Housing Finance in Burkina Faso
Overview
This profile is also available in French here.
To download a pdf version of the full 2021 Burkina Faso country, click here.
Burkina Faso is a land locked West African country with a land mass of 274 200 km2. In 2019, its population was estimated at 20 487 979 inhabitants. It is one of the African countries with the most direct neighbours: Benin, Togo, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Mali, and Niger. With a Human Development Index (HDI) estimated at 0.434 in 2016, Burkina Faso ranked 182 out of 188 countries. Thus, 40.1% of its population lives below the income poverty line defined at CFA153 530 (US$278) per year or CFA420.60 (US$0.76) per day. Adequate, affordable housing remains out of reach for much of the population. Given the rapid evolution of cities and the increase in the need for decent housing that is accessible to all, urgent actions are essential to avoid uncontrolled urbanisation, which will be more costly or even risky to repair. Thus, a programme to construct 40 000 housing units was initiated by the current president for the period 2016 to 2020.
Economically, Burkina Faso has recorded acceptable average growth rates over the past ten years. It increased from 5.7% over the period 2005-2015 to 6.3% over the period 2016-2019. However, its GDP contracted by 0.2% in 2020, mainly due to the slowdown in trade, transport, tourism, and hospitality, resulting from measures taken to contain the spread of COVID-19. The inflation rate, which was -3.2% in 2019, increased to 1.4% in 2020, mainly due to rising food prices. Nevertheless, the prices of housing, water, gas, electricity, and other fuels fell by 2.0% and 1.3%, respectively.
The budget deficit increased from 3.5% in 2019 to 5.4% of GDP in 2020. This situation can be explained not only by the increase in public expenditure but also, by the fall in revenues. However, the current account balance recorded a surplus of 1.2% of GDP in 2020 after a deficit of 3.4% of GDP. This performance is the result of an increase in the value of gold exports by 21% and cotton by 13%, while the value of imports of petroleum products fell by 20% due to the decline in economic activity
[1] Worldometers. (2020). Burkina Faso population live.
https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/burkina-faso-population (Accessed on 28 September 2020). Pg. 1.
Find out more information on the housing finance sector of Burkina Faso, including key stakeholders, important policies and housing affordability:
- Macroeconomic Overview
- Access to Finance
- Affordability
- Housing Supply
- Property Markets
- Policy and Regulation
- Opportunities
- Availability of data on housing finance
- Urban Informality
- Websites
- Additional Sources
Each year, CAHF publishes its Housing Finance in Africa Yearbook. The profile above is from the 2021 edition, which has up-to-date profiles for 55 African countries.
Download yearbookBurkina Faso
Macroeconomic Overview
Burkina Faso, commonly known as the “Land of Men of Integrity”, is a country in the Sahel region with relatively limited resources and a low-income population of approximately 20.9 million.[1] It is a member of both the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) and the Economic Community of the States of West Africa (CEDEAO). Formerly known as the Republic of Upper Volta, Burkina Faso has experienced little peace since its independence and especially during the reign of President Blaise Compaoré, who ruled the country with an iron fist for 27 years. His fall in October 2014, by popular resistance,[2] saw the newly elected President of Roch Marc Christian Kaboré being put in place in 2015.
