Railways in

Burkina Faso

Artist’s Impression of a passenger train for the proposed Faso Rail project.

The first railway in what was then the Haute Volta region of French West Africa opened in 1934, with the arrival at Bobo-Dioulasso of the metre gauge railway from Abidjan in Côte d'Ivoire. The line was extended in stages to Ouagadougou, which it reached in 1954.

After the two countries gained independence in 1960, the railway was jointly administered by the two governments. The situation prevailed until 1994, when a concession for the entire railway was awarded to a private operator.

The line from Abidjan to Ouagadougou (about 517km of which lies in Burkina Faso) remains the only operational line in the country. In the 1980s, work began on an extension of the line from Ouagadougou to Tambao; the line was completed only as far as Kaya, a distance of about 103km.

In 2024, the existing operating concession was withdrawn. The present situation is unclear, but it appears that the railways continue to opeerate under government control.

In 2025, the Faso Rail project was officially launched. This would form part of a 590km standard gauge railway from Ouagadougou to the port of Tema in Ghana, of which about 90km would be in Burkina Faso.

• Ministry of Territorial Administration and Mobility ministry responsible for rail transportation (No website located at present)
• Faso Rail Project proposed railway connection with Ghana (No website located at present)