The army strongman in charge of Burkina Faso since the ouster of veteran leader Blaise Compaore three weeks ago, formally handed power to interim civilian President Michel Kafando on Friday.

Lieutenant Colonel Zida presented a Burkinabe flag to Kafando, who waved it before the crowd gathered in a stadium in Ouagadougou for a ceremony attended by six African heads of state.

Burkina Faso's deposed president Blaise Compaore left Ivory Coast heading for Morocco on Thursday, the Ivorian presidency said.

He fled to Ivory Coast on October 31 after he was ousted in a popular revolt, but his presence had angered supporters of the former Ivorian president, Laurent Gbagbo.

Politicians in the Democratic Republic of Congo keen to prolong President Joseph Kabila's hold on power are revising their plans after Burkina Faso's leader was deposed by a popular uprising, analysts said.

"That changed things, coming like a thunderbolt, a real warning signal for those in power," said a foreign diplomat in Kinshasa, the capital of the vast central African country.

Growing violence by Islamist extremists has forced more than 1.5 million Nigerians to flee their homes and is deepening an already dire humanitarian situation in Nigeria, the U.N. warned Wednesday.

"Nigeria is without question of enormous concern," said Robert Piper, who coordinates the U.N.'s humanitarian work in the Sahel region.

Veteran diplomat Michel Kafando was sworn in Tuesday as Burkina Faso's interim president to oversee a one-year transition back to civilian rule in the west African country.

Kafando, appointed in the wake of violent protests that brought down president Blaise Compaore and led to a brief army power grab, pledged he would not let the country become a "banana republic".

Career diplomat Michel Kafando was named on Monday as Burkina Faso's interim president to steer the west African nation during a one-year transition back to civilian rule following the toppling of its veteran leader.

The appointment of the former foreign minister and U.N. ambassador is set to end weeks of uncertainty after violent protests brought down the 27-year regime of president Blaise Compaore and the military seized power.

Burkina Faso on Sunday scrambled to pick an interim president ahead of an African Union sanctions deadline after the army seized power following the ouster of longtime ruler Blaise Compaore.

Four candidates ranging from a crusading journalist to a former top diplomat emerged on the short list after tangled negotiations between the army, political parties and civil society groups in the west African nation.

Burkina Faso's army, political parties and civil groups will sign an agreement on Saturday for the west African nation's return to civilian rule after the ouster of its long-serving president.

"We feel we have really accomplished something and we are naturally very happy," said Lieutenant-Colonel Isaac Zida, who the army put in power after Blaise Compaore was forced out of  office on October 31 by mass protests. 

The head of the African Union held urgent talks in Burkina Faso on Monday on the west African country's transition to civilian rule following the ouster of veteran president Blaise Compaore, warning time was running short.

With the military regime that took power after Compaore's exit under heavy international pressure to quickly hand over to a civilian government, delicate negotiations loomed to hammer out a transition plan.

The head of the African Union held urgent talks in Burkina Faso on Monday on the west African country's political transition following the ouster of veteran president Blaise Compaore.

With the military regime that took power after Compaore's exit under heavy international pressure to quickly hand over to a civilian government, delicate negotiations loomed to hammer out a transition plan.