Burkina Faso: arrival and transport
How do you get to Burkina Faso?
Airplane There are
direct flights from Europe from Paris and Istanbul to Ougadougou. Another international airport in the country is located at Bobo Dioulasso.
Railway
The only international railway line runs from Ouagadougou via Bobo Dioulasso to Abidjan in Côte d’Ivoire.
Car and bus
roads lead to Côte d’Ivoire as well as to Benin, Ghana, Mali, Niger and Togo, but they are not in very good condition. In the dry season there are regular bus connections between Bobo Dioulasso and Bamako in Mali and between Ouagadougou and Niamey and Abidjan in Niger.
Travel in the country
Flight connections
The domestic flight network connects all major cities, the flights mostly depart from Borgo Airport near Bobo Dioulasso.
Railway
The country’s network of routes covers around 600 km, with regular train connections between Ouagadougou and Bobo Dioulasso.
Bus
During the dry season there is a regular bus service between all cities in the country.
Roads
There are around 2,000 km of paved roads in the country. However, these are not in good condition and mostly impassable during the rainy season.
Rental
cars An international driver’s license is recommended for rental cars.
Traffic rules
Regardless of the information given here, it is advisable to obtain more detailed information from ADAC, AvD or the Burkina Faso traffic club.
Top speeds
- Urban: In built-up areas there is a speed limit of 40/50 km/h.
- Country roads: There is a speed limit of 80/90 km/h on country roads.
There are regional differences in speed limits.
Alcohol limit
In Burkina Faso there is no official alcohol limit for motorists, as there are no possibilities to measure alcohol in the country, but there is a general ban on alcohol while driving.
International license plate
Burkina Faso’s international license plate is:
| BF |
Burkina Faso: entry and exit regulations
Formalities, visas
German, Austrian and Swiss nationals need a visa to enter Burkina Faso, a passport that is valid for at least three months beyond the duration of the stay, and a return or onward ticket.
Issuing of visas in Germany
Visa department of the Embassy of Burkina Faso
Karolingerplatz 10-11
14052 Berlin
Tel: 0049 – (0) 30 – 30 10 599-0
Fax: 0049 – (0) 30 – 30 10 599-20
Email: Embassy_Burkina_Faso @ t-online.de
Import and export of foreign currency
- Local currencyThere is no limit to the importation of local currency, but a declaration is required. The export is limited to the amount declared upon entry.
- Foreign currenciesThe import of foreign currencies is permitted without restriction, but there is an obligation to declare. The export is limited to the amount declared upon entry.
Departure fee
There is no fee for leaving Burkina Faso.
Importing and exporting goods
The following articles may be imported duty-free into Burkina Faso by persons over 15 years of age:
200 cigarettes or 100 cigarillos, 25 cigars or 250 g tobacco,
1 liter of spirits or 1 liter of wine as well as
500 ml eau de toilette and 250 ml perfume.
Everyday items can be introduced without any problems. A special permit is required for the import of hunting weapons.
Burkina Faso: Travel Medicine, Vaccinations, and Warnings
Infectious Diseases
The following infectious diseases are to be expected in Burkina Faso, which do not or rarely occur in Germany, Austria or Switzerland:
- Malaria: There is a high risk of malaria in the country nationwide, including cities, all year round. About 80-90% of infections occur with the very dangerous malaria tropica, the rest with malaria tertiana.
- AIDS, HIV
- Amoebic dysentery
- Bacterial agitation
- Schistosomiasis
- Cholera – but there is only a risk of infection for travelers who come into contact with polluted water or contaminated food.
- dengue fever
- Intestinal infections from contaminated food or water, including amoeba, lamblia, salmonella, shigella and worm infestation, as well as all kinds of viruses and bacteria
- Filariasis
- Typhus
- Yellow fever
- Guinea worm
- Hepatitis A and B
- Kala-Azar
- Polio, polio
- Leishmaniasis
- Meningococcal meningitis
- Sleeping sickness
- rabies
- tetanus
- Typhoid – however, there is only a risk of infection for travelers who come into contact with polluted water or contaminated food.
- Bird flu (N1H5)
- Tick bite fever
Vaccination recommendations
- Cholera – but only among travelers who can come into contact with polluted water or contaminated food.
- Diphtheria – a vaccination against diphtheria should always exist, also in the home country.
- Yellow fever
- Guinea worm infection
- Hepatitis A and B
- Japan encephalitis
- Polio, polio – vaccination against polio should always exist, also in the home country.
- Meningococcal meningitis
- Tetanus – a vaccination against tetanus should always exist, also in the home country.
