The president of the National Council, Dominique de Buman, met his counterpart from Burkina Faso in Bern during his and other Burkinabe deputies’ attendance at 138th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (24–28 March). The meeting follows an official visit to Bern last March by the late president of the National Assembly of Burkina Faso, Salifou Diallo. President Sakandé thanked Switzerland for its solidarity with his country after the terrorist attacks of 2 March in Ouagadougou.
The two presidents had an in-depth discussion, focusing in particular on the control of gold production. Gold imports account for almost all of Switzerland’s trade with Burkina Faso (99.9% of imports). Mr de Buman also expressed Switzerland’s desire to develop its relations with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), of which Burkina Faso is a member. In 2017, Burkina Faso’s economic growth rate reached 6.4%. Mr de Buman also welcomed Burkina Faso’s political stability, the authorities’ emphasis on good governance and investments to train young Burkinabes in technical trades for key sectors of the economy, namely agriculture and mining.
Switzerland is very involved in Burkina Faso and maintains very close diplomatic relations with the country. The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) has been present in the country for over 40 years. It funds projects on basic education, vocational training, rural development, food security and good governance.