Burkina Faso has been highly exposed to the effects of the regional Sahel instability since 2016. Repeated terrorist attacks have led Burkina Faso to be one of the driving countries of the joint force launched in 2017 by the G5 Sahel States (Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Chad). Burkina Faso had been president of the G5 Sahel since February 2019 but passed the torch to the Islamic Republic of Mauritania in February 2020.[3] The ongoing conflicts have killed more than 500 people,[4] forced schools to close[5] and have displaced many people. This has resulted in an unprecedented humanitarian disaster as well as high levels of food insecurity and malnutrition.[6]
The African Development Bank (ADB) projected a GDP growth rate of about six percent in 2020 and 6.1 percent in 2021. Despite the challenging security situation, the authorities have improved agricultural yields and strategic investments in the energy and infrastructure sectors. They have done this through the development of 25 000 hectares of irrigation in 2019 and 2020, by supplying agricultural producers with 150 000 animal-drawn equipment and through the construction of a tractor and motor cultivator assembly unit. To facilitate access to agricultural production areas, the proportion of developed rural roads is expected to increase to 43 percent in 2020, compared to 32.60 percent in 2018. In terms of energy, the construction of new photovoltaic solar power plants is expected to provide 155 megawatts of electricity. Gold production is expected to reach 55.3 tons in 2020 (52.9 tons in 2019).[7]
Inflation reached 1.4 percent in 2018 due to rising food prices. It was expected to remain below two percent and thus remains below the three percent mark set by WAEMU. With the rural exodus, caused by armed conflict and persistent poverty, the rate of urbanisation has reached one of the highest rates on the continent (the urban population has increased by 4.99 percent between 2015 and 2020),[8] exacerbating an already severe housing shortage in the capital Ouagadougou and in the country’s second largest city, Bobo-Dioulasso.
Despite unstable security and the serious humanitarian situation, the government continues to implement its reconstruction program flagship post-Compaoré, the National Plan for Social Economic and Social Development (PNDES) 2016-2020. PNDES aims to improve the quality of life of people living in Burkina Faso by providing access to water and sanitation as well as quality energy supplies. Through the PNDES, 5 167 social and economic housing units were built between 2017 and 2020, out of a total of 40 000 housing units that were planned.[9]
[1] Worldometers. (2020). Burkina Faso population live.
https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/burkina-faso-population (Accessed on 28 September 2020). Pg. 1.
[2] France 24. (2014). Fall of Blaise Compaoré: the hasty end of “Monsieur bons offices”. October 31, 2014.https://www.france24.com/fr/20141031-burkina-faso-blaise-compaore-demission-quitte-pouvoir-ouagadougou-constitution-portrait (Accessed on 27 September 2020).
[3] Ministry of Europe and foreign affairs. (2020). France Diplomatie: presentation of Burkina Faso. 19 February 2020. https://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/fr/dossiers-pays/burkina-faso/presentation-du-burkina-faso/ (Accessed on 28 September 2020).
[4] Xinhua. (2019). Burkina Faso: extension of the Emergency Programme for the Sahel to other regions affected by terrorism. 20 June 2019. http://french.xinhuanet.com/2019-06/20/c_138156843.htm (Accessed on 27 September 2020).
[5] Unicef. (2019). School closures in Sahel double in the last two years due to growing insecurity- UNICEF . 28 February 2019. https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/school-closures-sahel-double-last-two-years-due-growing-insecurity-unicef (Accessed on 28 September 2020).
[6] Nations Unies OCHA. (2019). Burkina Faso : US$ 100M urgently needed as humanitarian landscape drastically deteriorates. 5 March 2019. https://www.unocha.org/story/burkina-faso-us100m-urgently-needed-humanitarian-landscape-drastically-deteriorates (Accessed on 28 September 2020).
[7] African Development Bank. (2020). Economic outlook in Africa 2020-Burkina Faso.https://www.afdb.org/sites/default/files/documents/publications/aeo_2020_fr-_perspectives_economiques_en_afrique.pdf (Accessed on 28 September 2020). Pg. 157.
[8] Index Mundi. (2020). Burkina Faso urbanisation.
https://www.indexmundi.com/burkina_faso/urbanization.html (Accessed on 28 September 2020). Pg. 1.
