Burkina Faso's goods trade surplus rose to 1,205.8bn FCFA (€1.84bn) in the second quarter of 2026 from 496.8bn FCFA (€757mn) a year earlier, statistics agency INSD said in a quarterly trade report posted in late October. Gold export receipts climbed 61.4% to 2,182.6bn FCFA (€3.33bn), or 93.5% of all exports, while the tonnage of goods exported fell 40.8%, the agency said.
Analysis: Higher gold prices played a larger role than volumes. INSD's export price index for gold rose 33.6% year-on-year, against a 20.8% gain in its volume index, while shipments to the UAE and Switzerland fell about 3% from the first quarter, by our calculation. The trade surplus is therefore sensitive to changes in international gold prices. Lower prices could reduce export earnings and foreign-currency inflows even if shipment volumes held steady. The next INSD trade report may be published around December, based on last year's schedule.
Source: INSD, https://www.insd.bf/sites/default/files/2026-10/SCE_2T2026.pdf, Q2 2026 and Q2 2025 and Q1 2026; INSD, INSD, Note trimestrielle sur les statistiques du commerce extérieur, quatrième trimestre 2025 (cover dated March 2026), Q2 2025; INSD, INSD, Note trimestrielle sur les statistiques du commerce extérieur, 1er trimestre 2026 (cover dated June 2026, posted September 2026), Q1 2026
Burkina Faso's exports of fresh and dried fruit and nuts, a customs category that includes cashew nuts and mangoes, fell 56.1% to 46.4bn FCFA (€70.7mn) in the second quarter of 2026 from a year earlier, statistics agency INSD said in its quarterly trade report. The category's volume index dropped 59.9% while its unit value index rose 9.6%, the agency said.
Analysis: Export volumes, rather than prices, accounted for the decline: the unit-value index rose while the quantity index fell by around 60%. The decrease occurred during the main cashew shipping season, but INSD groups cashew with other fruit and nuts. Its figures therefore cannot show whether the change reflects production, domestic processing or cross-border trading. Cotton exports moved in the opposite direction, rising 45.8% to 40.7bn FCFA (€62mn). Cashew exporters and lenders planning the 2027 season may need more detailed industry data. INSD's next quarterly report is expected around December.
Source: INSD, https://www.insd.bf/sites/default/files/2026-10/SCE_2T2026.pdf, Q2 2026 and Q2 2025 and H1 2026
Burkina Faso's Council of Ministers approved on October 22 the ratification of $120mn, or 67.2bn FCFA (€102mn), in loan and grant financing from the World Bank's concessional arm IDA for a five-year program to help poor households earn more, the official readout said. The program aims to organize 120,000 households into 4,800 community cooperatives built around processing and production units, the readout said.
Analysis: The financing exceeds a roughly $100mn addition to a separate World Bank-supported works project announced two weeks earlier. Divided among targeted households, it amounts to around 560,000 FCFA (€854) each, by our calculation, though that is not the planned cash payment per household. The project also includes 42 trucks and warehouses with about 50,000 tons of storage, creating potential demand for vehicles and storage equipment. Suppliers and cooperative finance providers will need procurement details to assess opportunities. The project has no published start date or tender plan, and its July 14 agreements still require ratification.
Source: Gouvernement du Burkina Faso, republished by Burkina24, Compte rendu du Conseil des ministres du jeudi 22 octobre 2026 (official readout, via Burkina24), Signed 14 July 2026; ratification approved 22 Oct 2026 and 2026–2031; Gouvernement du Burkina Faso (Direction de la communication de la Présidence), republished by Lefaso.net, Compte rendu du Conseil des ministres du 8 octobre 2026 (official readout), republished by Lefaso.net, Decision of 8 Oct 2026; Lefaso.net (online press), Lefaso.net report on the World Bank Country Partnership Framework 2026–2031 launch (October 2, 2026), 2025
Burkina Faso's electricity imports fell 40.5% to 18.2bn FCFA (€27.7mn) in the second quarter of 2026 from a year earlier, statistics agency INSD said in its quarterly trade report. Imports of natural and manufactured gas rose 50.5% to 24.8bn FCFA (€37.8mn), the agency said. Refined petroleum products, the largest import line at 28.9% of the total, rose 5.1% to 326.0bn FCFA (€497mn).
