|
|
Location:
|
Western Africa, north of Ghana
|
Geographic coordinates:
|
13 00 N, 2 00 W
|
Map references:
|
africa
|
Area:
|
total: 274,200 sq km
water: 400 sq km
land: 273,800 sq km
|
Area - comparative:
|
slightly larger than Colorado
|
Land boundaries:
|
total: 3,193 km
border countries: Benin 306 km, Cote d'Ivoire 584 km, Ghana 549 km, Mali 1,000 km, Niger 628 km, Togo 126 km
|
Coastline:
|
0 km (landlocked)
|
Maritime claims:
|
none (landlocked)
|
Climate:
|
tropical; warm, dry winters; hot, wet summers
|
Terrain:
|
mostly flat to dissected, undulating plains; hills in west and southeast
|
Elevation extremes:
|
lowest point: Mouhoun (Black Volta) River 200 m
highest point: Tena Kourou 749 m
|
Natural resources:
|
manganese, limestone, marble; small deposits of gold, antimony, copper, nickel, bauxite, lead, phosphates, zinc, silver
|
Land use:
|
arable land: 14.43%
permanent crops: 0.19%
other: 85.38% (2001)
|
Irrigated land:
|
250 sq km (1998 est.)
|
Natural hazards:
|
recurring droughts
|
Environment - current issues:
|
recent droughts and desertification severely affecting agricultural activities, population distribution, and the economy; overgrazing; soil degradation; deforestation
|
Environment - international agreements:
|
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
|
Geography - note:
|
landlocked savanna cut by the three principal rivers of the Black, Red, and White Voltas
|
|
|
|
|