CHAPTER TWO: HISTORICAL BACKGROUND AND CURRENT CHALLENGES _____________________________________________________________________ 111. Then there is the issue of spatial distribution of the population, a spatial distribution that makes Burkina Faso a country with a predominantly rural population. According to the results of the general population census as of December 2006, the country’s population grew from 10,312,600 inhabitants in 1996 to 13,730,200 inhabitants in 2006, which represents an average increase of 350,000 inhabitants per year. Women make up 51.7% of the population and men 48.3%. As stated, the population is predominantly rural (79.7% of the people live in the countryside). This constitutes a burden on the course towards the structural transformation necessary to develop Burkina by the 2025 time period. 112. Thirdly, the structure of the population pyramid is characterised by a youthful population. The large majority of Burkina Faso’s population comprises the young. We know that the population has grown at a rate of 2.9% and that the size of the population will double in 25 years. It is estimated that, at present, about 48% of the population is below the age of 15 and that 67% of the population falls between the ages of 0 and 35. Tensions in the labour market cause young people to remain in the process of looking for a job for, on average, four years. In the two main cities, Ouagadougou and Bobo-Dioulasso, the unemployment rate reaches 18%. There is also a decline in social welfare, there is job insecurity and there is a trend towards increasing computerisation of the economy. The youth component of the population is a force of hope for the future of the nation and for the transformation of existing structures. However, such force and transformation will materialise only if the young identify themselves with the objectives of the society in place. If, on the other hand, they do not identify with the objectives, or see no prospects in social projects, they will become a destructive force at the first sign of discontent. 2.8 Although faced with these challenges, Burkina Faso undeniably has a number of assets 113. At the diplomatic level, Burkina Faso has become a hub when it comes to dealing with subregional crises. This is due to the respectability of its leaders and to the symbolic nature and political stability of the country, a situation reinforced by its progress on the democratic front. 114. It clearly has a cultural dimension. At the cultural level, Burkina Faso exports its own cultural products and hosts regional and international cultural events in its territory. In addition, sports events radiate from such cultural events. The country is known for, among other things, cultural events that are not only African in nature but also attract interest worldwide. Such cultural assets include: (i) FESPACO, which has turned the country into the world capital of African cinema; (ii) the SIAO, which has increasingly become the global exhibition of African, and not just Burkinabe, invention; (iii) the National Cultural Week, which has become an Africa-wide cultural event; and (iv) the Laongo stone-carving site, which has also become a site attracting worldwide interest. 60