This paper deals with the issue of language teaching in Burkina Faso's schools. It relies on economic theories according to which language is considered as a resource. It draws on the hypothesis that any subject taught at school is attuned to a given objective. It tries to understand the presence and absence of languages taught in the education system. The methodology used is mixed. It relies on studies carried out in the field of language teaching in Burkina Faso, surveys among the technical staff of the ministry of education and a workshop held in Ouagadougou on language and teaching issues. The results show that no guidelines based on independent and autonomous decisions are provided for the choice of languages in the education system. No study was conducted to judge the rationale behind language choices or to assess their implementation. Language choices are tightly connected to the funding of the education system with no clear objectives. The country seems to be following a global trend imposed by funding institutions, which implies that the economic theories suggested to support language policies are proven in the case of Burkina Faso, even though the notion of rationality does not appear clearly at the level of individuals.

Teaching - Languages - Politics - Economics- Burkina Faso