Community-driven Development: A Viable Approach to Poverty Reduction in Rural Burkina Faso

Various efforts by national governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and international donors have shown limited success in reducing poverty in sub-Saharan Africa. As a result, poverty is still persistent in most households especially in rural areas. The persistence of poverty on the continent can be in part attributed to the top-down approach to development adopted by various poverty alleviation programs. This paper focuses on poverty reduction programs in Burkina Faso and argues that a community-driven approach to development and poverty reduction has the potential of lifting rural populations out of poverty trap.