[9] StarActu. (2020). 40 000 housing project: the SP-NLP reports on achievements. June 17, 2020. http://www.staractu-bf.net/index.php/actualite/nationale/271-projet-40-000-logements-5-164-locaux-sociaux-et-economiques-le-secretariat-permanent-de-la-politique-nationale-du-logement-sp-pnl-a-dresse-le-bilan-de-ses-activites-le-mardi-16-juin-2020-a-ouagadougou-il-s-est-agi-de-passer-en-revue-les-activites-qui-ont-ete-mene-courant-l-annee-2017-2020-plus-de-5-167-logements-sociaux-et-economiques-ont-ete-realise-au-burkina-de-2017-a-2020-grace-au-programme-na (Accessed on 28 September 2020).
Access to Finance
Like most countries of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU), the housing finance market in Burkina Faso is underdeveloped. The formal financial system is both underdeveloped and not accessible to most of the population. Thus, the financing of property is still very limited. Burkina Faso.
According to 2020 data on the WAEMU banking landscape, 15 commercial banks currently operate in Burkina Faso and offer mortgage loans to their clients. The State set up the Habitat Bank of Burkina Faso (BHBF) in 2005 (which became the International Business Bank (IBB) in 2018). IBB capital increased from CFA2 billion (US$3.6 million) in 2005 to CFA12. billion (US$21.7 million) in 2018. IBB is present in six cities, including Ouagadougou and Bobo Dioulasso. IBB offers interest rates on residential mortgages ranging between 5% and 7% with a maximum term of 20 years. Like IBB, it should be noted that other national and sub-regional banking institutions also finance the construction of housing for the benefit of residents under certain conditions including that customers must have land titles and be employed in the formal sector.
The microfinance sector is becoming increasingly dynamic. Burkina Faso has 78 microfinance institutions. Despite the rise of the sector, very few Decentralised Financial Systems (DFS) offer loans designed specifically for housing. Thus, the Réseau des Caisses Populaires du Burkina (RCPB) remains the main mechanism to finance access to housing. In 2007, the RCPB already offered small mortgage loans, with a maximum term of 5 years at the rate of 10% on the initial principal borrowed or the general interest rate of the loan of the Caisses Populaires.
In order to minimize the adverse economic effects of COVID-19 on businesses, certain measures have been put in place by the government. A COVID-19 Economic Recovery Fund (FRE) of CFA 100 billion (US$181 million) covering the period 2020-2021 has been allocated to active companies through a framework partnership agreement with banking institutions. The FRE’s interventions are mainly in the form of loans at reduced interest rates, 3.5% for the benefit of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and Very Small Enterprises (VSEs), and 4% for Large Enterprises (GE).
Analysis of the financing situation for affordable housing reveals a disengagement of the State, leading to the most vulnerable populations failing to meet their housing financing needs.
The Housing Bank of Burkina Faso (BHBF) was founded by the State in July 2005 to address the problem of housing finance. BHBF was privatised in October 2018 and renamed International Business Bank (IB Bank).
[1] BCEAO. (2020) Evolution indicators of financial inclusion in the WAEMU for the year 2019. https://www.bceao.int/sites/default/files/2020-09/Evolution%20des%20indicateurs%20d%27inclusion%20financière%20dans%20l%27UEMOA%20au%20titre%20de%20l%27année%202019.pdf (Accessed on 29 September 2020). Pg. 5.
[2] BCEAO. (2020). Main indicators of WAEMU for SFD as of 31/12/2019. https://www.bceao.int/sites/default/files/2020-05/BCEAO%20-%20Indicateurs%20SFD%20UMOA%20au%2031%20décembre%202019.pdf (Accessed on 29 septembre 2020). Pg. 1.
[3] Kabore, E. (2019). National funds: FCFA 86.745 billion of credits between 2012 and 2016. The Economist of Faso. https://www.leconomistedufaso.bf/2019/02/11/fonds-nationaux-86745-milliards-f-cfa-de-credits-entre-2012-et-2016/ (Accessed on 29 September 2020).
[4] BCEAO. (2020). WAEMU banking landscape as of May 31, 2020.
https://www.bceao.int/fr/content/paysage-bancaire (Accessed on 28 September 2020). Pg. 1.