Analysis: The fall in electricity imports followed an increase of roughly one-third in the first quarter, leaving first-half purchases 16.7% below the same period last year, by our calculation. INSD did not report electricity volume data, so it is unclear whether the decline reflected lower prices or reduced energy imports. For gas, import volumes increased 31.9% and unit values 14.1%. That suggests purchases rose in both quantity and cost, but does not establish how the gas was used. The next quarterly report, expected around December, may show whether the changes continued.
Source: INSD, https://www.insd.bf/sites/default/files/2026-10/SCE_2T2026.pdf, Q2 2026 and Q2 2025 and H1 2026; INSD, INSD, Note trimestrielle sur les statistiques du commerce extérieur, 1er trimestre 2026 (cover dated June 2026, posted September 2026), Q1 2026 and Q1 2025
Burkina Faso created a presidential program on October 22 to give 3.5mn more households and businesses, about 17.9mn people, access to electricity services and to electrify 6,700 localities, the Council of Ministers readout said. The program, Faso Wa-Fulu, will cost more than 2,800bn FCFA (€4.27bn) over 10 years and aims for electricity access for all by 2030, the presidency's communication office said, as reported by Burkina24.
Analysis: Meeting the target would require about 700,000 new connections a year, more than four times the nearly 160,000 households connected in 2025, by our calculation. The plan also covers 6,700 localities, compared with 131 rural communities connected last year. Annual spending of roughly 280bn FCFA (€427mn) would equal almost 6% of the draft 2027 budget, but the government has not identified funding sources. Suppliers of electricity cables, transformers, meters and solar systems could benefit if financing is secured. Parliamentary debate on the 2027 budget may indicate the initial allocation.
Source: Burkina24 (online press), Burkina24 summary of the 22 October 2026 Council of Ministers, with the energy minister's briefing remarks, 10 years from 2026 (per the presidency via Burkina24; readout gives no horizon); Gouvernement du Burkina Faso, republished by Burkina24, Compte rendu du Conseil des ministres du jeudi 22 octobre 2026 (official readout, via Burkina24), Program targets (decree of 22 Oct 2026; 10-year program, access for all targeted by 2030 per the energy minister); Wakat Séra (online press), Ministry of Energy, Mines and Quarries 2025 performance-contract review, as reported by Wakat Séra (3 Feb 2026), 2025; Gouvernement du Burkina Faso (Direction de la communication de la Présidence), republished by Lefaso.net, Compte rendu du Conseil des ministres du 8 octobre 2026, FY2027; Wakat Séra (online press), https://www.wakatsera.com/burkina-plus-de-94-tonnes-dor-produites-en-2026/, 2025
Chart of the week
Burkina Faso gold export receipts, bn FCFA per quarter
826.9
1,185.8
1,352.4
1,354.1
1,989.9
2,146.5
2,182.6
Q4 24Q1 25Q2 25Q3 25Q4 25Q1 26Q2 26
Value of non-monetary gold exports, from statistics agency INSD's quarterly foreign trade reports, fourth quarter of 2024 to second quarter of 2026.. Source: INSD, INSD, Note trimestrielle sur les statistiques du commerce extérieur, quatrième trimestre 2025 (cover dated March 2026), Q4 2024 and Q1 2025 and Q2 2025 and Q3 2025 and Q4 2025; INSD, INSD, Note trimestrielle SCE 1T2026, Q1 2026; INSD, https://www.insd.bf/sites/default/files/2026-10/SCE_2T2026.pdf, Q2 2026.
Tender of the week
Network-control simulation laboratory for SONABEL's training center
Buyer
National electricity company SONABEL, PEDECEL electrification project
Scope
Supply of grid-control simulation laboratory equipment for the training center of the national power utility SONABEL; single lot; delivery period 360 days; margin of preference not applicable.
Value
Not published
Funding
IsDB loan, financing BFA-1043 of May 10, 2023
Closes
Wednesday, November 18, 2026
Alama Pro members get the link to the official notice for this and every other tender.
In Alama Pro this week
Deep dive: Burkina Faso's 255bn FCFA plan for dry-season farming, rice and milling
10 signals with workings, from trade, farming, energy, mining, projects, transport corridors, tourism and prices
Four key figures, from inflation and gold exports to Treasury bond yields, and every open tender in our records
Euro equivalents use the fixed parity of 655.957 FCFA per euro. Every figure comes from the official source named under it. Spotted an error? Write to info@alamareport.com; corrections run in the next issue.
