Five-Year Review: State Party Burkina Faso was among the first 30 ratifications to trigger the convention’s entry into force on 1 August 2010. In 2014, Burkina Faso stated that a process is underway to draft and adopt implementing legislation for the convention. Burkina Faso has participated in all of the convention’s Meetings of States Parties. In its initial transparency report for the convention provided in 2011, Burkina Faso confirmed that it has never used, produced, or transferred cluster munitions and possesses no stocks of the weapons, including for training or research purposes.

Policy

Burkina Fasosigned the Convention on Cluster Munitions on 3 December 2008 and ratified on 16 February 2010. It was among the first 30 ratifications to trigger the convention’s entry into force on 1 August 2010.

In September 2014, Burkina Faso described the adoption of national implementing legislation for the convention as an “ongoing priority” and stated that a consultation process facilitated by the National Commission to Combat the Proliferation of Small Arms (Commission Nationale de Lutte contre la Prolifération des Armes Légères) aims to include the views of relevant national actors on the draft legislation.[1] Burkina Faso has provided States Parties with regular updates on the legislative process since it first reported implementing legislation would be needed.[2]

Burkina Faso submitted its initial Article 7 transparency report for the Convention on Cluster Munitions in January 2011 and an annual updated report in May 2013.[3] As of 3 July 2015, it had yet to submit any more of the annual updates due by 30 April.

Burkina Faso participated in the Oslo Process that created the Convention on Cluster Munitions, including the negotiations in Dublin in May 2008.[4]

It has continued to engage in the work of the Convention on Cluster Munitions. Burkina Faso has participated in every Meeting of States Parties of the convention, including the Fifth Meeting of States Parties in San José, Costa Rica in September 2014. Burkina Faso attended the convention’s intersessional meetings in Geneva once, in April 2013. Burkina Faso has participated in regional workshops on the convention, such as in Lomé, Togo in May 2013.

At the Fifth Meeting of States Parties in September 2014, Burkina Faso urged states to adopt national implementation measures for the convention to ensure “legal, technical, and operational mechanisms” are in place to address the threat of cluster munitions.[5]

Burkina Faso has voted in favor of recent UN General Assembly (UNGA) resolutions condemning the use of cluster munitions in Syria, including Resolution 69/189 on 18 December 2014, which expressed “outrage” at the continued use.[6] 

Interpretive issues

Burkina Faso has elaborated its views on one of several important issues for the interpretation and implementation of the convention. In 2009, the Minister of Foreign Affairs stated that Burkina Faso considers that the transit of cluster munitions by states not party through the territory of States Parties is prohibited.[7] Burkina Faso has not provided its views yet on other issues, such as the prohibition on assistance with prohibited acts during joint military operations with states not party, the prohibition on foreign stockpiling, and the prohibition on investment in cluster munition production.

Burkina Faso is a State Party to the Mine Ban Treaty. It is also party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons.

Use, production, transfer, and stockpiling

Burkina Faso has stated that it has never used, produced, or stockpiled cluster munitions.[8] Burkina Faso has reported that it has no cluster munitions, including for training or research purposes.[9]