African Countries: Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso Overview

Burkina Faso is a west African based country, and it covers an area of about 274,000 square kilometers. Since 2004, in a bid to improve the business strategy in Burkina Faso, over 190 improvements have been made and they are still being used. These improvements had a great effect on the business industry in Burkina Faso as they won the 2007 Encouragement Prize from the World Bank. In the year 2010, they were ranked by the World Bank to be among the top 10 fastest growing economies. (International Business Times, 2012).

Reasons Why Burkina Faso is an Attractive Market

The Competitive edge that Burkina Faso has originates from the Country’s legislatives and regulatory framework which is not only conducive but also attractive and innovative (Ten Good Reasons to Invest in Burkina Faso, 2014). This framework possesses a strong policy, particularly for private investment promotion, guarantee as well as protection. Burkina Faso’s attractiveness is attributed to its geographical position, hence, the presence of an open regional market. Burkina Faso’s attractiveness is also due to its large population, comprising of approximately 16 million people, resulting in a strong domestic demand for products (Ten Good Reasons to Invest in Burkina Faso, 2014). Burkina Faso has a young dynamic as well as enterprising population which provides a hard-working workforce.

Cultural Influences on Business Practices in Burkina Faso

Among the cultural influences that can affect business practices in Burkina Faso is language, while English is a working one. However, French is Burkina Faso’s official language and is used in business and the government. Hence, before engaging in business practices, one should learn French for easy communication with the local people. Concerning etiquette, punctuality and gift-giving are essential in business. While direct eye contact is acceptable, overly direct contact is considered rude and possibly a threat. Furthermore, politeness and hospitality are important to Burkinabe, while salutations are considered as an elaborate procedure that involves handshaking.

Entry Strategy

In this case, the most appropriate entry strategy into Burkina Faso’s market is partnership, since it is a foreign market and there will be two different cultures. The investors and the locals, moreover, partnerships must show value and appreciation for the local people. Partnerships can take various forms such as co-marketing arrangements or strategic alliance for manufacturing (Czinkota, Ronkainen & Moffett, 2011). Partnerships in foreign markets are useful because the customers end up conducting business with the firm to promote the local partner, thus, the business develops significantly.

Representation and Support for Conducting Business

There is a need to have a qualified legal business advisor and a lawyer to help to explain the laws and document the contract provisions to make the business legal, adhering to all the countries business policies and regulations, keeping the business safe. The government has also laid down rules and regulations that investors should follow while conducting business in a foreign country such as paying the tax and revenues, ensuring that the workforce has the proper equipment and the employees are not exploited (Czinkota, Ronkainen & Moffett, 2011).

The Burkina Faso Ministry of Commerce, Labor, and Social Security requires the investor to sign all the relevant labor documents such as the Agency of National Employment Promotion and the Center Des Formalites des Entreprises (CEFORE) before pursuing their business ventures in Burkina Faso.

Limitations in the Exchange Relationship

Burkina Faso is a landlocked country and therefore the transfer of bulky technological or fragile equipment will be difficult. Since Burkina Faso is a part of the Third World countries, its infrastructure is very poor which may lead to difficulty in product transportation to different parts of the country, hence causing delays in distribution of the company’s products. Also, currency fluctuation hugely affects Burkina Faso as there has been a great drop in the local currency versus the dollar which influences the exchange rates, thereby reducing the profit margin of the foreign business (Global Edge, 2017).

Opportunities and Limitations

The largest religion in Burkina Faso is Muslim. Its followers account for 52% of the whole population, while the Christians comprise only 20% of it. This poses limitation in communicating the gospel of Jesus Christ because Muslims are steadily converting the unreached people to Islam. An opportunity for changing the dynamics would be the recruitment of workers across the country whose goal will be to reach the unreached population and educate them on the gospel, hence converting them to Christianity (Operation World, 2017).

References

Czinkota, R.M., Ronkainen, I.A., & Moffett, M.H. (2011). International business (8th ed.). Chichester, UK: John Wiley and Sons Ltd.
Global Edge. (2017). Burkina Faso: Introduction. Retrieved from: https://globaledge.msu.edu/countries/burkina-faso
International Business Times. (2012). International Business Opportunities and Trends: Top Countries to Consider. Retrieved from: http://www.ibtimes.com/international-business-opportunities-trends-top-countries-consider-214068
Operation World. (2017). Burkina Faso Prayer Information. Retrieved from: http://www.operationworld.org/country/burk/owtext.html
Ten Good Reasons to Invest in Burkina Faso. (2014). Embassy of Burkina Faso in New Delhi. Retrieved from: http://alpha.burkinafasoindia.org/details/1/embassy-of-burkina-faso.html