Travel and Tourism - Burkina Faso

Euromonitor International's Travel And Tourism in Burkina Faso report offers a comprehensive guide to the market at a national level. It looks at travel accommodation, transportation, car rental, tourist attractions and retail travel. It identifies the leading companies and offers strategic analysis of key factors influencing the market, including background information on tourism inflows, disposable income, annual leave and holiday taking habits.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - Publication date: Jul-09

Young and growing tourist destination

Although the travel and tourism industry in Burkina Faso is very young, it is growing rapidly. Official statistics show that the total annual number of incoming tourists more than doubled between 2002 and 2008. Tourism in Burkina Faso is divided into four regions, each with its own share of attractions and tourist spots. The central region, which is the most visited part of the country, holds the majority of cultural sites, festivals and business facilities. Wildlife is the main attraction in the eastern region, while the western part of the country focuses on cultural tourism. The northern region (the Sahel) focuses on the discovery of nomadic traditions.

Inbound tourism increases

The number of tourist arrivals in Burkina Faso is growing. This positive growth can be attributed to the promotional and marketing activities undertaken by the Burkina National Tourism Board (Office National du Tourisme du Burkinabè – ONTB). ONTB takes part in several annual travel and tourism trade fairs, in a bid to increase the awareness of Burkina Faso as an attractive tourist destination. An increase in the number of festivals and international conferences held in the country is also attracting many visitors. Europe continued to account for the highest number of tourist arrivals in 2008. France, which is Burkina Faso’s traditional tourist source, contributed more than 30% of tourist arrivals. The domination of French tourists is attributable to the strong economic and historic relationship, which goes back centuries.

Hotels dominate travel accommodation

Travel accommodation in Burkina Faso is dominated by hotels. Standards and service levels have been improved, with facilities ranging from luxury five-star establishments to quite simple hotels. The hotel infrastructure is heavily concentrated in the capital city of Ouagadougou, with business travellers accounting for the majority of customers. Ouagadougou is home to numerous festivals, tourism trade fairs and international business conferences and thus attracts the majority of tourists coming to the country. Other quality hotels are found in the second largest city of Bobo-Dioulasso, as well as near the main cultural and tourism sites. Volume and value growth of hotels will continue to be positive, as long as the increasing trend in tourist arrivals is maintained.

Government focuses on internet development

The importance of on-line transactions in Burkina Faso’s travel and tourism industry is gradually increasing, thanks to government efforts to develop the internet infrastructure in the country. A telecommunications development strategy has been set up, with the aim of making the internet a universal service accessible to the entire population. A large part of this strategy is the privatisation of the National Telecommunications Office (ONATEL), which is expected to boost the country’s internet and broadband usage. A new and cheaper 22 Mbit/s fibre optic international link has been installed and is a vast improvement on the previous 128 kbit/s link. Secondary access nodes are also starting to appear in the major cities, and cybercafés are providing internet access to a broader spectrum of end-users.

Bright economic prospects with US Millennium Grant

In mid-2008, the Burkinabe Government signed a US$481 million aid compact with the US Government. The aim is to reduce the impact of poverty, as well as to promote economic growth through specific investments to improve agricultural productivity and road infrastructure, and promote education. The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) grant comes at a time when the Burkinabe Government was trying to find solutions to the rising food and fuel prices, which have been stirring up riots. While the country’s economy is predominantly agrarian, the government has also been gradually undertaking measures to privatise state-owned enterprises and attract foreign investment, particularly in the mining sector.