- Typhoid – but only for travelers who can come into contact with polluted water or contaminated food.
Compulsory vaccination
When entering and staying in Burkina Faso, all persons who are older than one year and come from a yellow fever infection area designated by the WHO are required to be vaccinated against yellow fever. Since Burkina Faso is one of the WHO yellow fever infection areas, vaccination against yellow fever is always urgently recommended.
Yellow fever vaccination of children
In most of the countries where a yellow fever vaccination is required, this also applies to children over one year of age, and in some countries even from six months. It should be noted that vaccination against yellow fever had a number of side effects, such as encephalitis. Around two-thirds of those affected were children under six months. Therefore, under no circumstances should children under this age be vaccinated. But children under one year of age should also not be vaccinated if possible. If in doubt, yellow fever infection areas must then be avoided. Any vaccination against yellow fever may only be carried out in specially authorized yellow fever vaccination centers!
Malaria prophylaxis
When traveling to the country it is strongly advised to get oneTo undergo malaria prophylaxis. However, if the side effects seem questionable, you should at least have a “stand-by preparation” with you.
Who pays for vaccinations in Germany?
Most people in Germany are vaccinated against a number of infectious diseases at an early age. However, the vaccination protection only lasts up to 10 years, in some cases even shorter. Therefore, before traveling abroad, you should carefully consider against which infectious diseases a vaccination is necessary or useful in the country concerned and whether the vaccination protection, if applicable, was not too long ago.
Most statutory health insurances have been reimbursing the costs for the following vaccinations since June 2007. There is even no 10 € practice fee – but the insured usually have to pay the statutory additional payment, which is 10% of the vaccine price – that is at least 5 € and a maximum of 10 €. Under these conditions, the following vaccinations are free of charge. Some health insurance companies also reimburse the cost of malaria prophylaxis. As a rule, private health insurance companies (inquire beforehand) also cover the costs mentioned.
- cholera
- diphtheria
- Early summer meningoencephalitis (TBE)
- Yellow fever
- Hepatitis A and B
- Meningococcal meningitis
- Pneumococci
- Polyo (polio)
- Tetanus (tetanus)
- rabies
- typhus
Current warnings
Foreign Office (AA) of the Federal Republic of Germany
Citizens’ Service
Tel: 0049 – (0) 30 – 5000 – 2000
Fax: 0049 – (0) 30 – 5000 – 51000
www.auswaertiges-amt.de
Burkina Faso: Currency, Shopping, and Exchange Rate
The national currency of Burkina Faso is the CFA franc
1 CFA franc = 100 centimes.
Burkina Faso is part of the West African Economic and Monetary Union. The ISO 4217 code of the Franc CFA here is XOF. The following banknotes are valid and in circulation in the country:
- 10,000,
- 5,000,
- 2,000
- 1,000 and
- 500 XOF
The CFA franc (Communanté Financiére Africaine) is the currency in 14 African countries that were usually French colonies in the past: Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Cameroon, Republic of the Congo, Chad, Central African Republic, Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoite, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo. It is tied to the euro.
Exchange rate
The exchange rate of the euro and the CFA franc is always the same as the CFA franc is pegged to the euro (it was pegged to the franc before the euro was introduced). For countries that belong to the West African Economic and Monetary Union, the exchange rate is:
1 Euro (€) = 655.957 CFA francs (XOF)
Bank opening hours
Banks in Burkina Faso are open on weekdays from 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Shop
Shop opening times
The shops in Burkina Faso are open Mondays to Saturdays from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. and sometimes also on Sundays from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Inexpensive or country-specific goods, souvenirs
In Burkina Faso , tourists like to buy wooden sculptures and masks, bronze work, leather goods, jewelry, hand-woven blankets and fabrics, and other handicrafts.
