Geographic Region (ITU/UN)
ISO 3166 Code
M49 Code
MCC
ITU Member
ITU-R Region
Overview
Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is surrounded by six countries: Mali to the north; Niger to the east; Benin to the southeast; Togo and Ghana to the south; and Ivory Coast to the southwest.
The country has undergone significant telecommunications reform over the past two decades, with a focus on development of fibre optic infrastructure and improving market competition. The Burkina Faso government has embarked on a national fibre backbone plan to link all provincial capitals, along with several thousand kilometres of cable linking the capital to the Mailian, Togolese, Niger, and Cote d'Ivore borders. Three national mobile network operators provide for a sensibly competitive environment, and with 3G licences issued in 2012 network investment is continuing. According to latest ITU data (June 2017) mobile coverage reaches 23% of the population, with no 4G LTE services yet available.
Burkina Faso is a member of the ITU and as such follows radio frequency harmonisation principles according to ITU-R Region-1. The regulatory body governing communications policy is the Ministère du Développement de l'Economie numérique et des Postes, and the Autorité de Régulation des Communications électroniques et des Postes (ARCEP) is charged with regulating the country's radio frequency spectrum activities such as planning, allocations, and licencing.
National Mobile Network Operators
There are 3 mobile network operators servicing this region.