The currency in Burkina Faso is the CFA – Franc BCEAO. The ISO code associated with this currency is XOF (short form of the currency is: F). The CFA – Franc BCEAO is next to Burkina Faso the official currency in the states of Mali, Togo, Ivory Coast, Benin, Senegal and the state of Guinea – Bissau.
History of the currency of Burkina Faso
The CFA franc was introduced on December 26, 1945 in several French colonies at the time during the ratification of the Bretton Woods Agreement. At the beginning (in 1945) the parity of the CFA – FRANC BCEAO was 1 CFA – Franc BCEAO at 1.70 FF. Today the value of the CFA – Franc BCEAO is 1 CFA – Franc BCEAO at 0.0015 EUR.
Traditionally, the CFA Franc BCEAO has always been closely linked to the French Franc (FF) since its introduction in 1945. Until 1999, this peg to the French franc included a fixed peg of the exchange rate, a relic from colonial times.
Since the introduction of the euro in Europe in 1999 and the associated replacement of the French franc in France with the euro, the CFA franc BCEAO has been linked to the euro in the same way.
The CFA Franc BCEAO is part of the CFA system, an alliance overriding the individual currencies. This consists of a total of fifteen West African and Central African countries (e.g. Burkina Faso) and its central ideas have existed for fifty years. In addition to other joint approaches, the fifteen countries in West Africa and Central Africa concerned store 65 percent of their own currency reserves in France with the French treasury via the CFA system. In return, this grants the individual currencies of the African countries concerned free convertibility.
The European Union does not assess the CFA system as a monetary union, but as a credit agreement. The course of the value of the CFA franc BCEAO and the entire CFA franc (CFA system) is to be regarded as constant overall, with one major exception – a devaluation of the value of the CFA franc BCEAO and the CFA franc by fifty percent.
Exchange and import of the currency of Burkina Faso
The CFA Franc BCEAO can only be exchanged within the CFA system. If the currency being carried is US dollars or euros, it is advisable to change the money directly in Burkina Faso at a bank, one of the exchange offices, at the airport or in a larger hotel. In banks, you can easily withdraw money with a credit card.
There are no restrictions on the importation of foreign currencies in Burkina Faso. However, there is an obligation to declare. This obligation relates to certain information on the money that the person entering, including information about possible future financial exports from the country. The agreement of this information with the amount of the real money carried is checked when leaving Burkina Faso.