Rural population in Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso: Rural population was 17.11 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
17.11 million
Change on year
up 1.4%
World rank
33rd
of 218 countries
All-time high
17.11 million
in 2025
All-time low
4.54 million
in 1960
Years of data
66
1960–2025
Rural population in Burkina Faso, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
Analysis
In 2025, rural population in Burkina Faso stood at 17.11 million. That is the highest value across all 66 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.4% on the previous year and up 22.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population in Burkina Faso peaked at 17.11 million in 2025 and was at its lowest, 4.54 million, in 1960.
That places Burkina Faso 33rd out of 218 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Rural population in Burkina Faso, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 4.54 million | — |
| 1961 | 4.60 million | +1.4% |
| 1962 | 4.66 million | +1.4% |
| 1963 | 4.73 million | +1.4% |
| 1964 | 4.80 million | +1.5% |
| 1965 | 4.87 million | +1.5% |
| 1966 | 4.95 million | +1.6% |
| 1967 | 5.03 million | +1.6% |
| 1968 | 5.11 million | +1.6% |
| 1969 | 5.19 million | +1.6% |
| 1970 | 5.28 million | +1.7% |
| 1971 | 5.37 million | +1.6% |
| 1972 | 5.45 million | +1.6% |
| 1973 | 5.55 million | +1.7% |
| 1974 | 5.65 million | +1.8% |
| 1975 | 5.76 million | +1.9% |
| 1976 | 5.87 million | +2.0% |
| 1977 | 5.99 million | +2.0% |
| 1978 | 6.11 million | +2.0% |
| 1979 | 6.24 million | +2.0% |
| 1980 | 6.36 million | +2.0% |
| 1981 | 6.49 million | +2.0% |
| 1982 | 6.63 million | +2.1% |
| 1983 | 6.77 million | +2.1% |
| 1984 | 6.92 million | +2.2% |
| 1985 | 7.08 million | +2.3% |
| 1986 | 7.25 million | +2.4% |
| 1987 | 7.42 million | +2.3% |
| 1988 | 7.59 million | +2.3% |
| 1989 | 7.77 million | +2.3% |
| 1990 | 7.95 million | +2.3% |
| 1991 | 8.12 million | +2.2% |
| 1992 | 8.30 million | +2.1% |
| 1993 | 8.47 million | +2.1% |
| 1994 | 8.65 million | +2.1% |
| 1995 | 8.84 million | +2.1% |
| 1996 | 9.02 million | +2.1% |
| 1997 | 9.21 million | +2.0% |
| 1998 | 9.39 million | +2.0% |
| 1999 | 9.59 million | +2.1% |
| 2000 | 9.78 million | +2.0% |
| 2001 | 9.98 million | +2.0% |
| 2002 | 10.18 million | +2.0% |
| 2003 | 10.39 million | +2.1% |
| 2004 | 10.62 million | +2.2% |
| 2005 | 10.86 million | +2.3% |
| 2006 | 11.13 million | +2.5% |
| 2007 | 11.41 million | +2.5% |
| 2008 | 11.69 million | +2.5% |
| 2009 | 11.98 million | +2.4% |
| 2010 | 12.28 million | +2.5% |
| 2011 | 12.59 million | +2.5% |
| 2012 | 12.91 million | +2.6% |
| 2013 | 13.25 million | +2.6% |
| 2014 | 13.60 million | +2.6% |
| 2015 | 13.97 million | +2.7% |
| 2016 | 14.34 million | +2.7% |
| 2017 | 14.73 million | +2.7% |
| 2018 | 15.11 million | +2.6% |
| 2019 | 15.49 million | +2.5% |
| 2020 | 15.82 million | +2.1% |
| 2021 | 16.10 million | +1.8% |
| 2022 | 16.37 million | +1.7% |
| 2023 | 16.63 million | +1.6% |
| 2024 | 16.88 million | +1.5% |
| 2025 | 17.11 million | +1.4% |
Burkina Faso compared with similar countries
- Burkina Faso's 17.11 million is above the median for low income countries, which is 15.21 million, 1.1× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Burkina Faso's 17.11 million is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 9.41 million, 1.8× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 4.85 million | 4.54 million | 5.19 million | 10 |
| 1970s | 5.72 million | 5.28 million | 6.24 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 7.03 million | 6.36 million | 7.77 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 8.75 million | 7.95 million | 9.59 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 10.80 million | 9.78 million | 11.98 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 13.83 million | 12.28 million | 15.49 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 16.48 million | 15.82 million | 17.11 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near Burkina Faso
More agriculture & rural data for Burkina Faso
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 13.81 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.1994 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 228.86 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 1.39 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0006 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.7108 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 19.9% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 19.9% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 6.0% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.4% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population in Burkina Faso?
- Rural population in Burkina Faso was 17.11 million in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest rural population recorded in Burkina Faso?
- The highest recorded value was 17.11 million in 2025.
- What is the lowest rural population recorded in Burkina Faso?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.54 million in 1960.
- How does Burkina Faso rank for rural population?
- Burkina Faso ranks 33rd out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Is rural population rising or falling in Burkina Faso?
- Over the last ten years it is up 22.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Burkina Faso data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Rural population. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Rural population refers to people living in rural areas as defined by national statistical offices. It is calculated as the difference between total population and urban population. Aggregation of urban and rural population may not add up to total population because of different country coverages.