[5] Coris Bank International. (2020). Diaspora Coris Bayiri. https://www.corisbanque.com/diaspora_bayiri.php (Accessed on 28 September 2020).
Affordability
Urban development and housing financing come from state resources and resources allocated by technical and financial partners. The overall allocation of the Ministry of Urbanism, Housing and the City (MUHV) over the period 2007- 2019 was about CFA104.2 billion (US$188.3 million), with a budget of CFA14.9 billion (US$26.9 million) in 2012, reviewed to CFA8.4 billion (US$15.2 million) in 2019 representing only 0.3% of the national budget. In addition, annual implementation rates have fluctuated greatly, with an average variance of 65%. Despite the sources of financing for urban development, and the financial and material resources available to the Ministry, including investments through its various structures, the state has been unable to facilitate access to decent housing for all. Therefore, in Burkina Faso, an informal, private housing market has developed to meet the need for the estimated 20 000 houses per year. In contrast in ten years, between 2007 and 2017, the State has managed to produce less than 5 000 social housing units.
According to the Permanent Secretariat of the National Housing Construction Programme (SP/PNCL), COVID-19 has slowed down housing production under the presidential programme of 40 000 housing units. In 2020 only 671 housing units were built compared to 1 041 in 2019. Currently, the price of the cheapest social housing built in an urban area is CFA7.5 million (US$13 557). The size of the social housing units produced varies between 58m2 and 68m2 on a plot of land whose minimum size is 204m2, in accordance with legislation prescribing minimum sizes. The average salary in Burkina Faso in 2021 is estimated at CFA95 00012 (US$171.8) and since the maximum monthly loan/income ratio for residential home loans is around one-third of the salary, it would take, on average, more than 20 years for the large majority of the population with formal employment to repay this type of loan for the purchase of the cheapest home. However, this duration does not correspond to the conditions of the country’s banks.
Since formal conditions for access to finance are not accessible to all, it appears that household savings are the main source of financing homes. The funds injected into housing usually come from the savings of their income-generating activities. Most of these activities are in the informal sector. Significant family financial aid from those in the diaspora, is added to fund the incremental building of homes.
[1] La Tribune Afrique. (2018). Burkina Faso: agriculture and livestock generate 80 percent of employment and barely 30 percent of GDP. 8 July 2019. https://afrique.latribune.fr/economie/strategies/2018-07-08/burkina-faso-l-agriculture-et-l-elevage-generent-80-de-l-emploi-et-a-peine-30-du-pib-784441.html (Accessed on 29 September 2020).
[2] Banque mondiale. (2020) unemployment, total (percentage of population). (Modeled ILO estimate).
https://donnees.banquemondiale.org/indicateur/SL.UEM.TOTL.ZS?locations=BF (Accessed on 28 September 2020)
[3] Votresalaire.org. (2020). Minimum wages-Burkina Faso. October 29, 2018. https://votresalaire.org/burkinafaso/salaire/salaire-minimum (Accessed on 29 September 2020)
[4] OpenEdition Journals. (2014). Les quartiers non-lotis : espaces de l’entre-deux dans la ville burkinabé. July 2014. https://journals.openedition.org/cdg/478 (Accessed on 28 September 2020).
[5] Le Fou. (2018). Housing crisis in Burkina: watch out for the pressure cooker. April 12, 2018. The country. http://lepays.bf/crise-logement-burkina-attention-a-cocotte-minute/ (Accessed on 28 September 2020).
[6] Reliefweb. (2018) Emergency Program for the Sahel (PUS-BF): significant progress despite a difficult context. January 2, 2019. https://reliefweb.int/report/burkina-faso/programme-d-urgence-pour-le-sahel-pus-bf-des-progr-s-importants-malgr-un (Accessed on 28 September 2020).
