! I am Palamanga Ouali. I have been the Country Director of Compassion Burkina Faso for more than seven years. I am privileged to be a part of this God-ordained ministry to children. I am married to Liliane and the Lord has blessed us with three children: Yolanda, Jessica and Michael. My family and I love the Lord and we worship in a local church of the International Society of Missionaries of Ouagadougou, the capital city.
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A letter from Compassion Burkina Faso Director Palamanga Ouali
Dear Sponsor,
Warm greetings from Burkina Faso!
I am Palamanga Ouali. I have been the Country Director of Compassion Burkina Faso for more than seven years. I am privileged to be a part of this God-ordained ministry to children. I am married to Liliane and the Lord has blessed us with three children: Yolanda, Jessica and Michael. My family and I love the Lord and we worship in a local church of the International Society of Missionaries of Ouagadougou, the capital city.
The ministry of Compassion International started in Burkina Faso in 2004 and now partners with 241 local churches to provide holistic child development to more than 77,000 registered children through the sponsorship program and 463 mothers and babies.
I am elated to express my heartfelt gratitude for your commitment to break the poverty chain in your sponsored child’s life. Poverty, most of the time, is a crucial lack of opportunity, and your sponsorship is offering a unique opportunity to your sponsored child to be released from poverty. Thanks to your support, this child is loved, cared for and full of hope for a brighter future. I am so grateful, and God sees the heart of each single sponsored child asking Him to bless sponsors like you.
The child development centre is a safe haven where registered children are nurtured and have the privilege to hear and learn about the love of Jesus Christ. As a result, many lives are being transformed. The specific needs of your sponsored child are being met, including food, health care, yearly medical checkups, school fees, tutoring, vocational and life skills trainings, etc. Your sponsorship is making a difference in your child’s life as well as in his/her entire family. We could not make it without your precious help. I sincerely appreciate your contribution. I pray to our Heavenly Father to pour His massive blessings over you and your family.
Burkina Faso’s population was about 18.4 million in 2015. The poverty rate was estimated at 40 per cent in 2014. Nearly half of the population lives below the poverty line with less than US$307 per capita per year. The country remains vulnerable to shocks due to rainfall variations and unemployment. This socio-economic context is more appalling for children, as their welfare is threatened by malnutrition, child labour, sickness etc.
More than 45 per cent of children are not educated despite the commendable endeavours to mitigate the situation and promote gender equality in school. Nearly one in two children is compelled to work to support the family. Many boys work on cotton plantations and mining sites under tough conditions. The girls have to work as maidservants in richer families, where they are sometimes beaten, raped and abused. In the northern localities with dreadfully dry climates, some families are devoted to searching for gold. The number of children who are forced to work in a terrifyingly dangerous mining environment is about 10,000 in Burkina Faso.
Yet, there is still room to dream for a country that will soon be positively impacted and transformed by a rising generation of leaders that are being equipped in child development centres to overcome these challenges. This year, in some centres, we recorded a 100 per cent rate of success for the A-level Exam. Our target for 2017 is to reach out to more than 9000 more children living in poverty through partnership with churches that are also involved in local resource mobilisation for children’s sake.
The need is enormous and your sponsorship comes as a valuable support to many families. Your words of encouragement sent through letters are very helpful for the children’s tenure in the program. Your relationship with the child is building confidence in his/her life. They feel happy and loved anytime they receive your letters while many others are longing to read from their sponsors.
As you pray, please remember to uplift registered children, church partners, field office staff and the country. Pray for the children’s holistic development. Your sponsored child needs both your financial and spiritual support. Pray for your sponsored child to remain in the program and be successful in school. Pray for all registered children to keep on growing in good health as they live out their God-given potential. Last, but not least, pray for peace and safety in Burkina Faso.
We are grateful to you and pray that the Lord continues to bless you and keep you safe.
Sincerely yours,
Palamanga Ouali
Country Director Compassion Burkina Faso
Celia the Conqueror
Eight-year-old Celia Lompo is registered at the BF-209 SIM Church Child Development Centre in Fada N’gourma in Burkina Faso’s Est Province. In Celia’s community, when parents are unable to fund the education of all their children, priority is usually given to boys over girls. People believe girls will get married and leave the family, while boys will always be there to support them.
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Eight-year-old Celia Lompo is registered at the BF-209 SIM Church Child Development Centre in Fada N’gourma in Burkina Faso’s Est Province.
In Celia’s community, when parents are unable to fund the education of all their children, priority is usually given to boys over girls. People believe girls will get married and leave the family, while boys will always be there to support them.
Thanks to the partnership between Compassion and the church, Celia’s generation is being well educated and the statistics at BF-209 show a perfect equality between the number of registered boys and girls.
“Celia works hard at school, she likes to do her exercises and she participates well in class by asking questions about what she does not understand. Since she enrolled at school, Celia is always among the top five students in her class,” says Mrs Lompo Rebecca, a tutor at the centre.
Possibo, Celia’s mother, is a brave woman who is well-known in the district one neighbourhood of Fada. In fact, Possibo is the best coach to her daughter. She says she wants Celia to succeed in life through the values such as hard work, good leadership and courage in every situation.
“Praise God, Celia is a good girl who is always ready to learn,” says Possibo.
Thank you for praying for Celia and so many girls and boys like her, who have new opportunities to learn and grow through Compassion’s program, the love of the local church and the support of their sponsors.
Prayer requests for Burkina Faso
- Pray for all registered beneficiaries to be protected from fall, drowning, accident and all kind of injury during the upcoming rainy season, when such incidents are more common. Please pray for a good harvest during the rainy season, and for protection of the workers in the fields.
- Pray for our brother Ouali Palamanga as he leaves his old role as country director and takes up a new position as Africa Regional Field Director. Please pray for his replacement and for the rest of the Compassion Burkina Faso national staff during a time of transition.
- Please pray for peace and security in Burkina Faso, particularly in the troubled northern regions; pray for the protection, good health and security of the children and their family members.
- Please keep praying for communities that lack safe water and proper sanitation; pray for the protection of the children’s health against waterborne diseases and for provision for the churches and communities that lack these basic facilities.