Global Progress Towards Ending the Sexual Exploitation of Children
A global problem requires truly global solutions to address the sexual exploitation of children.
Indicators
Age of Consent
Partial
Age of sexual consent is 18 years. The national legislation does not provide for a close-in-age exemption.
Analysis of country legislation on age of sexual consent, 2024
Extraterritoriality & Extradition
No
Burkinese law provides for active and passive extraterritoriality over offenses committed outside Burkina Faso by Burkinese citizens or against a Burkinese citizen. Habitual residents are not included. Double criminality is required for proceeding with extraterritorial jurisdiction. The Criminal Code provides for universal jurisdiction over certain crimes but SEC offences are not included.
Extradition of Burkinese nationals is permitted and grounds for refusal can be found in Article 519-3 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. In case of refusal, Burkinese courts must prosecute the crimes (principle of aut dedere aut judicare). Double criminality is required for proceeding with extraditions as they will only be granted if offences are punishable by Burkinese law with imprisonment of at least two years. If extradition is requested to serve a sentence, it will only be granted if the time is not less than six months. There is no specific provision on extradition of SEC offences in the law.
Criminal Code
Code of Criminal Procedure
ECOWAS Convention on Extradition, 2018, 2019, 1994
CSAM Definition
Not Yet Assessed
Background Check Required
Not Yet Assessed
National Commitments
Not Yet Assessed
Child Advocacy Centers
Not Yet Assessed
SEC Police Unit
Not Yet Assessed
Protection Standards Travel and Tourism
Not Yet Assessed
Public SEC Case Data
Not Yet Assessed
Age of Consent Law is Appropriate
The age of sexual consent for both males and females is 18 and a close in age exemption (up to 3 years) is provided for consensual sexual relationships between adolescents.
The age of sexual consent is the legally defined age at which a person is considered mature enough to agree to sexual activity. The age of sexual consent varies across jurisdictions around the world and there is no international legal instrument establishing it, however various forms of advocacy have encouraged States to establish a minimum age under which engaging in sexual contact is considered a criminal offence. This is intended to prevent sexual contact with children and to prevent argument that the child consented as a defence.
Often national provisions related to the age of sexual consent include an exception, known as a close-in-age exemption, making consensual sexual activities between young people lawful if the partners are of similar ages and the age difference is not higher than a certain number of years.
To ensure that cases of child sexual exploitation do not go unpunished, ECPAT advocates for the age of sexual consent to be set at 18 for both males and females with a close-in-age exemption of 2-3 years provided in order to ensure young people are not penalised for consensual sexual acts with peers. The age from which the exemption applies should be established by States but may begin for young people somewhere between 12 and 16 years of age.
Yes The national legislation explicitly indicates that the age of sexual consent unequivocally is 18 for both males and females, with a close-in-age exemption for sexual acts between peers (of up to 3 years) is provided by law.