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