Fresh study unlocks Burkina-Ghana trade opportunities

• Burkina-Ghana border post suffers from poor management, weak agency coordination, and widespread non-compliance.
• Burkina Faso’s exit from ECOWAS continues to negatively impact future trade policies, border protocols, and regional cooperation. 
• For decades, Burkina Faso has depended good relations with Ghana to access the sea, so it can ship its minerals and cotton to overseas markets.

A new study has unveiled a number of reforms to rev up opportunities that cross-border investors eyeing Burkina-Ghana trade corridor can bank on to grow. For years, landlocked Burkina Faso has depended establishing good relations with Ghana in order to access the sea, so it can ship its minerals and cotton to overseas markets.

However, red tape has always hampered the movement of goods, and labour along the border. The situation worsened even further with the start of insurgency in Burkina Fase about a decade ago. Ever since, traders – especially women – have to brave constant hijackings and theft, paralyzing business.

To improve safety and operations at the Paga-Dakola border, the International Trade Centre (ITC) and its partners spent 18 months studying the vital cross-border crossing, and a series of meetings has endorsed a suite of reforms that are poised to revive business in this vital corridor.

Traffic at the Paga-Dakola Ghana-Burkina border

Official data shows that Traffic at the Paga-Dakola border has soared as traders continue to reroute shipments away from insurgent-held regions. Yet, the border suffers from poor management, weak agency coordination, and widespread non-compliance, ITC explained in an update.

Inside Burkina Faso, traders use convoys for safety, but Ghana has no such system in place. Years of crisis have forced some banks to close in Burkina Faso, making the provision of crucial financial services even more difficult to access for entrepreneurs.

“Security is a major concern here,” said a female livestock trader in the study. “If we cannot guarantee the safety of our goods and the traders, then all the efforts to streamline the border processes will be in vain.”

From October 2023 to March 2025 researchers conducted field visits, interviews, and consultations. Their report recommended 78 specific reforms to improve border processes, upgrade infrastructure, digitalize systems, and better support women traders.

ITC, through the ECOWAS Agricultural Trade Programme (EAT), partnered with the ECOWAS Commission, German development agency GIZ, and national authorities to conduct the study.

The survey took place amid major changes in the region. In recent years, Burkina Faso has withdrawn from the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS), to form a new alliance with neighbours Mali and Niger, which have also found themselves in a leadership crisis. For member states of the ECOWAS bloc, the trio’s partnership continues to raise concerns about future trade policies, border protocols, and regional cooperation. However, businesses remain committed to strengthening cross-border trade.

On 3 March 2025, the Ghana Shippers Authority and ITC gathered more than 20 experts to review the study. ECOWAS officials, policymakers, customs officials, business leaders, and development partners took part.

They lauded the success of Burkina Faso’s Trade Portal (BurkTP), an online platform that gives step-by-step instructions on how to export and import into the mineral-rich country. Ghana was encouraged to set up a similar system, with support for transport services and with information in more languages.

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Virtual Linkage System for Import and Export Operations could aid Burkina-Ghana trade

The Virtual Linkage System for Import and Export Operations (SYLVIE) has improved customs processes in Burkina Faso and is billed to to add flexibility to make corrections and to add costs that affect agrifood products.

A regional consultation in Accra on 6 and 7 March 2025 prioritized 18 of the study’s 78 recommendations. Key priorities include better agency coordination, digital tools, corridor security, and support for traders—especially women.

Going forward, targeted reforms in security, management, and access to trade information could make Paga-Dakola a more efficient, transparent, and inclusive trade hub that can withstand the region’s changes.