What has been done:

The enabling environment for sustainable enterprises in Burkina Faso was assessed through a careful review of secondary data, combined with findings from a large national enterprise survey and supplementary information from published and unpublished materials. The assessment produced a detailed identification of barriers that discourage investment, entrepreneurship, job creation and firm competitiveness.

In line with its mandate to contribute to the development of a conducive environment for enterprises in Burkina Faso, the Conseil National du Patronat Burkinabé (CNPB) has called upon the ILO to assist the organisation to assess the current business environment in the country and to identify areas for improvement. The information gathered through the assessment enables ILO constituents to identify priorities for the promotion of sustainable enterprises and the transition to formality. For Burkina Faso, the analysis of the enabling environment provides an entry points for the development of policy positions and structured and evidence-based advocacy efforts.

The Survey and its sample:

The EESE Enterprise Survey of Burkina Faso was conducted with the objective to identify and assess business environment factors that affect business development and job creation in the country. The survey was carried out to investigate ten key factors that affect the business environment. The survey was conducted with a total of 431 enterprises (among which 105 informal enterprises) and 115 workers. The majority of interviewees represented formal and informal small enterprises, although medium and large formal enterprises were also included in the survey. 43% of the interviewed enterprises operated in the services sector, whereas 28.5% operated in trade and another 28.5% operated in manufacturing.

Results:

The EESE assessment has identified that despite various efforts that have taken place to promote a sustainable business environment, several issues have been identified as major constraints for a business-friendly environment in Burkina Faso. The current socio-political and security situation appears not to be conducive to business creation and growth. The lack of good governance, and in particular the issues in relation to the judicial system and corruption, are other factors that hinder the development of enterprises.
It was agreed that efforts to improve the business environment should be intensified and focused on areas that are critical for the ILO and its constituents and which are not at the center of actions already undertaken by national stakeholders and international donors.
The focus on future improvement actions has therefore been placed on the following priority conditions:

• A conducive legal and regulatory environment;
• Access to finance;
• Education, training and life-long learning.