Press Release No. 25/370

Washington, D.C: An International Monetary Fund (IMF) team led by Jaroslaw Wieczorek, Mission Chief for Burkina Faso, visited Ouagadougou during October 29–November 12 to hold discussions on the fourth review of Burkina Faso’s Extended Credit Facility (ECF) program approved by the IMF Executive Board on September 21, 2023 for a total amount of SDR 228.76 million (about US$ 302 million), and on a new 18-month climate-focused arrangement supported by the IMF under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) for a total amount of SDR 90.3 million (about US$ 122.7 million). The IMF’s African Department Deputy Director, Mr. Vitaliy Kramarenko joined the mission from November 4 to 7.

At the end of the mission, Mr. Wieczorek issued the following statement:

“The Burkinabè authorities and the IMF staff have reached a staff-level agreement on the economic and financial policies to support the completion of the fourth review of the program under the ECF arrangement whose approval by the IMF Executive Board would enable the disbursement of about US$ [32.7] million (SDR 24.1 million), bringing the total IMF financial support disbursed under the arrangement to about US$ [130.8] million (SDR 96.3 million). The meeting of the IMF Executive Board is tentatively scheduled for early February 2026.

“The recent surge in international gold prices and ongoing reforms are energizing the economy. Real GDP growth is projected to reach 5 percent in 2025 and is expected to remain robust in 2026. Inflation, estimated to average -0.5 percent in 2025, due to a sharp drop in local prices of food and energy, is expected to turn positive in 2026 but still below the 2-percent midpoint of the BCEAO target range. Strong gold exports are projected to entail a small current account surplus in 2025 and in the near term.

“The authorities recorded strong performance under the ECF program in the first half of 2025, as demonstrated by the observance of end-June 2025 performance criteria on the primary fiscal deficit and net domestic financing and all but one quantitative indicative targets. As a result, the 2025 fiscal deficit target of 4 percent of GDP is well within reach. Strong revenue mobilization facilitated arrears clearance and good execution of spending on education, health, and social protection.

“The draft 2026 budget envisages a fiscal deficit of 2.8 percent of GDP in the context of continued robust growth performance. For program purposes, it was agreed that consistent with the medium-term framework retained at the third ECF review, the fiscal deficit could reach up to 3.5 percent of GDP in 2026 to accommodate additional concessional external financing not yet captured in the draft 2026 budget. This would create room for additional projects and social spending financed by development partners.

“The authorities also implemented reforms that enabled Burkina Faso to exit the FATF gray list, as well as several structural benchmarks promoting fiscal governance and transparency, including the adoption of the action plan informed by the IMF’s Governance Diagnostic Assessment (GDA). In this context, five out of 11 principal GDA recommendations have already been implemented and the remaining six form a core of the structural agenda under the program, which includes strengthening the integrity of revenue administration, ensuring transparency and regulatory compliance in the allocation of mining permits, and is complemented by measures centered on strengthening the public procurement process.   

“The authorities’ proposed program under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) would support their ambitious reform agenda to foster macroeconomic resilience and external stability by addressing climate-related vulnerabilities. The focus is on measures with strong positive fiscal and balance-of-payments impacts and greater transparency. Against this background, the proposed reform package, developed in collaboration with the authorities and development partners, is structured around four pillars: i) strengthening fiscal resilience and transparency by institutionalizing disaster risk finance; ii) anchoring climate resilience in public infrastructure investment; iii) advancing sustainable clean energy and water provision; and iv) attracting climate finance by publishing climate risk data and improving disclosure of climate investments.

“The IMF team met the Prime Minister, his Excellency, M. Rimtalba Jean-Emmanuel Ouedraogo; the Minister of Economy, and Finance, M. Aboubakar Nacanabo; the Minister of Environment, Water, and Sanitation, M. Roger Baro; the Minister of Minister of Energy, Mines and Quarries, M. Yacouba Zabré Gouba; the BCEAO National Director, M. Armand Badiel; other senior government officials, representatives of the private sector, and development partners.”

“The IMF staff wish to express its gratitude to the Burkinabè authorities for their commitment to the program, constructive and open discussions, and their traditionally warm hospitality.”