Location
Flag
Quick Facts
Capital	Ouagadougou
Government	parliamentary republic
Currency	Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF)
Area	274,200 sq km
Population	12,603,185 (July 2002 est.)
Language	French (official), native African languages belonging to Sudanic family spoken by 90% of the population
Religion	indigenous beliefs 40%, Muslim 50%, Christian (mainly Roman Catholic) 10%
Electricity	220V/50Hz (European plug)
Calling Code	+226
Internet TLD	.bf
Time Zone	UTC

Burkina Faso, formerly Upper Volta, is a landlocked country in West Africa.

Regions

Map of Burkina Faso

Cities

• Ouagadougou, also known as Ouaga (pronounced "Wa-Gha"), is the capital city, located in the center of the country, in the area known as the Mossi Plateau.

• Banfora
• Bobo-Dioulasso is the the country's second largest city, located in the south-west.
• Bokin
• Dedougou
• Djibo
• Dori
• Fada n'Gourma
• Gaoua
• Gorom-Gorom
• Kaya
• Koudougou
• Leo
• Oradara
• Ouahigouya
• Zorgho

Other destinations

Understand

Burkina is one of the safest and friendliest countries in all of Africa. Although it receives only a small number of tourists per year, it is an excellent destination for anyone interested in seeing beautiful West African country and exploring African culture and music.

History

Independence from France came to Burkina Faso (formerly Upper Volta) in 1960. Governmental instability during the 1970s and 1980s was followed by multiparty elections in the early 1990s. Several hundred thousand farm workers migrate south every year to Cote d'Ivoire and Ghana.

Economy

One of the poorest countries in the world, landlocked Burkina Faso has a high population density, few natural resources, and a fragile soil. About 90% of the population is engaged in (mainly subsistence) agriculture, which is highly vulnerable to variations in rainfall. Industry remains dominated by unprofitable government-controlled corporations. Following the African franc currency devaluation in January 1994 the government updated its development program in conjunction with international agencies, and exports and economic growth have increased. Maintenance of macroeconomic progress depends on continued low inflation, reduction in the trade deficit, and reforms designed to encourage private investment.

Get in

Passport and a visa are required to enter the country. You generally should purchase your visa in advance, although with 10,000 CFA currency a visa can be purchased at the airport upon arrival.

By plane

Flights are available through Abidjan, Brussels, Dakar, Paris on the following carriers: Air Afrique, Air Algérie, Air Burkina, Air France, Air Ivoire, Ghana Airways, Point Afrique, and Royal Air Maroc. Royal Air Maroc [1] offers some U.S. flights departing from New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles.

By train

517 km from Ouagadougou to the Cote d'Ivoire border.

By car

By bus

You can also easily take the bus in and out of of Burkina to many countries, such as Ghana, Mali, and Benin.

Get around

Buses and vans (cars) to Benin, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Togo. Train service Abidjan-Bobo-Ouaga-Kaya. Hitch hiking not common.

Talk

French is the official language, however African languages of the Sudanic family are widely spoken as well.

See also: Mooré phrasebook

Buy

The currency of Burkina Faso is the Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (CFA). There are 528.29 CFA to 1 US Dollar (As of 2004). Credit cards are rarely accepted, but cash may be withdrawn with a card at certain banks in Ouaga and Bobo. Mastercard is not widely accepted at ATMs. Travellers' checks (better luck in euros than in dollars) can usually be cashed at local banks in Ouaga and Bobo.

Eat

Meals

Any run-of-the-mill Burkinabé restaurant will most certainly have one or all of the following:

To = a millet or corn flour based jello-like dish served with a sauce. Sauces commonly are okra-based (fr. "sauce gumbo" - tends to be on the viscous-side), peanut-based (fr. "sauce arachide"), baobab-leaf-based (not bad tasting, but very slimy), or sorrel-based (fr. "oseille", another green-leaf, a little sour). You eat this dish by breaking off some to with a spoon (or, if you want to go local and your hands are washed, use your finger - just remember to use always the right hand, as the left hand is considered "unclean" among Muslims) and dipping it into the sauce. Yummy!

FuFu = a pizza-dough-like ball of starch served with a sauce. Made by pounding boiled ignames (sort of a super-sized version of a yucca-potato hybrid). The sauce is usually tomato-based. Eaten in the same manner as to.

Ragout d'Igname = boiled igname in a tomatoe sauce.

Riz Gras = Rice made in the sauce. Sometimes served with extra sauce on top, but not a given.

Riz Sauce (Rice and sauce) = Pretty self-explanatory. White rice usually served with a tomatoe or peanut sauce.

Spaghetti = Usually spaghetti is served au gras as opposed to spaghetti sauce.

Haricots verts = Green-beans, usually from a can, with tomato sauce

Petits pois = Green peas, usually from a can, with tomato sauce

Soupe = usually chicken (fr. "poulet"), pentade or fish (fr. poisson)

Salade = a salad of lettuce, tomato, cumcumber and onion with a mayonnaise-based dressing (mayo, vinegar, salt, pepper)

A Burkina specialty is "Poulet Telévisé" aka televised chicken, or roast chicken, since many locals say if you watch the roaster it is like watching TV!

Snacks

• Beignets = (mooré samsa) fried bean flour
• Fried ignames, patate douce (sweet potate french fries)
• Bbq'd plantains
• Brochettes = bbq'd meat sticks, or liver, or trite, or intestines
• Porc au four = baked greasy pork bits served with hot sauce (fr. piment), salt, and if you are lucky, mustard. Best enjoyed with a Flag (to make champagne; add some tonic)
• Gateau = fried dough. Comes in all sorts of varieties, best when fresh.

Drink

• Bisap = hibiscus leaf cold sweet tea (25-50 CFA)
• Gingembre = sweet ginger drink (25-50 CFA)
• Pain de singe = sweet, is it baobab fruit ?
• Yoghurt = sweet degaï = yoghurt mixed with millet balls

Sleep

Learn

Burkina is a great country if you are interested in learning West African drumming.

Work

Stay safe

Burkina Faso is one of safer countries in West Africa. There are no special precautions, in terms of safety, necessary.

You should always take precautions when traveling, but Burkina is a remarkably safe and respectful country. Women travelers rarely experience any problems. Foreingners, especially white foreigners, frequently garner significant attention (Nassara!) but the interest is entirely harmless.

Stay healthy

Yellow fever vaccination required. Malaria is a serious problem. Cholera vaccination may be required in event of outbreak. Meningitis is also a problem, and vaccination is highly suggested.

Respect

As there is a majority of Muslim people, remember to use always your right hand for eating, greeting, etc.

However, Burkina is at the same time one of the most open West African countries and people are in general very respectful to woman and any foreigner.

Contact