[7] LeFaso.net. (2020) Social housing: end of ordeal for Issiah Tabsoba. August 11, 2020. https://lefaso.net/spip.php?article98650 (Accessed on 28 September 2020).
[8] Birba, F (2019). Cities Management Centre: Minister Maurice Bonanet takes the pulse of the society. February 25, 2019. Sidwaya. https://www.sidwaya.info/blog/2019/02/25/centre-de-gestion-des-cites-le-ministre-maurice-bonanet-prend-le-pouls-de-la-societe/ (Accessed on 28 September 2020).
Housing Supply
The acceleration of urbanisation in Burkina Faso has led to a significant imbalance between housing supply and demand. The housing deficit is estimated at 200 000 houses, to which an additional annual need of 8 000 dwellings in Ouagadougou and 6 000 dwellings in Bobo-Dioulasso can be added.
The housing policies implemented between 1983 and 2006 did not provide real answers to the housing problem. The urbanization rate increased from a very low 2.5% in 1950 to 26% in 2010 and reached 28% in 2020. This situation has led to the proliferation of informal neighborhoods, insufficient housing supply, and high costs for housing. The “one household, one plot” policy implemented between 1983 and 1990 and the production of bare plots between 1995 and 2006 caused the urban sprawl of cities without providing real answers to the need for housing.
Consequently, self-build has always been the main means of access to housing for the majority of the Burkinabe population. It is described as the process through which households holding plots (regular and irregular) finance and realise directly, through local artisans in the construction sector, their housing. In 2008, through the Ministry of Urban Planning, the government developed the National Housing and Urban Development Policy (PNHDU). The PNHDU aims to make decent housing accessible to all. The 2016-2020 presidential programme has provided for the reduction of the proportion of the urban population living in informal areas from 17.2% in 2014 to 10% in 2020 and has led to an increase in the number of households with access to decent housing (from 4 572 in 2015 to 35 000 in 2020). The number of households assisted in self-build went from 100 in 2015 to 5 000 in 2020. Thus, through the PNHDU the number of households with access to decent housing increased by 8 650 between 2015 and 2018.
There is a growing emergence of a housing cooperative, linked to the National Union of Housing Cooperatives (UNCH). Housing cooperatives play a significant role in the provision of housing through initiatives that allow for greater accessibility to social housing by their members. For example, in 2018, 140 houses were produced in Burkina Faso by the Burkinabe Cooperative of the Habitat CBH, of which 52% of the beneficiaries were women. These dwellings are of type F3 (three-roomed house) with a built area of 83m2 at a cost of CFA7 500 00017 (US$13 557). The benefit of building through a housing cooperative is demonstrated in the price, as this was the price of the cheapest newly built house in Burkina Faso.
[1] Radio France Internationale. (2019). Burkina: massive arrival in the capital of refugees fleeing the Soum. 13 June 2019. https://www.rfi.fr/fr/afrique/20190613-burkina-arrivee-massive-capitale-refugies-fuyant-le-soum (Accessed on 28 septembre 2020).
[2] Zouré, H. (2019). housing crisis in Burkina Faso: demonstration in Ouagadougou for the “right to housing”. April 5, 2019. Droits libres TV. https://projets-e24.com/droitlibretv/www.droitlibre.tv/spip743f.html?page=article&id_article=1830 (Accessed on 28 September 2020).
[3] Samboé, E-K. (2019). Social housing: assignees’ of Bassinko receive the keys to their houses. 23 March 2019. Sidwaya. https://lefaso.net/spip.php?article88705 (Accessed on 29 september 2020).
[4] Sanou, A. (2019). Ministry of Housing: shortly social housing in Banfora. 9 February 2019. Burkina24. https://www.burkina24.com/2019/02/09/ministere-de-lhabitat-bientot-des-logements-sociaux-a-banfora/ (Accessed on 29 September 2020).
