Ouagadougou - Post Report Question and Answers
Do you have any recommendations regarding mobile phones? Did you keep your home-country plan or use a local provider?
I have a local phone with local SIM. - Jun 2020
Recommended to get a local SIM card for your unlocked phone. - Oct 2019
Bring an unlocked phone and get a local SIM card. - Jul 2019
Use a local provider. - Jul 2019
We use Orange network, which works pretty well in Ouagadougou but connection is spotty outside the city. - Dec 2017
Embassy provides cell phones to officers and SIM cards to officers and EFMs. Otherwise, credit can be purchased anywhere, including at most red lights. A surprisingly large amount of the country, and nearly all of the capital, has 3G. - May 2016
Bring an unlocked phone and buy a local SIM with scratch cards for adding credit. - Aug 2015
Local cell phone service is cheap and easy. - Jun 2015
I have an unlocked iphone that works great with a local sim. - Jan 2015
An in country SIM is the best way to go. I recommend at least 2 providers, as one system may go down. This may be in a dual-SIM phone or one better and one back-up phone. - Jul 2013
They are cheap and mostly pre-paid. Bring a GSM phone unlocked. - Jul 2013
Bring a GSM phone and choose one of the two local service providers. - Apr 2013
Don't bring a CDMA phone. Bring a GSM phone, get it unlocked if it's from the U.S., and you can have it on the network here in no time; just buy a SIM card from a guy on the street. They do have EDGE network, but I haven't seen 3G here, much less 4G. The country has remarkably good cell phone coverage, even in the far north and south. - Nov 2012
Easy to get and fairly cheap. The embassy issues all employees a phone. - Aug 2010
Cell phones are easy to use and lots of people have them. - Aug 2008
Good cellphone plans are available and phones themselves are inexpensive. And you can buy phone cards at EVERY (and I mean every) street corner from the boys who come up to your car. - Jul 2008
If you bring one with you, make sure it's a quad band so you can use it in the U.S., Europe and here. Once here, you can buy a SIM card very inexpensively and then just recharge the minutes as needed (I use a Blackberry with no problems anywhere). - Jun 2008
