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Burkina Faso–Taiwan relations refers to the current and historical relationship between the Republic of China and the Republic of Burkina Faso. The Republic of China on Taiwan is recognized by 21 United Nations member states, in addition to the Holy See, one of which is Burkina Faso. Since the termination of relations between São Tomé and Príncipe and Taiwan, the country is one of only two states in Africa to recognize the ROC, the another one being the Kingdom of Swaziland. Also, it is currently the most populous UN member state to have had fully recognized the Republic of China as the sole legitimate representative of all of China.
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Taiwan has an embassy in Ouagadougou, and Burkina Faso has an embassy in Taipei.
History
Burkina Faso, known as the Republic of Upper Volta prior to 1984, entered diplomatic relations with the Republic of China in 1961, the year after the country gained independence from its former colonial power, France. Relations continued for over a decade, until 15 September 1973 when the regime of Upper Volta – led by Major General Sangoulé Lamizana, who had come to power in a 1966 military coup – derecognized the ROC and instead opened relations with the People's Republic of China (PRC). This event took place in the light of a UNGA resolution which admitted the PRC to the United Nations, expelling the ROC.
Relations with the People's Republic of China continued under subsequent military governments, those of Colonel Saye Zerbo, Major Jean-Baptiste Ouédraogo and Captain Thomas Sankara, until several years into the administration of Blaise Compaoré, who much like his predecessors had come to power in a 1987 military coup. On 4 February 1994 President Compaoré severed relations with the PRC and instead re-established connections to Taiwan, in what was considered a surprising diplomatic move.
Contemporary
Since then, Taiwan has been eager to maintain relations, providing ample humanitarian aid and investing much into the Burkinabé economy. For example, a Taiwanese technical mission to Burkina Faso contributes to more than 34% of the total production of rice in Burkina Faso, and the National Blaise Compaore Hospital is the first computerized general hospital in West Africa due to Taiwanese technical aid. Other aid measures include the donation of large amounts of condoms and medicines by Taiwan to help prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS in Burkina Faso.
Taipei and Ouagadougou were entwined as sister cities on 4 December 2008.
In April 2012 President Ma Ying-jeou of the ROC went on his first tour of Africa, visiting Burkina Faso and meeting with President Compaoré. During the visit Ma promised more aid in the areas of education, medical care, transportation and agriculture. He visited again in January 2014, a month before the 20-year anniversary of Burkinabé–Taiwanese relations, meeting once more with Compaoré.
Later the same year, on 28 October, the 2014 Burkinabé uprising broke out. In response, the ROC's Ministry of Foreign Affairs took measures to ensure contact with all Taiwanese nationals and businesspeople in the country. All ROC diplomatic personnel were reported to be safe. After three days of protests, President Blaise Compaoré resigned and fled to the Ivory Coast, with the military taking power shortly after and designating Isaac Zida as acting head of state. ROC Minister of Foreign Affairs David Lin responded by announcing that the relations between the two countries remained unchanged for the moment, and that future relations would depend on the next moves by Burkina Faso's transitional government.