Commercial Guide

VIII - Trade And Project Financing

Description of the Banking and Credit System

The traditional banking sector is comprised of seven commercial banks and three specialized credit institutions called "Etablissements Financiers": la Banque Internationale pour le Commerce, Industrie et l’Agriculture du Burkina Faso (BICIA-B), la Banque Internationale du Burkina (BIB), la Société Générale de Banque au Burkina (SGBB), la Banque Commerciale du Burkina (Arab-Libyan, BCB), la Caisse Nationale de Crédit Agricole (CNCA), ECOBANK, and the Bank of Africa-Burkina (BOA-B).

Though Burkinabe banks have been overliquid since the devaluation of the CFAF, their credit financing is limited to short-term credit, which constitutes about 60% of their financing portfolio. Thus, few manufacturing and trading companies benefit from long-term financing, which impedes economic growth. The maximum interest rate has been lowered from 17.5% to 15.5% after devaluation, which is still too high for many entrepreneurs.

Three specialized credit institutions finance the majority of home, furniture, car, and moped acquisitions: la Société Burkinabe d’Equipement (S.B.E.), la Société Burkinabe de Crédit Automobile (SOBCA), and la Financière du Burkina (FIB).

In addition, two credit institutions make specialized loans to small and medium-scale enterprises: the "Projet d’Apui à Création des Petites et Moyennes Entreprises (PAPME)" and "Burkina-Bail," which finance the acquisition of equipment by the leasing system.

Burkina’s main commercial banks are linked to CitiBank in the U.S.:

CitiBank N.A.
111 Wall Street, 28^th Floor, Zone 4
New York, NY 10043

Questions and inquiries regarding Burkina’s banking system can be addressed to:

Association Professionnelle des Banques et Etablissements Financiers du Burkina (APBEF-B)
01 B.P. 6215 Ouagadougou 01, Burkina Faso
Tel: 226-31.20.65, Fax: 226-31.20.66
E-mail: apbef-b@cenatrin.bf

Multilateral Funding

The World Bank (IBRD), the European Union (EU), the African Development Bank (ADB), and other donors are actively engaged in Burkina Faso. Total aid, including concessionary loans, amounts to approximately USD 400 million per year. The U.S. Foreign Commercial Service maintains a regional office at the U.S. Embassy in Abidjan (Côte d’Ivoire) that tracks opportunities for U.S. businesses.