Burkina Faso, formerly Upper Volta, landlocked republic, western Africa, bordered on the north and west by Mali, on the east by Niger, and on the south by Benin, Togo, Ghana, and Côte d'Ivoire. Constituted as a separate state in 1947, Burkina Faso became an autonomous republic within the French Community, as Upper Volta, and gained full freedom in 1960. The name of the nation was changed to Burkina Faso in 1984. The area of Burkina Faso is 273,800 sq km, and the capital is Ouagadougou.