Ouahigouya

Status:

commune urbaine

Region:

North

Province:

Yatenga

Surface:

Residents:

122,677

Population density:

Structure:

15 sectors / 37 villages

Mayor:

Abdoulaye Sougouri

Prefect:

Macaire Kinda

location

Ouahigouya

Ouahigouya is a city (commune urbaine) and a department in the north of the West African state of Burkina Faso , capital of the North Region and the Yatenga Province .

population

Ouahigouya, with the main town divided into 15 sectors and the associated 37 villages, has 122,677 inhabitants, the majority of whom belong to the Mossi .

history

It was founded in 1757 as the capital of the Yatenga Empire , but was destroyed again in 1825 and repeatedly attacked from the 1870s to the 1890s. During the war for the Agacher Strip in 1985, the city was bombed by the armed forces of neighboring Mali ; around 100 people were killed

Ouahigouya has been a twin town of Lahnstein , Rhineland-Palatinate and Vence , France since 1978 .

religion

Ouahigouya is the seat of the Ouahigouya diocese .

However, the majority of the residents are Muslims and followers of traditional African religions .

Personalities

Boureima Badini (* 1956), lawyer, politician and sports official
Mamadou Ouédraogo (1906–1978), civil servant and politician
Madi Panandétiguiri (* 1984), football player
Yacouba Sawadogo (* 1941/42), arable farmer and recipient of the Right Livelihood Award