In April 2017, the Aga Khan Group, who at that time was the majority shareholder in Air Burkina, announced its complete divestiture of interests in the airline. This led to the nationalization of the company. Nearly a year later, the state of Burkina Faso, which has taken over the management of the national airline, is working to make it efficient and effective in the face of competition. A restructuring plan is being developed. In this context, on February 20th 2018, the airline’s management held a working meeting with the Minister of Transport and Urban Mobility, Vincent Dabilgou.

The national airline, Air Burkina faces tough competition. For fifty years, it has been the flag carrier, a symbol of national sovereignty for “The Country of Honest Men”. After the withdrawal of the Aga Khan Group, the airline must live on and be the pride of Burkina. That is why the Burkinabe government is working to restructure Air Burkina "to enable it to regain strength and cope with this air competition”, said Vincent Dabilgou after a two-hour working session with the airline’s management.

The two parties first discussed the internal changes necessary to foster strategic and competitive management within the airline. Then they talked about the state's role in revitalizing the company. And every Burkinabe must play his part. "Very soon, we will build a new vision for our national airline. We are getting ready to face the air market with a much more powerful tool. We are in a very competitive sector and we must be patriotic. The new Air Burkina that we want to build requires the support of all Burkinabe, and we must love what we create”, said Vincent Dabilgou.

Based on a strategic business analysis, a restructuring plan for Air Burkina has been proposed. In the months and years to come, we will have a successful and efficient airline. But, first the company needs better management. "We have found a lot of management deficiencies and we are taking internal measures to rationalize what we are doing, to establish a management style based on equity and performance. Measures that have already led to significant results, particularly in economic terms”, said Blaise Sanou, the Managing Director of Air Burkina.

"The measures we have taken, especially in catering, have saved 32 million CFA francs in the last eight months. Throughout 2017, we managed to save about 100 million CFA francs. Also, we have taken other measures that will show results in 2018. So, we expect a saving of 350 to 400 million CFA francs this year”, announced Blaise Sanou. This means that Air Burkina should be able to spread its wings further in the coming years. In any event, by May 2018, the company's strategic plan should be available to view.