[5] Some, R. (2019). Maurice Bonanet: we can never give a parcel to every Burkinabe. May 8, 2019. Burkina 24. https://www.burkina24.com/2019/05/08/maurice-bonanet-on-ne-pourra-jamais-donner-une-parcelle-a-chaque-burkinabe/ (Access on 29 September 2020).
Property Markets
The property market is promising and is one of the emerging sectors. Law No. 057-2008/AN of 20 November 2008, on Real Estate Development in Burkina Faso is currently being reviewed to support the market. There has been some misunderstanding in real estate development, which led the MUHV to suspend the processing of files related to land submitted by real estate developers for development in February 2021. However, after establishing an ad hoc committee to analyse the real estate projects, this suspension was lifted in August 2021. The backlog of developments can now finally be processed. The committee is also currently responsible for analysing the conditions for the implementation of the real estate projects submitted, collecting the associated statistical and cartographic data, analysing applications for subdivision authorization and land title applications. Thus, 406 files are under examination, in connection with urban planning developments. If approved, this will allow for substantial new development in the sector.
In order to frame their interventions on the real estate market and defend their interests, real estate developers created the National Union of Real Estate Developers of Burkina Faso (SYNAPIB) in 2013. Subsequently, the National Union of Real Estate Developers of Burkina Faso (UNAPIB) and the Association of Real Estate Developers of Burkina Faso (APIB) were also established. According to the Burkinabe newspaper Le Reporter, in 2019, Burkina Faso had about 268 approved real estate companies. APIB had 82 members in July 2020. It should also be noted that there are more and more informal real estate companies being established.
According to 2018 data from the Société Nationale d’Aménagement des Terrains Urbains (SONATUR), land prices per m2 in Ouagadougou vary between CFA47 000 (US$85) and CFA55 000 (US$99.4) depending on the location (from the most expensive to the cheapest in zone A, B and C).
According to the 2006 General Census of Housing and Population (RGPH), about 84% of Burkinabe’s own their homes, and 9.4% rent or are in rent-to-own schemes. Becoming a homeowner is extremely important for Burkinabe’s, even if it comes at the expense of the quality of the building. This explains the current proliferation of inadequate housing. Throughout the country, the demand for rental housing remains low with only 2.9% of tenants living in villas and 3.4% rent apartment buildings. Apart from the experiments of the cities called ‘Cities of August 04’ conducted by the National Council of the Revolution in 1984 in the 28 provinces of the country, rent-to-own is still underdeveloped and is mainly concentrated in Ouagadougou and Bobo-Dioulasso. As for single tenants, 31% live in multi-unit buildings, 24% in villas, and 18% in buildings. Rental households generally include employees in the public and the formal private sector with a regular steady income. The less urbanised the regions, the more households own their own homes.
[1] Le Fou. (2018). Housing crisis in Burkina: watch out for the pressure cooker. April 12, 2018. The country. http://lepays.bf/crise-logement-burkina-attention-a-cocotte-minute/ (Accessed on 29 September 2020).
[2] Zouré, H. (2019). housing crisis in Burkina Faso: demonstration in Ouagadougou for the “right to housing”. April 5, 2019. Droits Libre TV. https://projets-e24.com/droitlibretv/www.droitlibre.tv/spip743f.html?page=article&id_article=1830 ( Accessed 29 September 2020).
[3] World Bank Group. (2020). Burkina Faso – Doing Business 2020. https://www.doingbusiness.org/content/dam/doingBusiness/country/b/burkina-faso/BFA.pdf (Accessed on 30 September 2020).
[4] Numbeo. (2020). Property prices in Burkina Faso. Last update : August 2020. https://www.numbeo.com/property-investment/country_result.jsp?country=Burkina+Faso (Accessed on 30 September 2020).
[5] Carbonell, N. (2018). What is the average cost of land per acre in Burkina Faso ? 28 February 2018. Quora.com. https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-average-cost-of-land-per-acre-in-Burkina-Faso (Accessed on 30 September 2020).
