Wara in Burkina Faso

The Wara have only been reported in Burkina Faso
Population
Main Language
Largest Religion
Christian
Evangelical
Progress
Progress Gauge

Introduction / History

The Wara live in six villages among the hills that form the southwestern border between Burkina Faso and Mali. To an outsider, the region is quite striking in the ruggedness of its landscape and its relative lushness, resulting from a fairly large annual rainfall. Concerning Wara lifestyle, their chief occupation is subsistence farming. Any cash they earn comes from the sale of surplus crops of corn, and rice.

The Wara have closely-knit extended families. The eldest male of a clan acts as the family chief, his wife, children and grandchildren must submit to his authority. While the Wara seem to value their isolation, that isolation keeps away any benefits from development. There are no modern health care facilities in any Wara village, therefore malnutrition and health care problems brought about by contaminated water go untreated. Furthermore, only two Wara villages have schools - the rate of attendance among the Wara children is less than 30%.

It is in large part because of their isolation that the Wara have a dubious distinction: they are generally regarded as the last of Burkina Faso's peoples to wear clothing - a fact taught to many Burkinabe school children. In a region of the country that has seen much religious and social change, the Wara cling to their traditions. This includes the religious domain.

Unlike various neighbors who have succumbed to Islam, the Wara continue to follow the traditional religion. According to this worldview, spirits control health and nature; sacrifices are the means to keeping peace with the spirits. At the present moment, the only Christian presence is a Catholic church in one Wara village.


Prayer Points

Scripture Prayers for the Wara in Burkina Faso.


Profile Source:   Anonymous  

People Name General Wara
People Name in Country Wara
Alternate Names Sama
Population this Country 11,000
Population all Countries 11,000
Total Countries 1
Indigenous Yes
Progress Scale 2
Unreached No
Frontier People Group No
GSEC 1  (per PeopleGroups.org)
Pioneer Workers Needed
PeopleID3 15862
ROP3 Code 110684
Country Burkina Faso
Region Africa, West and Central
Continent Africa
10/40 Window Yes
National Bible Society Website
Persecution Rank 20  (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking)
Location in Country Cascades region: Leraba province west of Banfora, Sindou town area. Main village is Néguéni.   Source:  Ethnologue 2016
Country Burkina Faso
Region Africa, West and Central
Continent Africa
10/40 Window Yes
National Bible Society Website
Persecution Rank 20  (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking)
Location in Country Cascades region: Leraba province west of Banfora, Sindou town area. Main village is Néguéni..   Source:  Ethnologue 2016

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Ethnolinguistic map or other map

Primary Religion: Ethnic Religions
Major Religion Percent
Buddhism
0.00 %
Christianity  (Evangelical 0.60 %)
7.00 %
Ethnic Religions
70.00 %
Hinduism
0.00 %
Islam
23.00 %
Non-Religious
0.00 %
Other / Small
0.00 %
Unknown
0.00 %
Primary Language Wara
Language Code wbf   Ethnologue Listing
Language Written Unknown
Total Languages 2
Secondary Languages
Wara
Primary Language Wara
Language Code wbf   Ethnologue Listing
Total Languages 2
Secondary Languages
  Wara
People Groups Speaking Wara

Primary Language:  Wara

Bible Translation Status:  Translation Needed

Resource Type Resource Name Source
Audio Recordings Audio Bible teaching Global Recordings Network
Photo Source Go to Nations 
Profile Source Anonymous 
Data Sources Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more.


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