The Global Observatory for Physical Activity (GoPA!) and Global Observatory for Physical Education (GoPE!) 2025 Country Cards/ Results from Burkina Faso’s 2025 GoPE! Country Card

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Résumé

Background: Since the late 1980s, Burkina Faso has considered physical education (PE) as one of the means to achieve the general objectives of education. To this end, it has been integrated into schooling from preschool to high school. Since then, it has always been regarded as a teaching subject, and its content has evolved in line with ongoing educational reforms. The Global Observatory for Physical Education (GoPE!) offers a standardized framework to assess the place of PSE in education systems and its role in public health. Methods: The GoPE! Country Card for Burkina Faso was developed based on indicators adopted by GoPE!, including the presence of official PE programs, the existence of policies mandating PE to be taught and minimum required instruction time, monitoring of policy implementation, and scientific output on school-based interventions. Data was first collected by GoPE! researchers and then validated by local experts. Results: There is no available data on the prevalence of PA estimates among adolescents. The official guidelines relating to PE (1987, 2020, 2022) demonstrate its institutional recognition and the existence of a curriculum. Subsequent complementary regulations have established a regulatory framework. Moreover, no national system monitors the implementation of PE policies. Finally, scientific production on school-based interventions is almost non-existent in Burkina-Faso. Discussion: These results reveal a paradox marked by the existence of regulatory texts and curricula but the absence of monitoring mechanisms. Added to this are limited research capacity and a lack of data on adolescent’s’ physical activity participation, which restricts the ability to assess the effectiveness of existing policies. Nevertheless, the presence of recent decrees and orientation programs provides a solid foundation for developing a coherent national strategy. Conclusion: To strengthen PE, its implementation needs to be extended to all school levels with clear standards for primary education, along with the establishment of a national monitoring system. Promoting local research is also essential in order to generate data capable of informing reforms.

Mots-clés

Physical Education, Burkina Faso, GoPE!, Country Card 2025