Area: 274,200 sq km (105,870 sq miles).

Population: 12,624,000 (UN estimate 2002).

Population Density: 46 per sq km (2002).

Capital: Ouagadougou.

Population: 709,736 (1996).

GEOGRAPHY: Burkina Faso is situated in West Africa and bordered to the north and west by Mali, to the east by Niger, to the southeast by Benin and to the south by Togo, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire. The southern part of the country, less arid than the north, is wooded savannah, gradually drying out into sand and desert in the north. The Sahara desert is relentlessly moving south, however, stripping the savannah lands of trees and slowly turning the thin layer of cultivatable soil into sun-blackened rock-hard lakenite. Three great rivers, the Mouhoun, Nazinon and Nakambé (Black, Red and White Volta), water the great plains. The population does not live in the valleys along the river banks due to the diseases prevalent there.

Government: Republic. Gained independence from France in 1960. Changed its name from Upper Volta to Burkina Faso (Land of Dignity) in 1984. Head of State: President Blaise Compaoré since 1987. Head of Government: Prime Minister Paramanga Ernest Yonli since 2000.

Language: The official language is French. Several other languages such as Mossi, Mooré, Dioula, Peul, Fulfuldé and Gourmantché are also spoken.

Religion: More than 50 per cent follow animist beliefs; 30 per cent are Muslim and fewer than 12 per cent Christian (mostly Roman Catholic).

Time: GMT.

Electricity: 220 volts AC, 50Hz. Two-pin plugs are standard.

Currency: Communaute Financiere Africaine Franc - Currently 1 XOF = 0.0019 USD $

Climate: Burkina Faso has a tropical climate, with warm and dry winters, and hot and wet summers. - Currently 73º, Mostly Cloudy. Back to top

BURKINA FASO COMMUNICATIONS

Telephone: IDD is available. Country code: 226. Outgoing international code: 00.

Mobile telephone: GSM 900 networks operated by Celtel Burkina Faso (website: www.msi-cellular.com), Onatel (website: www.onatel.bf) and Telecel Faso SA (website: www.telecelfaso.bf). Coverage available in the five main towns. Handsets can be hired (against a large deposit); contact Onatel for further information.

Internet: Available in some hotels and Internet cafes. There are three Internet cafes in Ouagadougou and one in Bobo Dioulassou. ISPs include Cenatrin (website: www.cenatrin.bf) and FasoNet. Power cuts can hamper Internet usage.

Telegram: There are limited facilities outside Ouagadougou. Main hotels have facilities.

Post: There are few post offices, but stamps can often be bought at hotels. Poste Restante facilities are available but a charge is made for letters collected. There is no local delivery, and all other mail must be addressed to a box number. Airmail to Europe takes up to two weeks. Post office opening hours: Mon-Fri 0730-1230 and 1500-1730. The main post office in the capital is open Mon-Sat 0830-1200 and 1500-1830.

Press: French-language only. The main daily newspapers are L'Express du Faso, L’Observateur Paalga, Le Pays and Sidwaya Quotidien.

Radio: BBC World Service (website: www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice) and Voice of America (website: www.voa.gov) can be received. From time to time the frequencies change and the most up-to-date can be found online. Back to top

BURKINA FASO DESTINATIONS

Ouagadougou: The capital of the country is home to some good sights that capture the history and culture of the nation, as well as nightclubs and internet cafes. The Moro-Naba Palace is home to both the weekly Moro-Naba ritual as well as other cultural events, and the Ethnography Museum has relics on display that guide visitors through Burkina Faso’s past. Ecotourists should head 75 miles away to the south for the Resérve de Nazinga, a Canadian-run reserve with one of the largest populations of elephants in this region of Africa.

Banfora: Banfora is a neighbor to a number of beautiful places to see, and since it’s much smaller than Bobo Dioulasso 50 miles to the northeast, it is an easier way of getting close to a more natural culture of the area. Among the natural attractions are the Karfiguela waterfalls, falling more fully during the rainy season, and the Dômes de Febèdougou, tall pillar-like shapes cut by ancient rivers, as well as smaller game reserves and a terrain suited for impromptu safari day-trips.

Bobo Dioulasso: The city features sights like the Centre Culturel Français Henri Matisse, an arts center with a library and displays keeping the French culture active, Musée Provincial du Houët, one of the country’s best museums with a wide range of sculpture and art, and the Kibidwé district, the art district of the city with shops worth traipsing through for an afternoon. Back to top

BURKINA FASO TIPS

Customs: Photography is strictly controlled and can be considered rude or illegal without the proper permit. Speak with the Ministry of Tourism before taking out your camera, and ask permission of anyone you’d like to capture in a picture, and don’t bother trying to photograph military or government facilities. Otherwise, dress is considered mostly casual during the day, although you should avoid wearing short skirts or shorts, and more formal during the evening, where typically a tie or dress is more than enough if you plan on going to a nice restaurant for dinner.

Banking Hours: As credit cards and traveler’s checks have limited acceptance, you are best off exchanging currencies in the main banks in the major cities. Note that banks are open every weekday but closed from just before lunch to 3 or 4 in the afternoon.
Moro-Naba: The Moro-Naba ritual is a weekly event in the capital where the ruler, the Moro-Naba, reenacts the Mossi Emporer who began to mount his horse to leave his country to face war, and then dismounted and reentered his royal palace. The cérémonie du Nabayius Gou, as it is also called, is a symbolic Mossi Friday treat if you are in the capital.

When To Visit: November is the best month to travel here, as you miss both the heat of the summer and the dusty winds called Harmattan of the later winter season. Two of the best national festivals alternate years, with the Pan-African Film Festival every odd year held in Ouagadougou during late February, and the Semaine Nationale de la Culture every even year in Bobo Dioulasso during the last week of April.

Food: Sauces are the mainstays of cooking in Burkina Faso, and include local favorites like riz gras, a vegetable and rice sauce, boeuf sauce aubergine, a sauce made from beef and eggplant, and other variations based on rice, fish, mutton or tomato. Outside of the urbanized areas, locals will enjoy bush rat and consider it a treat.

Tipping: Check your bill as a 10% service charge is often included already, otherwise, add a 10% to 15% gratuity for good service in restaurants and for taxi fares, and porters generally are ok with change.

Safety: Burkina Faso is pretty much safe, and requires only common sense and a general awareness of your surroundings to get by, although you should keep an eye on your wallet or purse in more crowded areas. Back to top