Escalating Humanitarian Crisis in Burkina Faso: Conflict, Displacement and Restricted Access (2025)
Recent Developments
01April-September 2025: Nearly 51,000 Burkinabè refugees arrived in Mali's Koro cercle, with 613 people arriving daily, doubling the refugee population and straining services
02February 2025: Military summarily executed at least 223 civilians, including 56 children, in Nondin and Soro villages in the North region
03May 2025: Soldiers killed up to 400 civilians during counterinsurgency operations in 15 villages
042024: Islamist armed groups killed 1,004 civilians in 259 attacks between January and August
05June 2025: Country hosts 41,765 refugees, mainly from Mali, with 70% living in host communities
Interventions
- UNHCR coordination with national authorities and partners to respond to protection needs and support resilience-building efforts
- Humanitarian assistance targeting 6.3 million people in need, though constrained by access restrictions and funding limitations
- International humanitarian organizations operating in high-need communes despite security challenges and blockades
What Works
- Host community integration: 70% of refugees in Burkina Faso live within host communities rather than camps, reducing dependency on centralized services
- Multi-sector coordination: UNHCR and partner coordination with national authorities has enabled continued response despite severe access constraints
How to Help
- Support UNHCR and international humanitarian organizations operating in Burkina Faso and the Sahel region
- Advocate for increased humanitarian funding and access to conflict-affected areas
- Support organizations addressing protection needs, including gender-based violence prevention and child protection services
- Contribute to food security and malnutrition prevention programs targeting vulnerable populations
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Verified Organizations
Organizations Helping(13)
Human Rights Watch monitors and documents escalating armed conflict, political violence, attacks on civilians, indiscriminate aerial bombardments, intercommunal violence, and humanitarian crises in South Sudan through detailed investigations and reporting. They highlight civilian casualties, displacement, sexual violence, and food insecurity, while advocating for accountability, cessation of hostilities, and international action to address violations by government forces, opposition groups like SPLA-IO and NAS, and urging compliance with peace agreements.
Save the Children tackles the health crisis by supporting primary health care centers, treating malnutrition and infectious diseases like cholera, measles, and malaria in displacement camps, and providing vaccinations and maternal/child health services in Darfur, Khartoum, and eastern Sudan. They operate mobile clinics and supply chains to reach areas with collapsed infrastructure, addressing outbreaks and serving millions of displaced children.
The ICRC supports hospitals in conflict-affected areas by providing essential medical supplies, funding running costs, and aiding in the delivery of care amid widespread facility closures (70-80% non-functional). For instance, they supplied Al Saudi Hospital in Al Fasher—the last functioning civilian hospital—before its January 2025 attack, helping sustain services for thousands despite looting, violence against staff, and denial of access.
NRC provides life-saving aid in Myanmar by distributing shelter materials, non-food items, and cash to 500,000+ displaced people from the civil war; they run education programs for children in IDP sites, improve water and sanitation, and offer information counseling to help families navigate conflict zones, with operations in Shan, Kachin, and Rakhine states despite access challenges.