Burkina Faso: Embassies, consulates and tourist office
Representations of Burkina Faso in Germany
The building of the Embassy of Burkina Faso is located in a very representative villa on Karolinger Platz in the Berlin district of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf. One can reach the embassy with the underground line 2 via the underground station “Theodor-Heuss-Platz”. From there it is a few 100 m to the embassy via Pommernallee. The underground line runs between “Pankow” and “Ruhleben”
Embassy of Burkina Faso in Berlin
Karolingerplatz 10-11
14052 Berlin
Tel: 0049 – (0) 30 – 3010 5990
Fax: 0049 – (0) 30 – 3010 59920
Email: Embassy_Burkina_Faso@t-online.de
www.embassy-bf.org
Consulates
| Region | Contact |
| Schleswig-Holstein and Hamburg | Honorary Consulate of Burkina Faso in Bad Malente Ringstrasse 1
23714 Bad Malente Tel: 0049 – (0) 4523 – 202 892 Fax: 0049 – (0) 4523 – 953 500 |
| Lower Saxony | Honorary Consulate of Burkina Faso in HanoverFuhrberger Straße 4-5
30625 Hanover Tel: 0049 – (0) 511 – 5357 5460 Fax: 0049 – (0) 511 – 5357 5466 Email: klaus-dieter.wolf@de.pwcglobal.co |
| Rhineland-Palatinate | Honorary Consulate of Burkina Faso in MainzKaiserstraße 76-78
55116 Mainz Tel: 0049 – (0) 6131 – 229 536 Email: honorarkonsulat@burkinafaso-rlp.de |
| Brandenburg and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania | Honorary Consulate of Burkina Faso in PotsdamFriedrich-Ebert-Straße 57
14467 Potsdam Tel: 0049 – (0) 175 – 575 5075 Email: exner-burkina-faso@t-online.de |
Embassy of Burkina Faso in Berlin © goruma (Dr Ramm)
German representations in Burkina Faso
Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Ouagadougou
399, Avenue Mogho Naba Koom 1
Ouagadougou 01
:
Ambassade de la République fédérale d’Allemagne
01 BP 600
Ouagadougou 01, Burkina Faso
Tel: 00226 – (0) 50 – 306 731
00226 – (0) 50 – 306 732
Fax: 00226 – (0) 50 – 313 991
Email: info@ouagadougou.diplo.de
Austrian representations in Burkina Faso
Embassy
The Federal Republic of Austria has no representation in Burkina Faso. The embassy in Senegal is responsible
Embassy of the Federal Republic of Austria in Senegal
18, rue Emile Zola
Dakar
:
BP 3247
Dakar
Tel: 00221 – (0) 33 – 849 4000
Fax: 00221 – (0) 33 – 849 4370
Email: dakar-ob@bmeia.gv.at
Die The Austrian embassy in Senegal is still responsible for:
- Ivory Coast
- Gambia
- Guinea
- Guinea-Bissau
- Cape Verde
- Liberia
- Mali
- Niger
- Sierra Leone
Representations of Burkina Faso in Austria
Embassy of Burkina Faso in Vienna
Strohgasse 14c
1030 Vienna
Tel: 0043 – (0) 1 – 503 8264
Fax: 0043 – (0) 1 – 503 8264 20
Email: sr@abfvienne.at
www.abfvienne.at
Consulates
| Region | Contact |
| Vienna, Burgenland, Styria, Carinthia, SalzburgUpper Austria, Vorarlberg | Honorary Consulate General of Burkina Faso in Vienna Mittelgasse 16, PF 19
1062 Vienna Tel: 0043 – (0) 1 – 597 8301 Fax: 0043 – (0) 1 – 597 8301 89 Email: peter.zehndorfer@oejab.at |
| Lower Austria | Honorary Consulate of Burkina Faso in St. Pölten Tel: 0043 – (0) 2236 – 7109 8411
Fax: 0043 – (0) 2236 – 7109 8414 Email: bardon@eunet.at |
Swiss representation in Burkina Faso
Embassy
Switzerland does not have an embassy in Burkina Faso. The embassy in Ivory Coast is responsible.
Embassy, Ambassade de Suisse in Ivory Coast
Immeuble Botreau Roussel
28, avenue Delafosse
Abidjan/Plateau
Ivory Coast
:
Ambassade de Suisse
01 BP 1914
Abidjan 01
Côte d’Ivoire
Tel: 00225 – 2021 1721
Fax: 00225 – 2021 2770
Email: abi.vertretung @ eda.admin.ch
www.eda.admin.ch/abidjan
The Swiss embassy in Ivory Coast is still responsible for:
-
- Guinea
- Liberia
- Sierra Leone
Representations of Burkina Faso in Switzerland
Embassy of Burkina Faso in Geneva
Avenue Blanc 51-53
1202 Geneva
Tel: 0041 – (0) 22 – 734 6330
Fax: 0041 – (0) 22 – 734 6331
Email: mission.burkina.faso@ties.itu.int
Consulate of Burkina Faso in Zurich
Albisriederstrasse 416
8047 Zurich
Tel: 0041 – (0) 44 – 350 5570
Fax: 0041 – (0) 44 – 350 5571
Email: info@consulat-burkina-faso.ch
Tourist office
Tourist office of the Espace Entente
(Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Niger, Togo)
Tempelhofer Weg 2
12099 Berlin
Tel: 0049 – (0) 30 – 6830 2193
Fax: 0049 – (0) 30 – 685 7405
Email: berlin. office@westafrika.de
