Burkina Faso — Gay Travel Index 2026

Name: Burkina Faso — Gay Travel Index 2026
Creator: GayOut
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

10/100

High risk #179 of 207

Score = Legal 10/60 + Scene 0/40 = 10/100 · thin scene coverage — legal-weighted provisional score

Updated 7 Oct 2026 · release 2026.3.

A live score, not an annual report — it recomputes as laws, rulings and the scene itself change. See what moved in 2026.

Legal composite · Legal milestones · Scene on the ground · Frequently asked questions

⚠ Criminalized

Same-sex intimacy is criminalized or actively repressed here. Consult your government travel advisories before any trip; this listing is informational, not an endorsement of travel.

Legal composite — 10/60 points

Criminalization	Newly criminalized
Partnership	● No not recognised
Anti-discrimination	● No
Gender recognition	Not possible — no legal gender recognition
Enforcement reality	Active enforcement — arrests and prosecutions continue

Research note: 2025 family code Art 2103, enforced November — GayOut Index 2026.3 legal research (ILGA World / Human Dignity Trust / Rainbow Europe / Equaldex).

Legal composite, five components

Fulfilment per component (100 = maximum). Weights: criminalisation 35% · partnership 20% · enforcement 20% · anti-discrimination 15% · gender recognition 10%.

Legal milestones

Background, not travel advice — how the current status came to be. For planning a trip, rely on the current score, tier and scene sections above; 2026 movements are tracked in the sourced change log.

1996Same-sex activity remained legal under Burkinabe law, with an equal age of consent implemented this year. ↗
2024The military junta adopted a draft family code making consensual same-sex relations and their promotion criminal offenses. ↗
2025The transitional parliament unanimously criminalized homosexuality for the first time, with two to five years imprisonment and deportation for foreigners. ↗
TodaySame-sex relations and their promotion stayed criminalized, and the community reported fear of persecution and widespread self-censorship. ↗

Sources: ILGA World · Human Dignity Trust · Equaldex. Each milestone links to a reference source ↗.

Scene on the ground — 0/40 points

LGBTQ+ venues listed

Dedicated gay bars

Gay saunas

Cities with a scene

Pride parades

Queer film festivals

Detailed scene metrics (for researchers)

Gay bars per million	—
Saunas per million	—
Events per million	0
Coverage grade	—
Scene score	0/40 (raw scene index 0/100)

Frequently asked questions

Is Burkina Faso safe for gay travellers?

Burkina Faso is rated High risk on the GayOut Gay Travel Index 2026: same-sex intimacy is criminalized or actively repressed. Its legal safety component is 10/60. On enforcement reality, arrests and prosecutions continue.

Is same-sex marriage legal in Burkina Faso?

No. Same-sex marriage is not legal in Burkina Faso. Overall legal status: Newly criminalized.

Does Burkina Faso have a gay scene?

GayOut currently lists no LGBTQ+ venues in Burkina Faso, so any gay scene is limited, informal or not publicly documented.