Is Ouagadougou safe? Burkina Faso travel risk
Is Ouagadougou safe right now? Checked 21 October 2026
Ouagadougou scores 75/100 on our travel risk index (Extreme). The US State Department rates Burkina Faso Level 4 (Do Not Travel, updated 4 May 2026); the UK FCDO advises against all travel to the whole country (updated 10 Dec 2025); Canada says: avoid all travel. No GDACS or USGS hazard events within 100 km in the last 14 days. No change in government advice in the last 7 days.
Ouagadougou scores 75/100 (Extreme). The score combines security, crime and scams, health and medical access, natural hazards and current alerts measured for this location and Burkina Faso (how it is calculated). The sections below are specific to Ouagadougou: nearest emergency and transport facilities, local climate normals, 5-year natural hazard history within 100 km.
Driven by: The US State Department and Government of Canada and UK FCDO advise against all travel here, so the score is held at 75 or higher.
A score of 75 is higher than 92% of the cities we score.
Consult the Burkina Faso travel risk page for nationwide security advisories, entry protocols, and consular warnings.
Location & Spatial Data
Ouagadougou belongs to Centre (Burkina Faso), centered at coordinates 12.3686° N, 1.5275° W (299 m above sea level). Distance to the capital is cataloged regionally.
Centre
12.3686° N, 1.5275° W
299 m
Africa/Ouagadougou
3,063,271
Transit Links & Medical Facilities
Proximate Regional Communities (Burkina Faso)
Climate by Month
Hottest: April (39 °C avg high); Wettest: August (198 mm).
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High °C | 33° | 35° | 39° | 39° | 39° | 36° | 32° | 30° | 32° | 35° | 35° | 33° |
| Low °C | 18° | 20° | 23° | 25° | 28° | 26° | 24° | 23° | 24° | 23° | 21° | 18° |
| Rain mm | 0 | 0 | 5 | 9 | 23 | 65 | 141 | 198 | 123 | 12 | 0 | 0 |
Normals: Ouagadougou (0 km away).
Natural Hazard Calendar & History
5-Year Hazard Calendar (100 km Radius)
| Hazard | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Floods | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | — | — | — |
| Wildfires | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | — |
Most wildfire events within 100 km of Ouagadougou happened in January, October and November (3 of 3 in five years).
Source: GDACS, USGS; five years to October 2026.
For consular advice on women's safety, LGBT+ travel, and local laws, see the Burkina Faso travel advice & laws.
Check the official entry requirements for your nationality before you travel. See the Burkina Faso entry requirements.
Surrounding Places with Full Dossiers
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