Western Africa
Video Chat with People from Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso's name combines words from two local languages and is usually translated as "land of upright people." Most chats will come from Ouagadougou, which everyone calls Ouaga, or from Bobo-Dioulasso, the country's second city and a hub for music. Koudougou is another possibility, as is Banfora in the green southwest, near the Karfiguéla waterfalls and the rock formations of the Sindou Peaks. Mooré is the most widely spoken language, Dioula is the go-to language of trade in the west, and Fulfulde is common in the north. French is the language of offices, newspapers and the radio, while English is less widespread.
The country stays on GMT all year, putting Ouaga's evening in the middle of the afternoon on the US East Coast. Film is a great subject, since Ouagadougou hosts FESPACO, the long-running pan-African film festival. Faso Dan Fani woven cloth, bronze casting, balafon and djembe music, the Stallions football team and the Tour du Faso cycling race are all fair game. Food lovers can talk about tô with sauce, riz gras, grilled brochettes and zoom-koom, a ginger-and-millet drink.
Burkina Faso at a glance
| Flag | 🇧🇫 |
|---|---|
| Official name | Burkina Faso |
| Capital | Ouagadougou |
| Region | Africa · Western Africa |
| Official language | French |
| Currency | West African CFA franc (Fr, XOF) |
| Calling code | +226 |
| Time zone | Greenwich Mean Time (Africa/Ouagadougou) |
How to say hello
A few words of French make a great first impression, even if you switch to English right after.
| Language | Phrase | Say it | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mooré | Ne y yibeoogo! | neh yee-beh-OH-goh | Good morning! |
| Mooré | Ne y zaabre! | neh ZAH-breh | Good evening! |
| Mooré | Laafi bala. | LAH-fee BAH-lah | I'm fine (the usual reply; literally "only health") |
| Dioula | I ni sɔgɔma! | ee nee SOH-goh-mah | Good morning! |
Tips for chatting with people from Burkina Faso
- Say "Ouaga" instead of Ouagadougou; using the nickname sounds natural and friendly.
- Ask whether they've been to FESPACO or which African films they'd recommend; it's a topic people know well.
- Many people move between Mooré, Dioula and French in a single sentence. If you only have French, that's completely fine, and our French phrase page is a quick refresher.
- Someone from Bobo-Dioulasso will likely have opinions about balafon players and local bands, so ask for a song to look up later.
Only meet people from Burkina Faso
Omlet matches you Worldwide by default. To meet only people from Burkina Faso, use the country filter, the only filter Omlet has:
- Open Omlet and press Country on the control panel.
- Search for Burkina Faso and select it.
- Press Start. Press Next to meet someone else from Burkina Faso, or switch back to Worldwide any time.
Your first day is free: you add a card through Stripe to start it, and nothing is charged that day. When the 24 hours end, the country filter costs $3 one time, charged to that card, unless you cancel before then in Settings (if you cancel, you can still pick a country until the day ends). It's not a subscription, and it stays unlocked on that device and browser. It doesn't carry over to other devices or browsers, and clearing your browser data removes it. There's one free day per device, home network and card. Payment goes through Stripe, so Omlet never sees your card number.
The filter works both ways, and matching can be slower when fewer people from Burkina Faso are online. Chatting itself is free, and Worldwide matching never costs anything.
Your own country is detected automatically and shown to the people you meet as a flag.
Neighboring countries
Burkina Faso borders 6 countries. Curious about the people next door? Meet them too: