Burkina Faso has rapidly turned into an “unprecedented humanitarian emergency” as conflicts in the Sahel region have displaced hundreds of thousands of people in the past two years, according to MSF. As the Covid-19 pandemic takes hold in the country, UNHCR has expressed alarm over “the growing insecurity in Burkina Faso, where violence is forcing […]
Last updated:
DETAINEE DATA
DETENTION CAPACITY
ALTERNATIVES TO DETENTION
ADDITIONAL ENFORCEMENT DATA
PRISON DATA
POPULATION DATA
LEGAL & REGULATORY FRAMEWORK
Does the Country Have Specific Laws that Provide for Migration-Related Detention?
GROUNDS FOR DETENTION
LENGTH OF DETENTION
DETENTION INSTITUTIONS
PROCEDURAL STANDARDS & SAFEGUARDS
COSTS & OUTSOURCING
COVID-19 DATA
TRANSPARENCY
MONITORING
NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS MONITORING BODIES
NATIONAL PREVENTIVE MECHANISMS (OPTIONAL PROTOCOL TO UN CONVENTION AGAINST TORTURE)
NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS (NGOS)
GOVERNMENTAL MONITORING BODIES
INTERNATIONAL DETENTION MONITORING
INTERNATIONAL TREATIES & TREATY BODIES
International Treaties Ratified
Ratification Year
Observation Date
OPCAT, Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
2010
2010
ICPED, International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance
2009
2009
ICRMW, International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families
2003
2003
CTOCSP, Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime
2002
2002
CTOCTP, Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children
2002
2002
CAT, Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
1999
1999
Ratio of relevant international treaties ratified
Ratio: 18/19
Individual Complaints Procedures
Acceptance Year
CEDAW, Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, 1999
2005
2005
Relevant Recommendations or Observations Issued by Treaty Bodies
Recommendation Year
Observation Date
Committee on Migrant Workers
"§25 (b) ensure that any form of detention of migrant workers for offences against immigration law is not arbitrary and is used only as a measure of last resort;
(c) take measures to improve conditions of detention, including in detention facilities for foreign nationals, in the light of international standards."
2013
2013
2013
> UN Special Procedures
> UN Universal Periodic Review
REGIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS MECHANISMS
Regional Legal Instruments
Year of Ratification (Treaty) / Transposed (Directive) / Adoption (Regulation)
Observation Date
HEALTH CARE PROVISION
HEALTH IMPACTS
COVID-19
Country Updates
Burkina Faso has rapidly turned into an “unprecedented humanitarian emergency” as conflicts in the Sahel region have displaced hundreds of thousands of people in the past two years, according to MSF. As the Covid-19 pandemic takes hold in the country, UNHCR has expressed alarm over “the growing insecurity in Burkina Faso, where violence is forcing thousands of people to flee their homes every day.’’
On 3 May, there were 652 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Burkina Faso, making it the most affected of the West African Sahel country. Authorities declared a state of sanitary emergency on 27 March, closed its borders, and announced a quarantine in eight cities. A week before, on 19 March, the Ministry of Justice suspended most visits in prisons, allowing only lawyers to visit clients if they respected sanitary measures.
On 3 April, the president announced the release of 1,207 detainees based on their age, state of health, amount of time served. At that time, 7,621 people were imprisoned in the country and the occupancy level in prisons, based on official capacity, was at approximately 190 percent. In 2019, the UN Committee against Torture expressed concern ‘’about conditions of detention, impunity, impacts of counterterrorism measures on human rights, and actions by members of self-defence militias (Koglweogo) who are reportedly carrying out illegal arrests, detention, murder and acts of torture.’’
On 10 April, the ICRC distributed medical equipment to the country. Soap, antiseptic gel and thermometers, amongst other things, were then re-distributed by the government to prison facilities.
In the Goudoubo refugee camp, located in the northeast, attacks from armed groups forced refugees to flee in early April. A UNHCR spokesperson reported that “Some took refuge in the overcrowded sites initially reserved for the internally displaced.’’
Government Agencies
Immigration Service du Burkina - https://www.visaburkina.bf
Ministère de la Sécurité du Burkina - https://www.securite.gov.bf/ministere/le-ministre
International Organisations
UNHCR Burkina - http://ttps://www.unhcr.org/where-we-work/countries/burkina-faso
IOM Burkina - https://www.iom.int/countries/burkina-faso
NGO & Research Institutions
Amnesty Burkina - https://www.amnesty.org/en/location/africa/west-and-central-africa/burkina-faso/
Human Rights watch Burkina - https://www.hrw.org/africa/burkina-faso
OHCHR Burkina - https://www.ohchr.org/en/countries/burkina-faso
