Soil and Vegetation

Source: Atlas de l'Afrique – Burkina Faso, 2005

This map shows the various types of soil that Burkina Faso has to offer.

• The orange colour represents a clay and sand-type soil. This soil is not good for traditional methods of cultivation as they are too superficial. In addition, the soil degrades in quality quite badly.
• The green areas represent powdery, dry grounds. Their structure, lack of permeability and presence of certain chemicals mean that cultivation is very hard - if not impossible in these regions who also see very little rainfall.
• The blue areas to the west are characterised by the presence of water. In these regions, sorghum and rice (in the south) are cultivated.

Source: Atlas de l'Afrique – Burkina Faso, 2005

These maps show the various types of vegetation found. This can also be put in relation to the different types of soil present.

The north suffers from a lack of rain and poor quality soil. Therefore, what we find are steppes dotted with trees and bushes. This area is very barren and agriculture is almost impossible.

The central regions are a little more fertile and there we find wooded savannas. However, the soil remains poor.

It is in the south-east were most vegetation can be seen. Light forests and areas of more dense vegetation can be found.

These numbers indicate an example of reforestation efforts that are being mplemented in Burkina Faso . The right column shows the number of trees planted. The left shows the area that has been reforested.

Source: Atlas de l'Afrique – Burkina Faso, 2005

These numbers are from 2004, however, efforts to replant vegetation are still going strong ( http://www.cilssnet.org )