EXECUTIVE SUMMARY _____________________________________________________________________ the Ten-Year Basic Education Development Programme (PDDEB), the National Programme of Access to Drinking Water and Sanitation (PN-AEPA), the National Health Development Programme (PNDS), and the National Programme for the Promotion of Women (PNPF). The rural development sector and infrastructure benefit from good programming, monitoring and evaluation practice. 6.4 All of these strategic frameworks and programmes were conceived and developed on the initiative and under the direction of the national authorities, with the support of their technical services. This highlights their desire and capacity to take charge of controlling the technical aspects of developmental policies and programmes. The country is gradually developing efficient human and institutional capacities to formulate, pilot and manage its developmental processes, even if it still resorts to external technical cooperation through international financial institutions at the moment. 6.5 Taking ownership of the SED process and reducing the level of dependency of the country on external aid and policies to ensure real initiative in the area of SED also constitute major challenges in the developmental processes. 6.6 In this regard, one can say that the influence of the technical and financial partners (TFPs) in development programmes and policies is very strong. Official development assistance (ODA) funds 70% of the development programmes. Burkina Faso has benefited from external financing of all kinds for a long time. More than 50 development partners are operating in the country. They comprise bilateral partners, multilateral organisations, nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) and other stakeholders. They are active in the areas of technical assistance relating to investment projects, funding of investment projects, budget or balance of payments support, food aid, emergency assistance and relief. All of these considerations are likely to affect the country’s level of autonomy to develop SED effectively. 6.7 Accelerating SED to achieve sustainable development and to eradicate poverty. The analysis of economic and social development in Burkina Faso showed that the efforts initiated by the public authorities for promoting development are considerable. The economic and social sectors are the subjects of well-conceived policies and sector strategies and they are regularly monitored. The fight against poverty is analysed in its many dimensions and stakeholders are earnestly engaged in it. During the past 12 years, the country has registered sustained economic growth (an average of over 5.5%). This marks a break with a long period of slow growth which was hardly higher than the population growth. 6.8 The development policies and strategies, however, raise three major concerns. The first is that they are integrated into poverty reduction strategies and not into a global strategy which should address the creation, distribution and redistribution of wealth. Secondly, they lack income distribution mechanisms. Finally, they lack the capacity to reduce the monetary poverty which affects nearly half of the population. 23