Catholic Relief Services works to improve household food security for approximately one million people in all 45 rural provinces in Burkina Faso. Strong relationships with partners and a high degree of community participation help CRS reach and exceed its goals, while promoting sustainability and enhancing solidarity.



Our Work at a Glance

Partnership development, capacity building, community participation, and community ownership drive CRS' work in Burkina Faso. Using an integrated approach to sustainable development, CRS strives to help vulnerable communities improve food security through activities in:



-Agriculture: CRS/Burkina Faso views agriculture not only as a source of food, but also as an expanding business sector that is an essential pillar of development in this resource poor and environmentally challenged country. CRS works with a local church partner and two farmer associations to assist resource poor farm households in rural areas to sustainably increase overall food availability and the profits they receive from their crops. While key project crops include garden vegetables, sesame, and millet and sorghum, CRS encourages farmers to diversify their crops and income generating activities to minimize risks. CRS’ Natural Resources Management project helps farmers to improve and maintain better soil fertility, which leads to better crops.



- Microfinance: CRS's Village Banking Program provides credit and savings services to poor rural women, enabling poor households to increase their revenues and thereby enhance their access to food and other basic necessitites, such as health services and education.



- Education: CRS has been providing support to education in Burkina since 1962, when it began its school lunch program in primary schools. Since 1997, CRS/BF has implemented many other activities to increase educational opportunities for Burkinabé children, especially girls, and improve the health and nutrtional status of all children. These activities include Take Home Rations (THR), a preschool lunch program, support for the construction of school infrastructure, promotion of school health activities, and public awareness campaigns.



- Humanitarian Aid: CRS reaches over 13,000 of Burkina's most vulnerable populations through its humanitarian aid program, providing food assistance to 91 partners that serve the handicapped, people living with HIV, orphans, and the poorest of the poor.



- HIV/AIDS Prevention And Education: CRS implements two initiatives in collaboration with the Diocese of Kaya. The first is the Couple-to-Couple Counseling prevention program for over 1,000 married and engaged couples in 2005 to encourage the avoidance of high-risk behavior that could lead to HIV/AIDS and other STDs. The second initiative is an HIV/AIDS awareness and education program administered in Catholic primary schools. This program integrates HIV/AIDS materials within school curricula in order to reduce the incidence of HIV-transmitting activities among students.



- Peacebuilding: CRS, in collaboration with its partner, Catholic Organization for Development and Solidarity (OCADES), implements a program to encourage justice among poor rural people in the dioceses of Nouna, Dédougou and Ouahigouya. CRS is committed to encouraging capacity building of peace and justice commissions at the parish and national levels.



- Emergency Response: CRS and OCADES work together to save lives and restore the dignity of people affected by emergency situations. In 2005, CRS and OCADES provided food support to 51,000 individuals in reponse to poor harvests due to locust invasions and inadequate rainfall.