In the capital there is at least one post office in every centrally located district. Stamps are also available in hotels. There are post offices in all major cities. Mail is not delivered by postman; it is sent to mailboxes rented by the recipient.
In rural areas where there is no post office, most people use either the Catholic Mission or the local authority post office box.
Airmail from Europe to Burkina Faso or vice versa takes around 10 days. Parcels usually take longer to travel. Current information, e.g. about opening times, can be found on the website of the national post office SONAPOST.
Send containers or cars to Burkina
According to zipcodesexplorer, to ship containers or cars to Burkina Faso, there is no way around a forwarding agency in Europe and a “transitaire” in Africa. The transit port Tema / Ghana is currently recommended. There is still a lot of stealing going on in Lomé.
Sending a 60 m³ container to Burkina Faso costs around 6,000 euros and takes around 2 months. Non-profit organizations can receive a subsidy of up to 75% from Engagement Global (transport subsidies for donations in kind to partner countries).
Used items such as sewing machines or bicycles can be sent to Burkina Faso more cheaply in vehicles that have expired. The vehicles can possibly be sold again at a profit, the transport of the items – if customs does not cause difficulties – would then be free. Doors and trunk should be welded shut to prevent theft.
The Burkinabe embassy in Berlin issues a “certificat de don” for customs exemption when sending relief goods. In this case, both the vehicle and the cargo should be declared as gifts.
If you live in the vicinity of Hamburg or Antwerp, you can deliver your car yourself as soon as the shipping company has booked space on a ship. Those who live further in the “hinterland” can deliver more cheaply to the nearest car shipping company. Transporting a car from Bonn to Tema / Ghana, for example, costs around EUR 700, while a van or minibus over 25 m³ can cost EUR 1,500. The transfer from Tema to Ouagadougou by the “Transitaire” and the customs exemption cost as much again. For younger models, the duty will be much higher. The FATHIMA eV association paid around 4,000 euros for the shipment of a fully loaded truck (7 t) from Hamburg to Tema and the transfer to Ouagadougou.
After the ship has cast off, the shipping company issues the bill of lading, which must be available as an original with the vehicle registration document when it is picked up at the port.
The phone calls
Making calls in Burkina Faso
The largest, almost sole, fixed line provider is ONATEL.
There are essentially three providers for mobile communications, which are known under the following names:
Airtel
Telemob
Telecel
Airtel covers almost the whole country. Telecommunications companies and mobile network operators are: Onatel, TELMOB, Bharti Airtel (Zain, Celtel), Moov (Telecel). All providers have installed the 3G system.
Computer, satellite and electronics company Isec offers satellite rechargeable telephone units. Further information on the network providers is available from the telecommunications regulator ARCE.
Calling to Burkina Faso
Currently the cheapest offer for landline calls is open call through. In this regard, tarife-fuer-ferngespraeche.de offers updated tariff information at regular intervals, including for Burkina Faso. Other cheap offers in Callthrough and Call by Call can be found at billiger-telefonieren.de.
The Internet
The number of Internet cafés or cyber cafés is falling again in Ouagadougou, as individual access to the Internet has become easier. Access to the Internet is possible via mobile radio (Airtel and Telmob). The units (for phone calls and for the Internet) can be charged on every street corner.
In addition to an ADSL WIFI modem connected to the fixed network, ONATEL-SA can buy and configure a mobile modem for 40,000 FCFA. With the SIM card you then have your own WLAN at home and on the go.
Since the providers are sometimes overloaded and fail or cannot be received everywhere, it is advisable to have a loaded SIM card available from each provider.
A speed of 3G + is normal for all providers.
Tips, addresses, link catalogs
The German embassy in Ouagadougou moved to the old government district in 2014. It is now in the military restricted area of the former notorious “Entente”, 14 Rue Kafando Romouald, near the university church “La Rotonde”. The embassy can be reached by phone at 50.30.67.31, 50.30.67.32 or 50.33.08.42. Postal address: Ambassade de la République fédérale d’Allemagne, 01 BP 600, Ouagadougou 01, Burkina Faso.
Not far, along Boulevard Charles de Gaulle, are the Goethe-Institut (192, rue de l’université), GIZ and the residence of the German ambassador.
The German-Burkinabe Friendship Society regularly publishes newsletters with a press review from the Burkinabe media in German translation and the latest news from Burkina Faso and reports on non-governmental cooperation between the countries:
Afroport is a German-language information portal on art, culture and business from Africa for Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
