Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa, bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Ivory Coast to the southwest. It covers an area of 274,223 km2. In 2021, the country had an estimated population of approximately 23,674,480. Previously called the Republic of Upper Volta, it was renamed Burkina Faso by former president Thomas Sankara.