Policy and Regulation
A regulatory, judicial and legal framework exists in the country but is not conducive to the production of affordable housing for all Burkinabes.
The main player in the urban sector remains the State through the MUHV, which, in accordance with Decree 2019-0139/PRES/PM/SGG-CM of 18 February 2019, ensures the implementation and the supervision of the government in terms of urban planning and housing. The implementation of the Ministry’s actions is mainly driven at a national level through the General Directorate of Architecture, Housing and Construction (DGAHC), the General Directorate of Urban Planning, Servicing and Topography (DGUVT), the General Directorate of Control of Development and Construction Operations (DGC-OAC), the Permanent Secretariat of the National Housing Policy (SP/NLP) and the Permanent Secretariat for the Coordination of the Urban Development Program (SPC/PDU). There are 13 Regional Directorates of Urban Planning and Housing (DRUH), attached to structures including the National Society for urban land development (SONATUR), the City Management Centre (CEGECI), the Agency for Consulting and Delegated Project Management (ACOMOD-Burkina). traditional authorities, custodians of customary law, and Technical and Financial Partners are also involved. Finally, the inhabitants who are the main beneficiaries of the housing programme also participate in the development process.
To meet Burkinabe’s real and current housing needs, the housing sector has upgraded legislation. These include the Constitution of June 1991, Law No. 017- 2006/AN of May 18, 2006, on the Urban Planning and Construction Code in Burkina Faso and Law No. 057-2008/AN of November 20, 2008, on real estate development in Burkina Faso. To these are added Law No. 023-2010/AN of May 11, 2010, on the status of co-ownership of buildings built in Burkina Faso, Law No. 034-2012/AN of July 02, 2012, on agrarian and land reorganization, and Law No. 103-2015/CNT of December 2015 on the Private Housing Lease in Burkina Faso.
However, there is a lack of coordination within this plurality of actors, leading to the overlap and confusion of roles on the ground, as well as the weak technical and financial capacity of private sector partners. As for the legal framework analysis, we note above all the existence of numerous national laws offering a legal basis for interventions. Nevertheless, the difficulties experienced on the ground are linked to the ignorance of these laws, their weak implementation, the absence of certain implementing laws, and the inconsistencies of certain provisions causing conflicts of competence.
Housing policies tend to systematically favour the middle class, individual ownership, and the formal sector. As a result, public investment in informal housing production processes to benefit the poorest of the population is almost nonexistent.
Significant challenges remain in the housing sector, which prompted the formulation of the new 2021 2025 strategy. This strategy aims to “make Burkina Faso’s cities more inclusive and sustainable by improving access to quality public facilities and decent housing.”21 Accordingly, four strategic axes have been formulated: the strengthening of urban planning and development, the improvement of housing, the strengthening of the control of development and construction, and the strengthening of governance.
[1] Land portal. (No date). Act No. 034-2012 / AN of 2 July 2012 on agrarian and land reorganization in Burkina Faso.https://landportal.org/fr/library/resources/lex-faoc139639/loi-n%C2%B0-034-2012an-du-02-juillet-2012-portant-r%C3%A9organisation-agraire (Accessed 29 August 2019).
Opportunities
Through macroeconomic growth and job creation, the housing sector plays a significant role in the country’s economic development. Thus, the government is trying to build on this opportunity by promoting accessible and decent housing for all.
There is an urgent need to develop housing banks and financial products for housing finance in WAEMU countries. This will provide an opportunity to accelerate housing construction and development activities and will generate investment, employment, and increased income, and improved health for the population.
In terms of the construction sector opportunities exist in terms of building new administrative buildings for the State, strong demand for households to access schools and universities, the availability of local building materials, the potential of expanding traditional architectural forms, the evolution of construction technologies, the construction of Low-Rent Housing (HLM) and the existence of ring-fenced land for housing in urban districts.
