Koudougou

Koudougou is the third city of Burkina Faso, a market and weaving town on the railway west of Ouagadougou, known for cotton cloth woven on narrow strip looms and for the dyeing that goes with it, and for a large market that serves the surrounding Mossi farming country. A biennial arts festival, the Nuits Atypiques, has been held there since the 1990s. The colonial-era railway buildings survive along the line.

Background

Koudougou lies on the Mossi Plateau in Boulkiemdé Province, 75 kilometres west of Ouagadougou, and had 160,239 residents in 2019, mainly Gurunsi and Mossi. The railway reached it in 1952, linking it with Ouagadougou and Abidjan, and as of June 2014 Sitarail ran a passenger train three times a week in each direction on the line, the only one in Burkina Faso. By road, the N13 passes through between Sabou and Yako, the N21 leads to Réo and the N14 to Dédougou. The city takes in 15 surrounding villages. Farming dominates the local economy, and there are also a university, small industries and a market.

Source: Wikipedia, "Koudougou"

Highlights

• The strip weaving - cotton cloth woven on narrow looms and stitched into panels.
• The market - the trading centre for the surrounding farming country.
• The railway buildings - the colonial-era structures along the line.
• The arts festival - the biennial event held in the town since the 1990s.

When to go

November to February is the cool dry season. The festival falls in the dry season in its years. March to May is extremely hot.

What to expect

The town has little set up for visitors and half a day covers it. Weaving is seen in workshops that must be found rather than visited. Rail services have been unreliable.

Nearby

Ouagadougou is east, and Sabou is southeast.

Key facts