[1] Immo Napace. (2018). The organization of the real estate sector in Burkina Faso. October 6, 2018. https://www.immonapace.com/lorganisation-du-secteur-immobilier-au-burkina-faso/ (Accessed 30 September 2020).
[2] Immo Napace. (2018). Invest in real estate in Burkina Faso. October 6, 2018. https://www.immonapace.com/investir-dans-limmobilier-au-burkina-faso/ (Accessed 30 September 2020).
[3] Akouwerabou, L. (2016) rent control in Burkina Faso: a poisoned measure. 14 March 2016. La libre Afrique. http://www.libreafrique.org/AKOUWERABOU-fixation-prix-loyers-140316 (Accessed 30 September 2020).
Availability of data on housing finance
A crucial step towards achieving the goal of affordable and adequate housing for all is to have appropriate data systems in place to inform investment decisions. Unfortunately, in Burkina Faso, many gaps persist in the system of producing data. This situation hinders the adequate monitoring of achievements and developments in the sector. The existing data are very general and not specific to housing. This includes the statistical yearbook produced by the Directorate General for Statistical and Sectoral Studies (DGESS) of MUHV. The National Institute of Statistics and Demography (INSD), the BCEAO, some private developers, and some banking institutions and development partners produce data useful for housing studies and diagnostics.
However, at the national level, it is necessary to note the delays in the production of these data, are not updated regularly or easily accessible. Given the interest generated by the topic of affordable and adequate housing for all, Burkina Faso, like other WAEMU member countries, is determined to remedy this situation. Therefore, the WAEMU, with the support of the World Bank, is implementing the Technical Assistance Project for the Financing of Affordable Housing in the WAEMU Area (PFLA – UEMOA) to develop a system of relevant and harmonized indicators on housing.
Urban Informality
The proportion of the urbanised population evolved from 6.4% in 1975 to 22.7% in 2006. It stood at 29% in 2014 and is estimated at 31% in 2020. One of the consequences of this situation is the dysfunction of the housing sector leading to the development of informal housing and, in particular, overcrowded and unhealthy precarious neighborhoods in most of the country’s cities.
The correlation between the high rate of population growth ((2.84%), low economic development, and an increasing rate of urbanisation (4.89%) are not without impact on the living conditions of urban populations. In terms of the quality of the living environment in 2018, only 38.2% of the population in urban areas had access to sanitation in their homes. Ecologically, cities are exposed to the impacts of climate change with a low capacity to respond to natural disasters. Vulnerable households are exposed to floods, land, air, and water pollution. In terms of access to decent housing, more than 20.9% of households still live-in informal areas. Nearly four in ten urban households (38.6%) have the wall of their building made of non-durable materials.
Websites
Ministry of Urban Housing and Planning http://www.mhu.gov.bf/
West African Economic and Monetary Union http://www.uemoa.int/
Regional Mortgage Refinancing Fund http://crrhuemoa.org/
African Development Bank https://www.afdb.org/fr
LOGIQ – SA http://logiq-sa.com/index.php/notre-histoire
APIB https://apib-burkina.com/
CEGECI https://www.cegeci.bf/
International Business bank https://www.ib-bank.com/
UN-Habitat https://unhabitat.org/burkina-faso
World Bank https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/burkinafaso
APBEF-B https://www.apbef-bf.org/
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A9%C3%A9es,-By%20Aim%C3%A9%20Kobo (accessed September 14 2021)
Le Pays. (2020). Real estate companies. https://lepays.bf/societes-immobilieres/
accessed September 13 2021.
Abdoul Service. (2021). Real estate development. https://abdoul-servicesinternational.
com/immobilier/property/villa-f2-social/ (accessed July 27, 2021)
IB Bank. (2020). Bank conditions. https://www.ib-bank.com/sites/default/files/
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https://www.bceao.int/sites/default/files/2021-08/BCEAO%20-
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